Mandy McLean was jolted out of her sleep when the tail of a Boeing 777 slammed into the tarmac at San Francisco airport.
The Newfoundland native says in the chaos that ensued, she didnât know if she was awake or dreaming.
âI assumed we were in the air and we flew into something, so I was certain we were going to die,â McLean, 26, told Âéśš´ŤĂ˝. âWhen the plane landed, I wasnât sure what country I was in. It was a very surreal experience.â
McLean was travelling back from a conference overseas with her boyfriend, Ryan Boesch, when Asiana Airline flight 214 crashed on Saturday, killing two of the 307 passengers and crew on board, and injuring 180 others.
She was one of three Canadians on the flight.
âItâs exactly like they show in the movies. Everything is shaking, thereâs so much noise,â she recalled. âAs soon as the plane stopped, you could see smoke from the front of the plane, you could see orange flames developing on the side of the plane. It just smelled like burning metal.â
McLean, a graduate student at Stanford University, said it took a couple of minutes to reach an emergency exit, where she slid down the planeâs ramp.
Despite the panic, she said the evacuation was quick and efficient.
âWe walked away and sat down on the tarmac as all the emergency vehicles were flooding in,â she said. âWe just sat and watched the plane melt, essentially.â
McLean suffered a small cut on her head which required stiches, and Boesch suffered a sprained foot.
She said she considers herself lucky to have emerged from the crash virtually unscathed.
âI never expected to be in a plane crash, and if I was going to be in one, I never expected to walk off the plane. Especially a plane that large,â she said.
Officials investigating the crash said Monday that the plane was travelling âsignificantly belowâ the target speed during its approach and that the crew tried to abort the landing just before it smashed onto the runway.
The investigation will probe whether the pilot's inexperience with the type of aircraft and at the San Francisco airport played a role.
Asked if sheâll take a plane again, McLean said she already has a flight booked for early August.
âI think itâs probably good that I have a flight coming up, because itâs something I have to do,â she said.
âWhen I think about it, it still doesnât feel like it happened,â she continued. âItâs hard to believe that the plane crashed.â
With a report from CTVâs Joy Malbon