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I was the sole survivor of a plane crash at the age of 11

In 1979, a small plane carrying 11-year-old Norman Ollestad and three others crashed into a mountainside in California. Norman had to make his way down the mountain alone.

When a plane carrying 11-year-old Norman Ollestad, his father and his father鈥檚 girlfriend, got caught in a snowstorm and crashed into the California mountains in 1979, Norman was the only survivor. Stranded on the edge of a cliff, Norman relied on the skills his father had taught him throughout his childhood to make it down the treacherous mountain to safety. 27 years later when Norman was married and had a son, he decided to return to the crash site to find out what really happened - there he made an extraordinary discovery.

Norman's memoir is called Crazy For the Storm. He has also written a short story called Formentera about the fraying relationship of a married couple.

The archive you heard comes courtesy of CBS.

Picture: Norman Ollestad
Credit: Courtesy of Norman Ollestad

Presenter: Mariana Des Forges
Producer: Mariana Des Forges

Get in touch: outlook@bbc.com

Available now

41 minutes

Broadcasts

  • Tue 27 Jul 2021 11:06GMT
  • Tue 27 Jul 2021 17:06GMT
  • Wed 28 Jul 2021 02:06GMT

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Podcast: Lives Less Ordinary

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