Vulovic was 23 and working as a Yugoslav Airlines hostess on Jan. 26, 1972, when the Douglas DC-9 airliner she was aboard blew up high above the snowy mountain ranges of Czechoslovakia. Read about our approach to external linking. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. Picture: AP . Vesna Vulovi . Vulovic entered the Guinness Book of Records in 1985 for "the highest fall survived without a parachute.". Vesna Vulovic, a Serbian woman who in 1972 survived a reported six-mile fall after the plane she was on exploded over Czechoslovakia, died last week at age 66, according to several media reports. Guinness World Records Kids (opens in a new window), GWR Merchandise Store (opens in a new window), Corporate Social Responsibility activities & fundraising ideas, Community engagement & tourism marketing activities. Farm Heroes Saga, the #4 Game on iTunes. Vesna Vulovic died in Belgrade in December 2016, at the age of 66. Submit [4] Vulovi attributed her recovery to her "Serbian stubbornness" and "a childhood diet that included chocolate, spinach, and fish oil". 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). Vesna Vulovi was a Serbian flight attendant who holds the Guinness world record for surviving the highest fall without a parachute: 10,160 m . "If you can survive what I survived," she said, "you can survive anything. In addition to her extensive bodily injuries and her fractured skull, her brain had also hemorrhaged and she had total amnesia. (File Photo) Verna Vulovic cheated death one fine day and lived to tell her horrific tale. Oh yeah, except for the fact that she fell 33,000 fucking feet and lived to tell the tale. BELGRADE, Serbia -- Vesna Vulovic, a Serbian stewardess who miraculously survived a plunge from 33,000 feet after her plane exploded in mid-air in 1972, has died. After traveling to London to learn English, she realized her love of traveling. He didn't want to go out at all. Vulovi's parents told her that she first learned of the crash about two weeks after it occurred. 174350084. subject named as. From the crash, Vulovi had sustained two broken legs, three broken vertebrae, a fractured pelvis, broken ribs, and a fractured skull. Though no arrests were ever made, Yugoslav authorities suspected that a Croatian ultranationalist terrorist group, the Ustashe, were behind both bombings. [3] The last thing that Vulovi could remember from before the crash was greeting passengers as they boarded. 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. The cause of death is not yet known. She never regained memory of the accident or her rescue. Though it seemed impossible that anyone could have survived such a crash, Honke soon realized that someone had. [3] In 1985, The Guinness Book of World Records recognized Vulovi as the world record holder for surviving the highest fall without a parachute: 10,160 metres (33,330ft; 6.31mi). "Nobody ever expected me to live this long.". It was suspected that a bomb had been planted inside the jet during a stopover in Copenhagen. [3] JAT felt that her presence on flights would attract too much publicity and instead gave her a desk job negotiating freight contracts. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Upon returning to Belgrade, Vulovi decided to become a flight attendant after seeing one of her friends in a flight attendant's uniform. The DC-9 broke up midflight at 33,000 feet (10,160 metres) and crashed into a wooded area in Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic). BREAKING NEWS: Status Quo guitarist Rick Parfitt dies in Zara and Mike Tindall reveal they have lost their baby after Pavement where disabled woman gestured at cyclist before fatal crash, Dozens stuck in car park as staff refuses to open gate for woman, Incredible footage of Ukrainian soldiers fighting Russians in Bakhmut, Pro-Ukrainian drone lands on Russian spy planes exposing location, 'Buster is next!' [10] No arrests were ever made. A bomb exploded on board, causing the plane to split in half and violently spin out of control. Vulovi became a celebrity in Yugoslavia and was deemed a national hero. [3] Vulovi's parents had to sell both of their cars to pay for her treatment. She went on to put her celebrity at the service of political causes, protesting against Slobodan Miloevis rule in the 1990s and later campaigning for liberal forces in elections. When Vesna awoke from a coma two weeks after the crash her body was ravaged. Do you know this baby? She seems not to have lived the life of a celebrity at all and to have kept mostly to herself, Eric Gordy, a cultural and political sociologist at University College London who studies the former Yugoslavia, said in a phone interview. 