Vesna Vulović survives 10,000-meter fall after mid-air explosion

On January 26, 1972, Vesna Vulović, a flight attendant for JAT Airways, became the sole survivor of a mid-air explosion on Flight 367. The aircraft, a DC-9, departed from Copenhagen and was flying over Sebnitz, East Germany, when a bomb exploded in the luggage compartment.

The explosion caused the plane to break apart at an altitude of approximately 10,160 meters. The wreckage fell near the Czech village of Srbská Kamenice. Of the 28 passengers and crew members on board, Vulović was the only person to survive the fall.

Vulović sustained life-threatening injuries, including fractures to both legs, three vertebrae, her pelvis, several ribs, and a skull fracture. She was discovered by Bruno Honke, a local resident and former World War II rescuer. Due to the extreme nature of her survival, her feat is recognized in the Guinness World Records.