The engine simply stopped.
Antonio Sena was flying over the Amazon toward an illegal mine in Pará when his Cessna 210 lost power in midair. With 2.400 hours of experience, he managed to glide nearly 1.000 meters to a valley near the Paru River, on the border between Amapá and Pará. Before the aircraft burst into flames, he managed to take out a backpack, water, bread, a rope, and a kit with a knife, flashlight, and lighters.
Using his cellphone’s GPS and guided by the position of the sun, he plotted a route eastward. For 36 days, he walked through the jungle, lost 25 kilos, and dodged jaguars, caimans, and anacondas. He heard rescue planes for 5 days but was unable to signal them through the dense vegetation.
When the search teams had already called off the search, some Brazil nut collectors found him alive. Months later, he published a book recounting every detail of those 36 days during which he chose to survive without anyone’s help.