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. She was thus officially acknowledged as having surpassed the records of other fall survivors, such as Alan Magee, Juliane Koepcke, Nicholas Alkemade, and Ivan Chisov. However, her cause of death is unknown at this time. Credit: Alamy. As her death-defying tale continues to fascinate people around the world, she will also live on as a symbol of survival against all odds. Filip Horvat for The International Herald Tribune. The cause of death was not immediately known. Published: 11:57 EST, 24 December 2016 | Updated: 08:47 EST, 25 December 2016. A brother appears to have been her only survivor. 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. Vesna Vulovic, an air stewardess who survived the highest ever fall by a human being after her plane broke up at 33,000ft (10,000m), has died aged 66. She eventually made a full recovery but never regained memory of the incident, as she explained in a 2002 interview with Green Light Limited. The comments below have not been moderated. Some sources suggest that Vulovi's employment was terminated in 1990. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Both of her legs had been broken along with three vertebrae, multiple ribs and a fractured pelvis. 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. 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. Serbia's state TV reports Saturday Dec. 24, 2016, Vulovic was found dead by her friends in her apartment in Belgrade, aged 66. BELGRADE, Serbia -- Vesna Vulovic, a Serbian stewardess who miraculously survived a plunge from 33,000 feet after her plane exploded in mid-air in 1972, has died. She had a fractured skull, two crushed vertebrae and a broken pelvis, ribs and legs. Katie Serena is a New York City-based writer and a staff writer at All That's Interesting. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, The Associated Press contributed to this report. Do not sell or share my personal information. Serbia's state TV said Ms Vulovic was. Vesna Vulovic, an ex-air stewardess who survived a 10 kilometre fall to Earth, is seen in a 2008 file photo. The wreckage of the JAT Flight 367 crash. No arrests were ever made. date of death. 23 December 2016. Flight attendant Vesna Vulovi set record for highest fall survived without a parachute, said to be 10,000 metres. Folk Figure. 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. When is Eurovision and how do you get tickets? All 27 other passengers and crew aboard perished. You learn something new every day; what did you learn today? Show more Show. The cause of death was not known. [1][2] She was discovered by villager Bruno Honke, who heard her screaming amid the wreckage. (The Associated Press) She beat the odds by surviving a 10,000-metre (33,000 feet) fall from a plane, and became a national hero in Serbia because of it. The aircraft broke apart in mid-air before falling 33,330 feet down to the ground in Srbsk Kamenice, Czechoslovakia. "I was broken, and the doctors put me back together again," she told the New York Times in 2008. On the 35th anniversary of the disaster, in 2007, Zdenko Kubik, a firefighter, recalled: I heard a sound like that of military jets landing. The cause of death was not immediately known (pictured in 2008). [6] She received the recognition at a London gala from musician Paul McCartney. retrieved. List of sole survivors of aviation accidents or incidents, "Vesna Vulovic, Flight Attendant Who Survived Jetliner Blast, Dies at 66", "Vesna Vulovic, air stewardess who survived a plane crash obituary", "Vesna Vulovic: How to survive a bombing at 33,000 feet", "Serbia's Most Famous Survivor Fears That Recent History Will Repeat Itself", "Vesna Vulovic: Flight Attendant Who Survived Mid-Air Explosion and 33,000-foot Fall, Dies at 66", "Njemaki mediji o sluaju JAT 1972: Napad hrvatske emigracije je plod mate tajnih slubi", "Vesna Vulovic, stewardess who survived 33,000ft fall, dies", "Official Abstract of the Final Report (English)", "Highest fall survived without parachute", "Bask in the Bracing Unsentimentality of Vesna Vulovic, the Only Person to Survive a 1972 Plane Crash", "Fate or fluke? Other crew members saw him, as did the station manager in Copenhagen. 2016 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Vulovic was found dead in her Begrade apartment, The Washington Post and BBC report, citing Serbias state TV. 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. She was rushed to a hospital, where she fell into a coma for 10 days. [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. On 26 january 1972 an explosion on JAT Flight 367 (Jugoslavenski Aerotransport) caused the plane to break apart. [4] Honke had been a medic during the Second World War and was able to keep Vulovi alive until rescuers arrived. Vesna Vulovic's record fall Communist propaganda, say journalists, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, Serbia must choose between EU and Russia, says Germany, Serbia bans its first staging of EuroPride rally at late notice, Its a win for us: Serbias cancelled EuroPride exposes ongoing LGBTQ+ struggle, Serbian president Aleksandar Vui wins new term by landslide. 