Branch Oak Lake Airliner Ditching

Bryce Miller was on a flight from O'Hare to LAX when the supervolcano erupted. The aircraft engines failed when they ingested ash from the eruption and the captain announced he was going to attempt a "Sully" into Branch Oak Lake, a reference to Chesley Sullenberger's successful water landing on the Hudson River.

The aircraft had turned around when the eruption had occurred and tried to reach Lincoln, Nebraska before the turbulence and ash caught up to it. The captain put the engines to full power and dropped altitude to land as quickly as possible. However, the shock wave of the eruption reached the plane before it touched down and silenced the engines.

The captain came on the intercom and explained the situation. He reassured the passengers that he, like "Sully" had practiced simulator water landings many times. When the time came, he ordered the passengers to take the braced position and proceeded to do his best. The airliner's belly smacked the surface of the lake and skipped once like a flat stone. It then came to rest floating on the lake allowing all passengers to exit before it sank. They were rescued from the lake by local volunteers with powerboats.