A plane crash survivor’s search for answers
In 1979 a plane carrying 11-year-old Norman Ollestad crashed into the California mountains. The sole survivor, he returns to the crash site 27 years on and makes a discovery.
When a plane carrying 11-year-old Norman Ollestad, his father and his father’s girlfriend got caught in a snowstorm and crashed into the remote California mountains in 1979, Norman was the only survivor. Stranded on the edge of a cliff, the boy relied on the skills his father had taught him throughout his childhood to make it down the treacherous mountain to safety. In this episode Norman decides to return to the crash site 27 years later and while there, makes an extraordinary discovery.
Part 1 of this story is available on the Outlook website, it is called 'I was the sole survivor of a plane crash'.
Norman Ollestad’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.
Get in touch: outlook@bbc.com
Presenter: Mariana Des Forges
Producer: Mariana Des Forges
Picture: Norman Ollestad
Credit: Courtesy of Norman Ollestad
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