Archibald News

After all the rain the past few weeks, Twin City Dragway was packed with racers and fans enjoying the great weather during the final Bayou Classic races.

The following is a reprint of a column that was originally published in Gambit. It just gets better all the time.

When the pilot of the twin-engine Beech aircraft passed out and died mid-flight, passenger Doug White of Archibald, Louisiana, took over the plane and landed it safely: "We've had situations where passengers land airplanes before, but this is the first time I actually heard a controller actually tell the passenger to push this button and turn this ...

A Louisiana man with limited flying experience managed to safely land a two-engine turboprop on the weekend after the plane's pilot died suddenly.

Doug White is a hero in Lee County and in his hometown of Archibald, La., though he'd probably scoff at the notion.

Doug White and his family had just enjoyed a smooth takeoff and were ascending through the clouds when the pilot guiding their twin-engine plane tilted his head back and made a guttural sound.

The pilot, Joe Cabuk, was unconscious. And though White had his pilot's license, he had never flown a plane as large as this.

'I need help. I need a King Air pilot to talk to. We're in trouble,' he radioed.

Then he turned to his wife and two daughters: 'You all start praying hard.' Behind him, his wife trembled. Sixteen-year-old Bailey cried. Eighteen-year-old Maggie threw up.