The Cirrus SR22 pilot who pulled the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS) and was saved by a cruise ship about 250 miles east of Maui this week has released a selfie video of the incident. Leu Morton’s facial expression is incredibly calm despite the stressful situation and, through an open door, Morton’s video shows the parachute above the airplane moments before it hits the water.
In a “Good Morning America” report, Morton describes how he used his satellite phone to report his emergency, which he described as a malfunction in the fuel system. Whether it was the airplane’s fuel system or the system carrying the additional fuel required for the flight from California to Hawaii is unknown.
Morton spoke with the Coast Guard who directed him toward the cruise ship. He then described how he called his father, telling him he loved him. “Hopefully I’ll be able to tell you that again,” he said.
Morton circled near the cruise ship until it was time to deploy the parachute, which gently guided the airplane to the surface of the water. Once there, Morton pulled out the life raft and waited to be picked up by a crew from the cruise ship. A serious incident that could have ended in a tragedy instead concluded as smoothly as anyone could have imagined.
Or see the selfie video on ABC News here.
Watch the full video of the Cirrus chute deployment here.
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