A paraglider in Austria is lucky to be alive after a sightseeing plane nearly wiped her out in a terrifying mid-air collision that was caught on video.
The shocking incident happened Saturday afternoon over northern Austria, near the Schmittenhöhe mountain region.
The paraglider, identified only as 44-year-old Sabrina, was soaring through the sky when a Cessna 172 suddenly collided with her canopy.
Video of the terrifying moment shows the small aircraft tearing through the paraglider’s canopy, shredding it and sending Sabrina spiraling wildly out of control thousands of feet above the ground.
For a few horrifying seconds, it looked like disaster was unavoidable.
With her main canopy badly damaged, Sabrina fought to stay calm as she plunged toward the earth. During the chaotic descent, she managed to deploy her emergency parachute.
That quick decision likely saved her life.
WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW:
According to Salzburg State Police, the 28-year-old pilot of the Cessna 172 told authorities he was unable to avoid the collision.
“The propeller of the motor plane severely damaged the paraglider, prompting the experienced paraglider to deploy her reserve parachute,” police said.
Despite the terrifying impact, Sabrina managed to make a safe emergency landing on a forest road.
Police said a helicopter later located her and airlifted her to Zell am See Airport.
Miraculously, both Sabrina and the pilot escaped without serious injuries.
“The woman from Upper Austria made a safe emergency landing on a forest road,” police said. “She was then airlifted by police helicopter to Zell am See Airport. Both parties escaped injury.”
Footage taken after the crash landing reportedly showed Sabrina removing her gear while clearly stunned by what had just happened.
Later, Sabrina reflected on the near-death experience on Instagram, saying May 23 will always feel like a second birthday to her.
“I actually still can’t believe that I’m sitting here typing this,” she wrote, according to an automated translation.
She said she walked away with only bruises and general contusions.
“Apart from a few nasty bruises and some general contusions, nothing really happened,” she wrote.
The terrifying video has stunned viewers because of how close Sabrina came to disaster.
One moment, she was calmly gliding through the sky. The next, a plane’s propeller tore into her equipment and left her falling out of control.
Somehow, she stayed calm enough to pull her reserve parachute and survive.
For Sabrina, a routine flight over the mountains became the kind of nightmare most people would not survive.
But thanks to quick thinking, experience, and a little luck, she lived to tell the story.
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