2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. "[4][16], In 2009, Peter Hornung-Andersen and Pavel Theiner, two Prague-based journalists, claimed that Flight 367 had been mistaken for an enemy aircraft and shot down by the Czechoslovak Air Force at an altitude of 800 metres (2,600ft), far lower than the official altitude of 10,160 metres (33,330ft). Thehorrors of Mariupol should remind us of a new danger to Sarajevo, Russians using Serbian loophole to avoid EU flights ban, Russia may pressure Serbia to undermine western Balkans, leaders warn, Iron Curtain by Vesna Goldsworthy review belonging and betrayal, Illegal extradition of Bahraini dissident from Serbia calls Interpols role into question. She suffered a fractured skull, two broken legs, three broken vertebrae, a fractured pelvis, several broken ribs and temporary paralysis below the waist. 50 years on, this remains the highest fall survived without a parachute ever. Speaking of . State TV in Vulovic's home country of. Serbias state TV said Saturday Vulovic was found dead by her friends in her apartment in Belgrade. The Serbian flight attendant holds the Guinness record for highest fall survived without a parachute. Vulovic was rescued by a woodsman who followed her screams in the dark forest. She was in the rear of the plane with a food cart when the fuselage broke apart. [20], In the early 1990s, Vulovi and her husband divorced. Oh yeah, except for the fact that she fell 33,000 fucking feet and lived to tell the tale. GET IN TOUCH WITH A RECORD SPECIALIST (Opens in a new window), Rumeysa Gelgi, tallest woman living, breaks three new records, Love is in the air as highest speed dating event record is set on board jet plane. All 27 other passengers and crew. In response to the attack, airport security measures were tightened in the country. Ms. Vulovic was working as a Yugoslav Airlines flight attendant on Jan. 26, 1972, when the Douglas DC-9 airliner she was aboard blew up high above the snowy mountain ranges of Czechoslovakia. [13][23] Vulovi said that she was aware of the journalists' claims, but stated that because she had no memory of the event, she could not confirm or deny the allegations. [10] No arrests were ever made. When was the accident bound to have happened? The guards changed shifts every six hours, and no one was allowed in to see her except for her parents and doctors. [8] Yugoslav authorities suspected that they were to blame for bringing down Flight 367. They claimed that the very thing that almost kept Vulovi from being a flight attendant is what ultimately saved her life. Other crew members saw him, as did the station manager in Copenhagen. Just 46 minutes into the fight, disaster struck. [b] She also suffered two broken legs and three broken vertebrae, one of which was crushed completely. While other passengers were reportedly sucked out of the plane by the change in air pressure, Vesna found herself jammed in place by the food cart, trapped in the plane's broken fuselage as it hurtled 33,333 feet to the ground. Vesna Vulovic, who survived a midair explosion in 1972, has died at the age of 66. Ne propustite. It quickly spiralled to the ground, crashing into a village in what was then Czechoslovakia. Submit [7] Vulovi said that she was aware of her low blood pressure before applying to become a flight attendant and knew that it would result in her failing her medical examination, but she drank an excessive amount of coffee beforehand and was accepted. When Miloevi and his Socialist Party of Serbia were ousted in the Bulldozer Revolution of October 2000, Vulovi was among several celebrities who took to the balcony of Belgrade's city hall to make victory addresses. She fainted upon being shown a newspaper headline by her doctor and had to be tranquilized. Air crash sole survivors", "Kako je Vesna Vulovi preivela avionsku nesreu nad ehoslovakom '72: udo nije bila prava re", "Woman Who Fell to Earth: Was Air Crash Survivor's Record Just Propaganda? [10] The Czech Civil Aviation Authority dismissed the journalists' claim, calling it a conspiracy theory. Initially paralyzed from the waist down, Ms. Vulovic eventually made a near-full recovery and even returned to work for the airline in a desk job. BEOGRAD - Vesna Vulovi, stjuardesa nekadanjeg jugoslovenskog JAT za koju je uo itav svet poto je preivela avionsku nesreu i pad sa 10.000 metara, danas je sahranjena na Novom groblju u prisustvu brata i ezdesetak prijatelja i poznanika. [3], The secondary crew of JAT Flight 367, flying from Stockholm to Belgrade with stopovers in Copenhagen and Zagreb, arrived in Denmark on the morning of 25 January 1972. Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. or redistributed. In 1971 she joined JAT Airways, Yugoslavias national flag carrier and the countrys largest airline. While even short drops can be lethal, people have survived horrendous falls. online interview with Green Light Limited. Ms. Vulovic was working as a Yugoslav Airlines flight attendant on Jan. 26, 1972, when the DC-9 airliner she was aboard blew up high above the snowy . She was fired from her job at the airline in 1990 after taking part in protests against President Slobodan Milosevic but avoided arrest. If I were lucky I would never had this accident and my mother and father would be alive. Read about our approach to external linking. "[21] Vulovi lamented that her mother and father might not have died prematurely had she not been aboard Flight 367, stating that the incident not only ruined her life, but also those of her parents. It is certain that the other passengers and crewmembers had similar horoscopes, as well. She remembered greeting passengers for the flight, and then nothing until she saw her parents in her hospital room. While many other passengers were sucked out of the plane after the explosion, Vulovi became pinned by the cart. "[21] Vulovi declined therapy to help cope with her experiences and instead turned to religion, becoming a devout Orthodox Christian. She was not scheduled to be on that flight; she had been mixed up with another flight attendant who was also named Vesna (wikipedia: Vesna Vulovi? Mind-bending optical illusion that makes your brain IMAGINE a color that doesn't exist leaves the internet baffled, Kellyanne Conway's soon-to-be ex-husband George looks despondent without his wedding ring after couple announced they are divorcing, New heartbreak for Liz Hurley, 57, as third former partner dies: Actor Tom Sizemore, 61, suffers fatal brain aneurysm a year after her ex-fiance Shane Warne's death from a heart attack at 52 - while father to her son Damian lost his life to suicide in 2020, All 28 aboard died apart from Vulovic, who would break record for highest fall. Ms. Vulovic entered the Guinness Book of Records in 1985 for the highest fall survived without a parachute.. When I told my parents I was living in the Swedish capital, they thought of the drugs and the sex and told me to come home at once." After learning about Vesna Vulovi and her record-breaking fall from the sky, check out Juliane Koepcke, who survived an extreme fall and then an 11-day trek through the jungle. Juliane Koepcke, who survived an extreme fall and then an 11-day trek through the jungle. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. She suffered a fractured skull, three broken vertebrae, broken legs, broken ribs, and a fractured pelvis. How She Stared Down Death: Except for surviving countless ass gropings during her time as a stewardess there was really nothing special about this lady. However, this claim was debunked by flight data obtained from the aircrafts black boxes, which provided exact data regarding the planes altitude, acceleration, direction and speed at the time of the explosion. She continued to fly occasionally, she said, without any fear. Vesna Vulovic died in Belgrade in December 2016, at the age of 66. She was 66. Honke, the man who found Vulovi alive after the crash, had a granddaughter born six weeks after her fall; she was named Vesna in Vulovi's honour. She recalled that she should not have been there; another flight attendant, also named Vesna, was supposed to be on the roster. The world's highest stuff: notes, basketball shots, backflips and more! If I were lucky I would never have had this accident and my mother and father would be alive. Vulovic was found dead in her Begrade apartment, The Washington Post and BBC report, citing Serbias state TV. She was 66. Fortunately, Bruno Honke, the villager who discovered her, had been a medic during World War II and was able to keep her alive until rescuers arrived. Air safety investigators believe that Vulovis position within the aircraft at the time of the explosion helped her survive the fall. Miracle woman who survived '33,000ft fall', "Sestelen jugoslvskho letadla echy by se neutajilo, mn pamtnk od radaru", "Remembering Vesna Vulovi, flight attendant who survived 10,000-metre fall from plane", "Stewardesse overlevede fald p 10.000 meter", "Sahranjena legendarna stjuardesa koja je preivela pad sa 10 hiljada metara", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Vesna_Vulovi&oldid=1142131761, Survivors of aviation accidents or incidents, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles containing Serbian-language text, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 28 February 2023, at 17:58. What we know so far about the Chinese spy balloon and other objects shot down by U.S. Ozempic-like drug Wegovy coming to the U.K. at a fraction of U.S. price. Vesna Vulovic, a Serbian flight attendant who survived a 10,000-meter plunge after her plane exploded mid-air in 1972, has died at the age of 66. . December 24, 2016, 2:49 AM BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) Vesna Vulovic, a Serbian stewardess who miraculously survived a plunge from 10,000 meters (33,000 feet) after her plane exploded in mid-air in. She was the sole survivor