A female pilot showed she had the "right stuff" as her family plane was about to crash-land in the Atlantic Ocean.
Her priority was avoiding the swimmers and paddleboarders who were near the Boca Raton shoreline, according to witnesses to the plane crash.
ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE.
— Gunther Eagleman™ (@GuntherEagleman) August 24, 2026
23-year-old Faith was flying her family’s plane solo when something went wrong.
She crashed into the Atlantic Ocean near Boca Raton — but somehow kept enough composure to steer toward open water and avoid paddleboarders, swimmers, and even people with… pic.twitter.com/swAUsqqrJR
Faith Tenkley was flying her family's plane from Fort Myers to the Bahamas to pick up her parents when she noticed that something had gone terribly wrong.
The 23-year-old woman realized that the right engine of the plane had gone out, as she said in an interview with Gulf Coast News.
Tenkley had taken off from Page Field in Fort Myers that morning with a fairly ordinary mission: Fly the family plane across the water to Bimini and pick up her parents.
The 23-year-old had been flying for four years. But about 15 miles west of Boca Raton, the plane began having mechanical problems.
Her first instinct was to get the aircraft onto solid ground. She turned toward Boca Raton Airport and prepared for an emergency landing. Then another problem emerged. The landing gear broke.
Tenkley still had a significant amount of fuel onboard, and trying to put the plane down on a runway without functioning landing gear suddenly presented another danger. A hard landing could potentially spark a fire.
And then things got worse. The right engine on the twin-engine aircraft failed.
With her options rapidly disappearing, Tenkley made a decision: She would take the plane down in the Atlantic. But first, she had to get there.
As she approached the coastline, Tenkley maneuvered around buildings and then spotted paddleboarders in the water below. She kept looking for an opening until she found a clear stretch of ocean near the beach. Then she brought the plane down.
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Beachgoers had little warning that an aircraft was about to land practically in front of them.
“One second I'm spraying sunscreen on my kid. The next I'm looking up and saying, ‘Is that supposed to be happening?’” Maria Marks told WPBF.
Michael and Alexis Arizzi were nearby on a boat with their toddler when they watched the aircraft descend.
“The plane was making a slow descent and delicately landed into the water,” Alexis recalled.
Against the odds, Tenkley managed a controlled water landing, keeping the aircraft intact and escaping without injury. Within about a minute, a lifeguard had reached her. Fire rescue arrived shortly afterward.
Faith Tenkley, 23, survived and safely landed her plane in the Atlantic off Boca Raton, Fl after a mechanical failure and broken landing gear. Andrew Dymburt reports on the stunning water landing as she avoided paddleboarders before rescue crews arrived. https://t.co/iTr2iKcmwx pic.twitter.com/UpaBlb42Xx
— World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) August 24, 2026
Tenkley thanked emergency services personnel and those who publicly supported her throughout the ordeal.
"I want to express my deepest gratitude for the concern and support following my unexpected water landing yesterday. I am incredibly fortunate and relieved to share that I was able to swim away from this incident. After deciding a landing at Boca Raton Airport was not the safest option I continued to the coast. During the descent my primary focus was ensuring the safety of everyone around me. I was able to navigate toward open water, successfully avoiding all nearby buildings, paddleboarders, and swimmers (as well as individuals using metal detectors). I am incredibly fortunate and relieved to share that I was able to swim away from this incident."
"I want to extend my thanks to ATC for being prepared, as well as the lifeguards, firefighters, and police officers whose rapid response and professionalism ensured everyone's safety. As well as any witnesses who called for help," Tenkley added.
The plane wasn't so fortunate. It initially remained largely intact on the surface, but slowly began disappearing beneath the Atlantic. Hours later, only its tail remained above the water as crews prepared to recover it.
The FAA identified the aircraft as a Piper PA-39 and is expected to investigate the series of mechanical failures. Tenkley, meanwhile, walked away from an emergency that kept getting progressively worse: first mechanical trouble, then failed landing gear, then the loss of an engine — followed by a forced landing in the ocean.
It's the quiet heroism of people who would be the last to call themselves "heroes" that makes the world a better place. One pilot's awareness and selflessness turned a potential tragedy into a hell of a story.
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