Abhiroop Das
Helmed by Manu Boyer, Lifetime’s ‘Pushed off a Plane and Survived’ tells the story of Jaynie, a young woman who seems to have made it in life, but still feels an immense sense of loneliness. When a charming man arrives in her life, things seem to be looking up, and the chances of a genuine relationship become stronger by the day. On one such day of celebration, Jaynie’s partner suggests a particularly thrilling activity: skydiving together, and while she is scared at first, the thrill and euphoria of it all soon take over. However, that joy is short-lived, as a peculiar turn of events soon transforms this thriller movie into a horror-fuelled journey. As Jaynie struggles to save her life amidst a state of chaos, the darkest shades of the people around her begin to reveal themselves, creating a story rooted in real feelings of trust, betrayal, and loss.
Pushed off a Plane and Survived is Likely Based on the Story of Victoria Cilliers, Who Fell 4,000 Feet and Lived
While Lifetime has confirmed that ‘Pushed off a Plane and Survived’ is based on a true story, the exact events that inspired the story haven’t been disclosed as of writing. Lifetime is no stranger to dramatized recreations of real-life incidents, and writers Gregory Small and Richard Blaney have likely put in a lot of research to make this movie as realistic as possible. Given the premise, the most likely parallel to real life comes from the story of Victoria Cilliers, who in April of 2015 survived a 4,000-foot fall after a skydiving incident in Wiltshire, England. While her fall was initially assumed to be an accident, later investigations found it to be a case of foul play by none other than Victoria’s husband, Emile Cilliers.
Born in 1974, Victoria is an experienced parachutist and skydiving instructor with well over 2,000 jumps under her belt. Her skydiving session on Easter Sunday in 2015 was meant to be a similarly smooth experience, but as she hovered over Netheravon airfield, both her main and reserve parachutes failed, causing her to fall a full 4,000 feet, or 1,200 meters, at the speed of 60 miles an hour. Against all odds, Victoria fell on a freshly plowed field and managed to survive, but with extensive injuries. Reports indicate that she suffered from a broken spine, fractured ribs, and pelvis.
Victoria’s Fall Was Revealed to be an Attempted Murder by Her Husband
It is believed that Victoria’s relatively small frame, coupled with the soft soil where she crashed, played a role in the 41-year-old’s miraculous survival. In a conversation with The Independent, Victoria added that it was “a combination of luck (and) trying to slow it down” that helped her make it out of the fall alive. In the immediate aftermath of the incident, the Army Parachute Association reportedly raised suspicions regarding foul play and contacted the police. In the follow-up investigation, Emile Cilliers emerged as a prime suspect, and three years after the fall, in May of 2018, he was found guilty of attempted murder.
Victoria and Emile first met in 2010, while she was serving as a physiotherapist in the British army. Following their marriage, they had two children, with the youngest being only a few weeks old in April of 2015. Reportedly, Emile had twice attempted to take Victoria’s life, the first being a gas leak he caused six days before the sky-diving incident. Fortunately, Victoria smelled the gas before it got any worse and even found blood stains on the gas valve, which were later confirmed to be Emile’s. After this, he reportedly suggested the skydiving session as a surprise gift for Victoria and personally offered to get her a parachute from the store. Records indicate that he sabotaged the chute in the toilet with the specific intention of killing Victoria and claiming her life insurance. All of these details eventually came to light in court, following which Emile was sentenced to life in prison, with a minimum of 18 years.
Pushed off a Plane and Survived Adds a Creative Spin to Tales of Heroism
While Victoria’s story may have been a strong influence for ‘Pushed off a Plane and Survived’, it is likely that many of the movie’s details are invented in nature and exist solely to enrich the plot. Additionally, it is likely that the movie is also informed by other survival stories of a similar nature. In 1972, flight attendant Vesna Vulović survived the bombing of JAT Yugoslav Airlines Flight 367, as well as the subsequent fall from a height of 33,333 feet, or 10,159 meters. The crash left her with a fractured skull, two broken legs, pelvis, and several other injuries, and while she was initially paralyzed from the waist down, Vulović successfully regained her ability to walk within 10 months of the incident.
As of writing, Vulović holds the Guinness World Record for the highest fall survived without a parachute. Her story, much like Victoria’s, continues to serve as an evergreen reminder of human perseverance against nigh-insurmountable odds, and ‘Pushed off a Plane and Survived’ taps into that same thematic thread. In a conversation with Tamron Hall on the Tamron Hall Show, actor Eva Marcille, who essays the lead role of Jaynie, expressed how she has always been fascinated by true crime stories. To that end, the adaptation of a real-life incident to the screen allowed the actor to push her own limits as an artist, adding to the movie’s intensity.
Read More: Is Lifetime’s Murder and Mayhem at Mardi Gras Based on a True Story?
You must be logged in to post a comment.