Engine Failure on a Storm Flight over the North Sea

An engine failure during a storm flight over the North Sea brought Hans Bieri, then a young professional pilot in Germany, to the very edge of life and death. What began as a routine passenger flight to the island of Borkum turned into a dramatic fight for survival above the raging waves. In his autobiography «Ruf vom Himmel» (Call from Heaven), Bieri recounts this harrowing experience.

Why did I volunteer for this death flight?

"Why I put myself forward for that flight, I still don't know to this day — it was pure suicide," Hans Bieri recalls of that sultry afternoon in Emden. Thunder was already rolling ominously toward the sea when the chief walked into the flight office looking for a pilot.

A government official urgently needed to be flown to the island of Borkum. Every other pilot stayed silent — the weather was too dangerous. But Bieri stood up and volunteered.

The passenger with his briefcase had no idea what he was getting himself into. Three minutes after take-off they were already airborne, with a pitch-black storm front building directly ahead of them.

Into the black hell

The clouds were spiralling upward as Bieri flew toward the coast. That was the moment to turn back. Instead, he radioed: "Crossing coast" — and steered straight into the black wall of storm.

A minute later he was in hell: visibility absolute zero, heavy rain, the aircraft pitching and rolling like a feather. Thunder and lightning alternated in seconds, while the deafening noise drowned out everything.

Bieri was well aware of the danger of carburettor icing when air cools rapidly. He carried out the carburettor check and pulled the hot-air lever. But at that precise critical moment, the unthinkable happened.

Mayday over the raging North Sea

The engine cut out. The revs dropped almost to zero. Bieri immediately sent a Mayday call: "Callsign: DEGNU, engine failure over the North Sea, between Emden and Borkum."

With a quick movement he reached under his passenger's seat and handed him a life jacket. "Put it on!" he shouted over the noise. The government official's face had turned ash-grey.

There was no time to reach his own life jacket — a desperate situation, because Hans Bieri could not swim. Below them the North Sea raged, above them the storm, and the engine was dead.

When faith becomes the only hope

In moments like these, between life and death, a person's true character is revealed. Hans Bieri's deepest conviction is captured in the words: Jesus Christ — the beginning and the end, the centre of my life, my rock of salvation, my light, my redeemer, yesterday, today, and forever.

What happened in the next few minutes above the raging North Sea — how the young pilot fought with the dead engine and whether rescue came — these dramatic details are recounted by Bieri in his autobiography «Ruf vom Himmel» (Call from Heaven) with shattering honesty.

Why is flying through a thunderstorm so dangerous? Storms bring extreme turbulence, zero visibility, hail, and the risk of carburettor icing. The rapid cooling of the air can cause engine failure, while lightning and violent updrafts and downdrafts can render an aircraft uncontrollable.