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. How she managed this isn't entirely clear, but the . If I were lucky I would never have had this accident and my mother and father would be alive. 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. 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. BELGRADE, Serbia Vesna Vulovic, a Serbian stewardess who miraculously survived a plunge from 10,000 metres (33,000 feet) after her plane exploded in mid-air in 1972, has died. Belgrade. Vulovi was fired from JAT in the early 1990s after taking part in anti-government protests during the breakup of Yugoslavia, but avoided arrest as the government was concerned about the negative publicity that her imprisonment would bring. Based on secret documents mainly from the Czech civil aviation authority, unearthed after more than a year of research, Peter Hornung and Pavel Theiner said they did not believe the aircraft had been blown up by Croatian nationalists as the Yugoslav government, backed by Czechoslovakian authorities, claimed. I felt for them. DR ELLIE CANNON: My breast has not got lumps but it's itchy, should I be concerned about cancer at age 72? The cause of death was not immediately known. [8] Yugoslav authorities suspected that they were to blame for bringing down Flight 367. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. As fate would have it, Vesna was not actually scheduled to be working on Flight 367, as she revealed in a 2002 interview with Green Light. She had no memory of the incident and had no qualms about flying in the aftermath of the crash. The flight path, between Stockholm in Sweden and Belgrade in Serbia, took the aircraft over Czechoslovakia - now the Czech Republic - and that is where the plane exploded into three pieces. 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. Ms. Vulovics improbable story began on Jan. 26, 1972, in Copenhagen, where she was assigned to a Yugoslav Airlines crew for a flight to Belgrade. When she found out a friend was becoming a flight attendant and traveling the world, she jumped at the chance. However, her cause of death is unknown at this time. The cause of death was not immediately known. Vesna Vulovic, an air stewardess who survived the highest ever fall by a human being after her plane broke up at 33,000ft (10,000m), has died aged 66. Vulovi later campaigned on behalf of the Democratic Party, advocating for Serbia's entry into the European Union. Ms Vulovic was working on board a Yugoslav Airlines flight that crashed in 1972. Vesna Vulovic was a stewardess back in the '70s working on a Serbian airline. Additionally, Vesnas physicians determined that her low blood pressure caused her to quickly pass out when the cabin depressurized, which prevented her heart from bursting upon impact. According to investigators, Vulovic was trapped by a food cart in the plane's tail section as it plummeted to earth in freezing temperatures. [3] She later campaigned on behalf of the Democratic Party and advocated for Serbia's entry into the European Union, which she believed would bring economic prosperity. She fainted upon being shown a newspaper headline by her doctor and had to be tranquilized. She had no memory of the crash or of anything from the following month. [9] A man, describing himself as a Croatian nationalist, called the Swedish newspaper Kvllsposten the following day and claimed responsibility for the bombing of Flight 367. Vulovic was the only survivor of the 26 January, 1972 bomb blast over the Czech town of Srbska Kamenice which killed 23 passengers and five crew. You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! Her final years were spent in seclusion, and she struggled with survivor guilt. English Wikipedia. Her remarkable survival half a century ago means that Flight 367 is always likely to attract study, although the precise. She was 66. An instant national heroine, she went on to put her celebrity at the service of political causes, protesting against Slobodan Milosevic's rule in the 1990s and later campaigning for liberal forces in elections. [3][d] She attributed the divorce to her chain smoking, which her husband disapproved of. Legal Statement. WHAT MAKES A GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS TITLE? 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). Vesna Vulovi continued to fly until her death in 2016. 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. