Could a teen survive a plane crash and plummet 10,000 feet to the Amazon rainforest below? Truth is sometimes stranger than fiction. While one German teen was arriving back at the research facility her parents ran, disaster struck. The unlikely event has sparked speculation, but the true story is one of the most remarkable bits of non-fiction you’ll ever read.
Juliane Koepcke
Before she survived a plane crash, Juliane Koepcke was the only child of zoologists Maria and Hans-Wilhelm Koepcke. At the time of her birth, Juliane was in Lima, Peru with her parents, who worked at the Lima Museum of Natural History. She graduated from the Deutsche Schule Lima Alexander von Humboldt on December 23, 1971, a mere day before the plane crash.
Christmas Eve, 1971
Juliane’s mother wanted her daughter to return to the research station Panguana on the 19th or 20th of December, but Juliane insisted on attending her graduation. The delay led to chartering LANSA Flight 508. Disaster struck when the plane was struck by lightning in mid-air, causing catastrophic damage. The plane crash would send the wreckage plummeting to the ground, while Juliane was still strapped to her seat and falling toward the jungle canopy.
The Fall
Juliane’s row of seats fell a remarkable 10,000 feet, crashing into trees and all other manner of things on the way down. Miraculously, Juliane survived the plane crash but was severely injured in the process. Her collarbone was broken, a deep gash was on her right arm, and she suffered a concussion and eye injury in the process. Further, she was miles away from any semblance of civilization.
Days Alone
For the next nine days, Juliane was alone in the jungle following the plane crash. It was just her and the wilderness. Thankfully, she was taught some survival skills in the years before this took place, but the odds were against her. Despite her wounds and injuries, she navigated following a creek. The hope was to find some semblance of civilization, and subsequently be rescued.
Salvation
The ninth day yielded perhaps the best luck Juliane had stumbled upon. A local encampment run by lumberjacks stood alone in the woods. By this time, Juliane was dealing with copious insect bites and a botfly infestation in her right arm’s open wound. Hours later, the lumberjacks returned, treating her wounds and transporting her to a nearby village so she could be airlifted.
The Aftermath
After being airlifted to a hospital, Juliane was found to be the only survivor of the plane crash. While in recovery, she assisted authorities in searching for the wreckage and other survivors. It was at this time that her mother’s body was discovered. Juliane would return to Germany, where she recovered fully from her injuries and resumed her life.
Juliane’s Life After
The plane crash is a defining moment in Juliane’s life, but she has since gone on to rival her parents’ accomplishments. She received a doctorate and returned to Peru, running the same research station her parents worked on. These days her life is spent as the librarian at the Bavarian State Collection of Zoology in Munich.
The image featured at the top of this post is ©hanohiki/Shutterstock.com.
