In a story that defies all logic and belief, Vesna Vulović became an unwitting legend after surviving a plane explosion and a freefall from 33,000 feet — an altitude no human is supposed to survive. Her name is etched in history as the sole survivor of JAT Flight 367, and her tale remains one of the most incredible feats of human endurance ever recorded.
A Routine Flight Turns Tragic
It was January 26, 1972, and JAT Flight 367 was making its way from Stockholm to Belgrade, with stops in Copenhagen and Zagreb. For the 22-year-old Vesna Vulović, a flight attendant with Yugoslav Airlines, it was another day on the job. She had swapped shifts with a colleague to be on this flight, an accidental twist of fate that would change her life forever.
The plane had just left Copenhagen and was cruising over what is now the Czech Republic when disaster struck. A bomb planted in the luggage compartment detonated, tearing the McDonnell Douglas DC-9 apart in mid-air. All 27 passengers and crew were presumed lost as the wreckage plummeted from the sky.
But Vesna Vulović’s story was far from over.
The Impossible Survival
Amid the wreckage, one person was miraculously found alive: Vesna, who had been pinned inside part of the aircraft’s fuselage. Her descent was slowed by the section of wreckage she was trapped in, as well as by the dense snow in the forested area of Srbská Kamenice, Czechoslovakia.
The first person on the scene, a local villager named Bruno Honke, heard her cries and rushed to help. Vesna’s injuries were catastrophic—she had suffered a fractured skull, three crushed vertebrae, a broken pelvis, and multiple other fractures—but against all odds, she was alive.
Vesna was rushed to a hospital, where she fell into a coma. Doctors later called her survival a “medical miracle,” attributing it to a combination of the wreckage’s cushioning and her unusually low blood pressure, which may have prevented her heart from bursting during the fall.
Recovery and Recognition
It would take months of intensive care and rehabilitation for Vesna to regain consciousness and begin to recover. Despite initially being paralyzed from the waist down, she stunned doctors by learning to walk again.
Her survival earned her a place in the Guinness World Records as the sole survivor of the highest fall without a parachute. Her fame spread worldwide, and her story became a beacon of hope, even in the shadow of the tragedy that took the lives of everyone else aboard.
A Life Defined by Fate
Following her recovery, Vesna attempted to resume work with JAT but was reassigned to a desk job due to the intense media attention surrounding her. For years, she lived a quiet life in Belgrade, occasionally giving interviews but often expressing discomfort with her fame.
She remained outspoken about her survivor’s guilt, often emphasizing that her survival was nothing short of a bizarre twist of fate. Vesna later became involved in political activism, particularly during the turbulent 1990s in the former Yugoslavia.
A Legacy That Soars
Vesna Vulović passed away in 2016 at the age of 66, leaving behind a story that continues to fascinate and inspire. Her survival remains a subject of curiosity for scientists and a symbol of hope for the world.
While the tragedy of JAT Flight 367 will always be remembered, so too will the extraordinary resilience of Vesna Vulović—a woman who fell from the heavens and lived to tell the tale.
Her story is a powerful reminder that even in the darkest moments, miracles can happen.