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. She was rushed to hospital where she fell into a coma for 10 days. [3][6], Air safety investigators attributed Vulovi's survival to her being trapped by a food cart in the DC-9's fuselage as it broke away from the rest of the aircraft and plummeted towards the ground. She avoided arrest because the government was concerned about the negative publicity that her imprisonment would bring. Though she realized that JAT had confused her with another attendant named Vesna, she agreed to join anyway. It quickly spiralled to the ground, crashing into a village in what was then Czechoslovakia. [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. "[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). [b] She also suffered two broken legs and three broken vertebrae, one of which was crushed completely. Vesna Vulovic's Ascendant in her annual horoscope for 1971/1972 is at the eighteenth degree of Gemini. "[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. They never reached the second stopover in Zagreb, Croatia. "I am like a cat, I have had nine lives," she told the New York Times. She was 66. Vesna Vulovic in hospital in Prague following the crash. The cause of death was not immediately known. She had a fractured skull, two crushed vertebrae and a broken pelvis, ribs and legs. "I thought, 'Why shouldn't I be an air hostess? Of the 28 passengers and crew, Vesna Vulovi was the only survivor. Although she passed away in December 2016 at the age of 66, Vesna Vulovi will live on forever as an anti-nationalist heroine. Ms. Vulovic was rescued by a woodsman who followed her screams in the dark forest. Vesna Vulovic in her later years (via Twitter) According to another account, on this specific airliner, a terrorist cell known as Ustashe had planted a strong device. 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 Vulovi was born in Belgrade on 3 January 1950. Though her injuries could have left her permanently paralyzed or even dead, within 10 months of her fall Vesna Vulovi was walking again. She continued for two more decades to fight against nationalism. They claimed that the very thing that almost kept Vulovi from being a flight attendant is what ultimately saved her life. Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. place of burial. "I was found with my head down and my colleague on top of me. It was there that I met up with a friend who suggested we go to Stockholm. Vulovi underwent several operations to restore her movement. 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. Serbias state TV said Saturday Vulovic was found dead by her friends in her apartment in Belgrade. I looked up to the sky and saw bodies, suitcases, chunks of the plane falling down.. Following the bombing, Vulovi spent days in a coma and was hospitalised for several months. Trees broke the fall of the fuselage section and snow on the hill cushioned its landing. The world's highest stuff: notes, basketball shots, backflips and more! 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. A week after Anthony Veasna So, an emerging author on the cusp of success, died unexpectedly at age 28, a far-flung but tightknit literary community is in shock and mourning over what might have . ", "Too good to be true? On January 1972, Vesna Vulovic, who was working as a flight attendant for Jugoslavenski Aerotransport, was… Continue reading Vesna Vulovic: Flight Attendant Who . The Sun reports that the cause of death was not immediately known. The stewardess was temporarily paralysed from the waist down by the fall but in time she made a near-full recovery and returned to work for the airline in a desk job. The small section she was in fell to the ground on a heavily wooded, snow-covered hillside. As part of the Guinness World Records Hall of Fame ceremony in 1985, Paul McCartney presented Vesna with a certificate and medal for achieving the highest fall survived without a parachute. 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 not scheduled to be on that flight; she had been mixed up with another flight attendant who was also named Vesna (wikipedia: Vesna Vulovi? Serbia's state TV said Saturday that Ms. Vulovic was found dead by her friends in her apartment in Belgrade. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic). The cause of death was not immediately known. All rights reserved. 1 Vesna Vulovic: The Stewardess Who Survived a terrorist attack at 33,000 feet. She said in 2008 that she could only recall greeting passengers before takeoff from the airport in Denmark and then waking up in the hospital with her mother at her side. The fuselage tumbled through pine branches and into a thick coating of snow, softening the impact and cushioning its descent down the hill. 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 .