Good Samaritan Honored for Rescuing Plane Crash Survivors

Nathan Gansert was driving home on University Drive when he noticed something terrifying: a plane overhead was losing altitude fast. Moments later, he found it crashed and overturned near South Florida State Hospital.

Inside were two survivors—a student pilot and her flight instructor—both injured and trapped. Without hesitation, Gansert jumped from his car and ran to help one woman climb out while assisting the other to safety.

The crash happened on May 29 when the aircraft experienced engine failure shortly after takeoff from North Perry Airport. The pilot attempted an emergency landing but couldn't make it back safely.

"I noticed I didn't see it in the sky anymore," Gansert recalled. "I turn the corner, turn the other corner and see tree branches on the ground. I did what I do best and I guess that being a human."

On Wednesday, Pembroke Pines city leaders honored Gansert in a ceremony for his lifesaving actions. Pembroke Pines Commissioner Jay Schwartz, who owns the flight school connected to the aircraft, personally thanked him.

"You saved our girls," Schwartz told Gansert during the ceremony. "One of them is watching right now. When things get better, we're going to get together."

Sunny's Take

In a moment when most people would freeze or pull out their phones, Nathan Gansert did something different. He ran toward danger to help complete strangers, refusing to call himself a hero and instead just calling it "being a human."

His humility speaks volumes about everyday courage. While investigators look into what caused the engine failure, there's no question about what caused two people to survive that day: one person's split-second decision to help.

Both survivors are expected to make full recoveries, giving them the chance to one day thank their rescuer in person.