CANBERRA, July 30 (Xinhua) -- An Australian pilot has been praised for saving the lives of himself and his wife after the plane crash in the South Australian Outback.
Jamie McAlindon and his wife Elke are in a stable condition after their light plane landed at William Creek airport, 823 km north of Adelaide, on Sunday.
The pair were trapped in the wreckage waiting for emergency services after the nose and front wheel of their plane collapsed on landing, flipping itself on to its roof.
McAlindon, 54, suffered internal injuries. The extent of Elke's injuries were not made public but she is in a stable condition in hospital.
According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), their friend Lance Bagster said that McAlindon was a former military pilot with many years of aviation experience.
"Even after the accident, and though upside down, trapped and injured Jamie had the instinct to secure the engine (shut it down) and turn off the fuel taps," said Bagster.
The couple left their home in Perth on Friday, heading east for a sightseeing tour of the outback including Lake Eyre, containing the lowest natural point in Australia and Uluru which will officially be closed to climbers in October.
The accident came less than a month after two people were killed in a plane crash near Leigh Creek Airport which is also in the remote South Australia Outback.
