80-year-old woman safely lands plane after husband dies during flight

A twin-engine Cessna sits at Door County Cherryland Airport near Sturgeon Bay

An 80-year-old woman landed her husband's Cessna plane with no prior experience of flying after he'd passed out on the controls.

Helen Collins recently had to do what she had never even imagined of doing. The 80-year-old woman was confronted with a situation in which she could either fly and land a plane or die along with her husband. Helen chose to live by flying and landing a plane, which was very low on fuel. Helen's husband, 81-year-old John Collins, was the actual pilot of the plane and had slumped over the controls during the flight due to a heart attack. Instead of panicking over the situation, she gained a grip on herself and took the controls of the Cessna.

The incident took place in the skies of northeaster Wisconsin on Monday when the couple was on their way back home from a Florida fishing trip. When John Collins died on the controls, Helen Collins called the sheriff's dispatch center for help.

"She was circling for an hour-and-a-half when the tanks were actually registering no fuel," Helen and John Collins' son, Richard, 55, told msnbc.com. "Usually you have 45 minutes. She had to be running on fumes, and I mean fumes."

According to the details provided, the Collins, who live in Sturgeon Bay, Wis., had last fueled up in Georgia before they continued their flight after giving a short call to Richard before taking off. But tragedy struck at around six miles south of Door County's Cherryland Airport. John had a heart attack and fell unconscious. When Richard and his brother heard the news, they reached the airport's dispatch center. In the mean time, a local pilot flew up to be by Helen's side and guided her through radio instructions on how to land.

As time passed by, people on ground were debating whether to make her land at the Cherryland Airport or the larger Green Bay Airport. However, a quick decision had to be made as Helen radioed shortly after 6 p.m. that she had run out of fuel. So keeping the situation in mind, Helen was made to land at the Cherryland Airport and miraculously, she made an amazing landing.

Helen Collins did not suffer any major injuries, but sadly John Collins had passed away.

This incident shows that when it comes to a life and death situation, man does make his best effort to survive despite all odds.