after an explosion tore through the baggage compartment of JAT Flight 367 on 26 January 1972, causing it to crash near Srbsk Kamenice, Czechoslovakia. Ms. Vulovic returned to work at Yugoslav Airlines later in 1972, but to an office job in which she negotiated freight contracts, not as a flight attendant. What science tells us about the afterlife. El avin sufri una explosin en su parte delantera que provoc que se partiese en dos y se precipitase desde una altura de 10.000 metros sobre una ladera nevada de Kamenice, en la actual . Vesna Vulovi (2008) The cause of Flight 367's explosion and subsequent crash has been subject to several conspiracy theories over the years, the most popular of which suggested that the plane was mistakenly shot down by Czechoslovak anti-air missiles at a much lower altitude of 800 metres (2,600 ft). Murdaugh is heckled as he leaves court, Alex Murdaugh unanimously found GUILTY of murder of wife and son, Ukraine soldiers shoot down enemy drones with drones of their own, Missing hiker buried under snow forces arm out to wave to helicopter, Insane moment river of rocks falls onto Malibu Canyon in CA, Fleet-footed cop chases an offender riding a scooter, Two Russian tanks annihilated with bombs by Ukrainian armed forces, Isabel Oakeshott clashes with Nick Robinson over Hancock texts. Autoridades iugoslavas suspeitaram que nacionalistas croatas fossem os culpados, mas ningum jamais foi preso. Serbia's state TV said Saturday that Ms. Vulovic was found dead by her friends in her apartment in Belgrade. The accident ruined their lives, too. 2016 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. The cause of Flight 367s explosion and subsequent crash has been subject to several conspiracy theories over the years, the most popular of which suggested that the plane was mistakenly shot down by Czechoslovak anti-air missiles at a much lower altitude of 800 metres (2,600 ft). The length of time that Vulovi was comatose is the subject of considerable contradiction, with different sources indicating three days, A 2005 newspaper article published by the Croatian. However, her dream almost didnt come true. Vesna Vulovic, a Serbian air stewardess who miraculously survived a plunge from 33,000ft after her plane exploded in mid-air in 1972, has died aged 66. Serbia's state TV reports Saturday Dec. 24, 2016, Vulovic was found dead by her friends in her apartment in Belgrade, aged 66. More than three decades later, however, two investigative reporters in Prague challenged that conclusion, claiming that documents showed the aircraft may have been mistakenly shot down by the Czechoslovak air force at a far lower altitude of around 2,500 feet. Vesna Vulovic is found dead by her friends in her apartment in Belgrade, Serbia The cause of death was not immediately known, according to Serbian state TV She became an instant national heroine . I think he had checked in a bag in Stockholm, got off in Copenhagen and never re-boarded the flight. [3][4] Nevertheless, Vulovi said that she was excited to travel to Denmark because it was her first time visiting the country. Nobody ever expected me to live this long.. The Ustache was a far-right Nazi group in Croatia that was linked to more than two dozen terrorist operations against Yugoslavia following World War II. An instant national heroine, she went on to put her celebrity at the service of political causes, protesting against Slobodan Milosevics rule in the 1990s and later campaigning for liberal forces in elections. VESNA Vulovic, a Serbian air hostess who survived the highest ever fall after a plane exploded mid-air, has died aged 66. She remained an avid flyer and died in 2016 at the age of 66. Find a Grave memorial ID. The day after these events, Swedish newspaper Kvllsposten received a phone call from a self-described Croatian nationalist, who took credit for bringing down Flight 367. Vulovi underwent several operations to restore her movement. No arrests were ever made. The cause of death was not immediately known. Initially paralyzed from the waist down, Vulovic eventually made a near-full recovery and even returned to work for the airline in a desk job. Vesna Vulovi was found dead by her friends in her apartment in Belgrade, Serbian state television reported. About 18 years after she returned to work, she said, the airline forced her to retire for trying to persuade co-workers not to vote for Slobodan Milosevic, the Serbian nationalist and president known as the Butcher of the Balkans. She demonstrated in the streets against Mr. Milosevic, who died in jail before a verdict was reached in his trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Because his parachute was destroyed by the fire, Alkemade opted to jump from the aircraft without one, preferring his death to be quick, rather than being burnt to death. The cause of death was not immediately known. Maybe I was born in the wrong place. He managed to escape with a broken arm, minor