Passenger 19C: A Memoir of Survival

Margo Siple was a passenger in seat 19C on the infamous flight of United Airlines Flight 232, flying from Denver to Chicago on July 19, 1989. One hour and seven minutes into the flight, the number 2 engine on the DC-10 exploded, causing complete hydraulic failure. Hydraulics in an aircraft is like the blood in your body-it is essential to have in order to stay alive and function. After forty minutes of trying to fly an uncontrollable jumbo jet, using just manual engine thrust, the cockpit crew maneuvered the aircraft to within inches of a possible landing in Sioux City, Iowa.

It was not to be. At the last minute, the plane slammed into the runway, then cartwheeling, as it was engulfed in flames, it seemed to explode with large pieces of the aircraft breaking off and being strewn along the runway. The cockpit and the tail section of the aircraft had completely separated from the main fuselage, while part of the main fuselage continued to tumble and travel at least 3/4 mile before coming to a stop upside down in the cornfield. With 296 souls on board, which included the flight crew, Margo was one of a very few who survived the crash without a scratch on her, while others were horribly injured or perished.

Passenger 19C is the story of Margo Siple's experience on the crippled aircraft, her survival, and the aftermath that changed her life, as well as other significant events that happened to her before and after the airline crash in which the adversity she faced challenged her and her faith numerous times. It is a book about surviving the multitude of adversities that we are all faced with during our lives so that we can apply our life lessons to each and every day that we are blessed with.

There was no other person in Margo's shoes on Flight 232, in seat 19C, just as there is no other person in the world that can tell your personal story. We are all significant and unique.