Pilot, student escape flying fireball

A PILOT and his student have narrowly escaped plummeting to earth in a flying fireball after the Jabiru aircraft they were in caught fire mid-air yesterday.

Coral Coast Academy of Aviation owner and chief flying instructor Barry Whebell, 65, and his 77-year-old student from Gladstone were about 1000 feet off the ground when smoke appeared and flames started licking their feet through the floor of the student's aircraft.

“Every pilot's worst fear is fire because you can't control it - you've just got to land it as soon as you can,” he said.

Bundaberg Police, Queensland Fire and Rescue and Queensland Ambulance Services rushed to the Bundaberg Airport at about 3.15pm, to find the aircraft engulfed.

Mr Whebell said his experienced student was learning to fly the Jabiru he had just bought second-hand.

“In 40 years of flying I've never been through anything like that - it was certainly the closest I've ever come...” Mr Whebell said.

“We were lucky we were only 1000 feet up or might have been a different story.”

With his foot on fire, Mr Whebell said he tried to ignore the pain and focused on landing the plane.

Just moments after the pair landed and escaped, the aircraft erupted in flames.

“We just felt helpless - there was nothing we could do,” he said.

But Mr Whebell said the incident would not keep him out of the air.