Former Costa Rica president describes pilots who landed stricken plane without landing gear as “extraordinary”

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October 16^th, 2015 (ICR News) The former president (1994-1998) of Costa Rica and current president of the National Liberation Party (PLN), Jose Maria Figueres, is describing the two young pilots who successfully put down an aircraft with stricken landing gear in which he was traveling Wednesday evening as “extraordinary.”

Speaking to reporters Thursday morning while still visibly shaken and even holding back tears, Figueres said he could only trust in God after the two young pilots informed him and another passenger that the aircraft’s landing gear was not functioning.

Figueres said that his biggest fear was that sparks from landing on the belly of the aircraft would reach its fuel tank “and we would be left to vaporize.”

Figueres thanked the “two extraordinary young pilots” for escaping the incident alive.

The former president also thanked emergency responders who he said surrounded him and fellow passengers the moment the stricken plane was set down, commending their response and professionalism.

Figueres was returning Wednesday evening to San Jose from a meeting in Santa Cruz, Guanacaste aboard a Piper PA-34-200 twin-engine aircraft along with another passenger and the two pilots.

After what is now believed to be a mechanical problem, the aircraft was forced to crash-land at the Tobias Bolanos Airport when the aircraft’s landing gear refused to deploy.

All onboard suffered only minor injuries.