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Shortly before noon on May 10, 2022, a Cessna Caravan bound from Marsh Harbor in the Bahamas to Fort Pierce, Florida, was cruising at 12,000 feet at around 180 knots. They expected to land in 30 minutes. The weather was clear and sunny. Ken Allen was the pilot on board with his two passengers, Russ Franck, a close friend of his, and Darren Harrison, who was seated behind in the cabin. Allen had been flying for over 30 years and owned a couple of aircraft he would use to take people on short trips. However, this trip would be like no other trip they'd been on.Franck was not a pilot, but was seated in the co-pilot's seat. He liked to watch what was going on, but didn't want to fly, although Allen had offered to teach him. They'd been on a fishing trip. Harrison had no flying experience but liked to listen to the chatter on the headsets. He'd previously flown with Allen before on a flight where he'd been instructing a friend. Allen warned the student pilot to watch his airspeed. Harrison asked what happens if you fly too fast, as there were "no cops around." Allen said, "We rip our wings off, and we become a lawn dart." The caravan was cleared to descend to 10,000 feet. Meanwhile, at Palm Beach International Airport, air traffic controller Robert ‘Bobby' Morgan was not supposed to be working that day, but he was covering for a co-worker. His shift was from 7:30 AM to 3:30 PM; he was on a break and reading a manual about seaplanes. As well as working in ATC, Morgan was a pilot and instructor with around 1,200 flight hours and loved to fly. "Do your homework, don't take chances, be conservative," he would always advise as an instructor.An incapacitated pilot at 10,000 feetBack in the skies, Allen suddenly said he felt unwell and said that maybe he was dehydrated. Moments later, he had passed out. He slumped to the left and inadvertently disengaged the autopilot. Harrison made his way into the cockpit, although the aircraft was now in a steep right-hand dive. The Caravan's maximum speed was around 190 knots, and anything faster could be catastrophic. Harrison commented, "Not today. I ain't dying today!" The aircraft was falling at an alarming rate, and the speed hit 295 knots. Harrison could feel the force of the dive in his face. When he reached the cockpit, all he could see was the ocean and Allen slumped over. Harrison grabbed the pilot's yoke, and Franck took the other yoke. He thought practically and realized he needed to stop the aircraft from diving and level off. They had fallen 3,500 feet. He remembered what Allen said about airspeed breaking the wings off.Franck was worried he'd have to try to fly the aircraft as Harrison had no flying experience. The aircraft leveled at 8,000 feet and gained some altitude from the previous 6,500 feet. Harrison tried to calm Franck, telling him it would be ok. He managed to remove Allen from the cockpit while relying on Franck to keep it level and hoped he would not panic.Once in the pilot's seat, Harrison didn't know how to operate the headset. Two of three digital screens were black. Harrison took the headset from Franck, whose hands were still on the yoke. Harrison thought that the best chance of Allen's survival was to head for Florida. He found the compass and worked out to fly west and turn right. It had been just three minutes since Allen had fallen unconscious. An air traffic controller instructing the passenger in a plane he's never flownHarrison continued to fly the aircraft for 12 minutes, but had no idea how to work out the radios or frequencies. Somehow, he managed to contact a controller at Fort Pierce, who handed them over to controllers at Palm Beach. They were now at 9,500 feet and 15 miles from the coast. Harrison said: "I've got a serious situation here. My pilot has gone incoherent [and] I have no idea how to fly the airplane."Morgan was called back to the radar room. The supervisor on duty explained that the pilot was incapacitated and two passengers were flying the plane. They thought that he was the best person to deal with the emergency as he was a pilot and instructor. He asked what type it was, but he was not familiar with the Cessna Caravan. Morgan managed to contact Harrison and said he'd get them to the nearest available airport. He knew that to continue talking was essential to keep things calm and to avoid using jargon. He told him that Boca Raton was seven miles out and 11 o'clock on a clock face. But there was the busy I-95, residential communities, and the Everglades to consider, not ideal for an emergency landing with no pilots. Morgan referenced two photos of the single-engine turboprop flight deck to familiarize himself and could use them to guide the passengers. He could explain to a surprisingly calm Harrison where the throttle was and what information was on the one working screen. Morgan offered clear, short directions on how to fly and confirmed that the passenger understood each instruction.Morgan decided to change the airport to Palm Beach International, as there were larger runways and had better emergency equipment. Morgan told him to turn north, but very slowly. He should keep the coast on the right and follow the interstate roads. He coached Harrison down to 4,000 feet and told him to look to the horizon, where he should be able to see the runway. Morgan had him maintain altitude and fly by the airport on the first pass. He then told Harrison to do a 270-degree turn and land on the second pass. They tried to get the flaps engaged twice, but Harrison was afraid they would go into a dive again. They decided on a no-flaps landing, but it may be too fast.Morgan guided the passenger through a long, stable final approach. He described what the runway was going to look like as the plane descended. Once the aircraft was over the runway, Morgan explained to the passenger how to keep the nose barely off the ground until the main gear touchdown. The Caravan was now at 2,000 feet and a speed of 136 knots. At Palm Beach International Airport, takeoffs and arrivals were halted, runways were cleared, and emergency equipment was in place. The aircraft was now down to 1,650 feet but at a speed of 143 knots. Morgan hoped that the no-flaps landing wouldn't keep the aircraft running too fast for the landing. He told them to pull the throttle back — the aircraft was now at 740 feet and 130 knots."How do I stop this thing?"Morgan could no longer see the aircraft on the radar but could still talk to them. Around ten seconds later, Harrison said: " I'm on the runway, how do I stop this thing?" Morgan told him to put his feet to the top of the rudder pedals and push down. The plane came to a halt at 12:27. Franck described Harrison as being ‘robot-like' in the incident, and it wasn't until they stopped the aircraft that he could see his hands shaking and that he was indeed human.Allen was taken to the nearest hospital; he had suffered an aortic dissection. He had urgent heart surgery and survived the incident. Miraculously, he later returned to flying and took his surgeon on trips. Harrison got to visit the control tower and meet Morgan. He returned to normal life with his then 6-month pregnant wife and then daughter. Of the frightening experience, he said, "I was just trying to stay alive." That anyone could survive such an emergency situation was incredible, but in this case, there were multiple miracles.The aftermath and recognitionThe NBAA recognized FAA ATC controller Robert Morgan with the Above and Beyond Award for Heroic Achievement in October 2022. "Robert Morgan's quick-thinking, professionalism, situational awareness and calm demeanor were instrumental in successfully managing a critical emergency situation, saving all three people onboard from injury and allowing the incapacitated pilot to receive timely medical care," said NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen. "For his actions that day, we are pleased to present Robert with our 2022 NBAA Above and Beyond Award." Regarding lessons learned, Morgan himself would say, "Do your homework, don't take chances, be conservative".