scratches and bruises. On January 1972, Vesna Vulovic, who was working as a flight attendant for Jugoslavenski Aerotransport, was . The cause of death was not immediately known. Although we always love to see records being broken, this one is an exception and we hope no one ever experiences a fall like Vesna's again. On the 35th anniversary of the disaster, in 2007, Zdenko Kubik, a firefighter, recalled: I heard a sound like that of military jets landing. Call it a miracle or call it pure luck, but Vesna Vulovi was the only survivor of the crash. Both boxes were analyzed by specialists from Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia and the Netherlands, who confirmed that the plane had truly fallen from the stated height of 33,333 ft (10,160 m). WHAT MAKES A GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS TITLE? [18] Although she was advised by physicians that her injuries would not have an adverse effect on her reproductive function, Vulovi experienced an ectopic pregnancy that nearly proved fatal and was never able to have children. The cause of death was not known. An hour into the flight, the plane, a DC-9, blew up over the Czech village of Srbska Kamenice. "I initially stayed with my parents' friends in Newbury," she recalled, "but wanted to move to London. It was suspected that a bomb had been planted inside the jet during a stopover in Copenhagen. Katie Serena is a New York City-based writer and a staff writer at All That's Interesting. [15] Within ten months of her fall, Vulovi had regained the ability to walk, but limped for the rest of her life, her spine permanently twisted. People Most Convinced They're Always Right About Politics Overrate Their Knowledge The Most, The Seven Unbelievable Survival Stories Of Frane Selak, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. Credit: Alamy. Belgrade New Cemetery. [1] Vulovi's friends said that she had struggled with heart ailments in the years leading up to her death. Vulovis doctors concurred with the air investigators and added their own conclusions. At 1:30 PM on January 26, 1972, the crew met Flight 367 at the Copenhagen Airport and watched as the passengers and previous crew deplaned. You may unsubscribe from these communications at any time by visiting our unsubscribe page and providing your email address. She was a Serbian flight attendant, who came hurtling down towards the earth from 33,000 feet above and still survived the deadly fall. The cause of death was not immediately known (pictured in 2008). The first thing she did upon waking was ask for a cigarette. She never regained memory of the accident or her rescue. She had a fractured skull, two crushed vertebrae and she had broken her pelvis, several ribs and both legs. The cause of death was not immediately known. Vulovi?, 22 years old at the time, was a flight attendant on board. In January 1972 she was working as a flight attendant a Yugoslav Airlines DC-9 plane when it blew up over the snowy mountain ranges of what was then Czechoslovakia. Vulovic's record fall gained her celebrity status in her home country, A Yugoslav Airlines DC-9 identical to the one blown up in 1972, Harry: I always felt different to rest of family, US-made cheese can be called 'gruyere' - court, AOC under investigation for Met Gala dress, Alex Murdaugh's legal troubles are far from over, Walkie Talkie architect Rafael Violy dies aged 78, Mbappe breaks PSG goal record in win over Nantes, Saving Private Ryan actor Tom Sizemore dies at 61, The children left behind in Cuba's exodus. Vesna Vulovic, a Serbian flight attendant who holds the world record for surviving the highest fall without a parachute when her plane broke apart. Her remarkable survival half a century ago means that Flight 367 is always likely to attract study, although the precise. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. She was 66. Of the 28 passengers and crew, Vesna Vulovi was the only survivor. State TV in Vulovic's home country of. All 28 passengers and crew aboard perished, apart fromVulovic, who would enter the Guinness Book of Records for 'the highest fall survived without a parachute'. The cause of death was not immediately known. She joined JAT, the national flag carrier and dominant airline of Yugoslavia, in 1971. The fuselage tumbled through pine branches and into a thick coating of snow, softening the impact and cushioning its descent down the hill, crash investigators said at the time. imported from Wikimedia project. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Serbia's state TV said today Vulovic was found dead by her friends in her apartment in Belgrade. The cause of death was not immediately known. It was suspected that a bomb was planted inside the jet during a stopover in Copenhagen, Denmark, but nothing was ever proven and no arrests were made. [4] Honke had been a medic during the Second World War and was able to keep Vulovi alive until rescuers arrived. place of burial.