Elton John's Private Jet Forced To Make Emergency Landing After Suffering Hydraulic Failure At 10,000 Feet
Elton John's private plane was forced to make a scary emergency landing after experiencing hydraulic failure 10,000 feet in the sky.
Fire trucks and medical personnel rushed to Farnborough Airport in the United Kingdom on Monday in response to the mid-air drama. In photos obtained by The Sun, a raddled Rocketman can be seen eagerly climbing out of the plane once it touched down on its third attempt.
An eyewitness described the terrifying incident, telling the outlet, “The jet was being buffeted and couldn’t land. It was horrible to see.”
Elton's private jet — worth $89 million — had already left the airport and was heading to New York City when the incident occurred. An hour after wheels went up, the pilot was forced to turn back around when the small plane began suffering hydraulic failure.
According to The Sun, the pilot used his radio to declare the emergency landing to air traffic control — but the severe winds hitting 80 MPH made it difficult to control the plane.
Plumber Philip Thomson was at the scene working when the emergency landing happened. He described the scary ordeal, stating, “The terrible weather and epic gusts made it almost impossible to land. Two attempts to touch down failed."
“The plane was being buffeted and couldn’t make it. The aircraft’s nose was far too vertical. The plane was descending and was halfway along the runway when it gave up trying to hit the tarmac. It soared back in the air."
Revealing the storm made their second attempt worse, he continued, "The airport’s windsock was horizontal and the aircraft was being rocked from side to side by the wind."
“The pilot made a valiant attempt to get down with the jet ‘crabbing’ into the storm. But it didn’t make it and had to head back upwards."
The third time's a charm because the pilot finally got the plane to land.
According to another source, Elton was visibly shaken.
“It was a white-knuckle ride and Elton was shaken. But he put aside any personal anguish to get back on a plane. For Elton, quite literally, the show must go on," they said.
Elton ended up getting on a different plane later that day and making it to NYC. His Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour kicks off at Madison Square Garden tonight.