'Come back, come back!': British private school teacher screamed at Alana Cutland, 19, as she desperately held her leg before the Cambridge student leapt out of plane over Madagascar
Ruth Johnson, 51, (left) held on to Alana Cutland, 19, (right) for two minutes as she fought to jump out of the light aircraft in Madagascar. Alana, a Cambridge University student, had suddenly unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door of the plane (inset) five minutes after take-off. The 19-year-old, from Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, jumped to her death just minutes after being given safety instructions on how to open the door in an emergency. Mrs Johnson, a teacher, from Banbury in Oxfordshire, later did a reconstruction (pictured centre) of what happened for the authorities. Her husband today told MailOnline she was his 'Wonder Woman'. Mrs Johnson is a teacher at the £8,000-a-term Winchester House School, in Banbury. She spent three weeks in Madagascar teaching in remote village schools and donating clothes, games, books and classroom equipment. She had been staying at the remote Anjajavy Le Lodge in the north of the island where she met Alana. When the teenager's mental health began to deteriorate and her parents requested she come home early just eight days into a six-week trip, Mrs Johnson agreed to accompany her back to the UK
A British teacher who clung to a Cambridge student's leg before she leapt 5,000ft from their plane screamed at her: 'Come back, come back!'
As they soared above Madagascar, Ruth Johnson grabbed Alana Cutland as she opened the door – having just been shown how to do so in a safety demonstration.
She grappled with the student for two minutes as the light aircraft rocked from side to side. The pilot of the single-propeller plane even flew it one-handed as he used the other to try to close the door.
But Miss Cutland, 19, ignored the desperate pleas of Mrs Johnson, 51, a married mother of two from Banbury, Oxfordshire.
Local police chief Spinola Nomenjanahary said Mrs Johnson cried 'come back, come back!' but 'Alana said nothing back'.
'Ruth said it all happened so fast she was lucky to even catch hold of her leg in time,' he said. 'Eventually Ruth ran out of strength. Her own seatbelt was cutting into her.'
Mrs Johnson's tearful husband, Matthew Smith, said last night: 'She's our Wonder Woman. We are all so proud of her.
'She has been through a harrowing, awful ordeal and she just needs time and space to recover. Ruth was going out of her way to chaperone the poor girl and tried with all of her strength to save her life.
Ruth Johnson (pictured with her husband Matthew Smith) is the British teacher who frantically tried to stop Cambridge University student Alana Cutland (right) from jumping out of a plane at 3,700 feet
Mrs Johnson, 51, recreated her and the pilot's attempts to save Alana and stop her from jumping out when she fell from the Cessna-style light aircraft as it flew over Madagascar. The Brit teacher was sat in the back left seat when the student jumped
Alana opened the door – having just been shown how to do so in a safety demonstration minutes before she jumped
'Ruth's bravery was stunning. But at the end of it all, a family has lost a daughter. That's foremost in all our minds. We are all just so proud of Ruth. She needs time with her family to come to terms with what she witnessed.
'It will never leave her. It will stay with her for the rest of her life. We are all going to have to learn to live with it, one way or another.'
Mrs Johnson, a teacher at £8,100-a-term Winchester House School in Northamptonshire, held on to the natural sciences student's leg to stop her falling while half her body was hanging out of the four-seater Cessna 182.
But she could not prevent Miss Cutland, of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, from falling out and plunging an estimated 5,000ft.
Police and the military on the Indian Ocean island, off Africa's east coast, are still searching areas of the jungle roamed by cat-like carnivores called fossas. Gervais Damasy, the director of Madagascar's air accident investigation bureau, said pilot Mahefa Tahina Rantoanina, 33, had tried to shut the door with his right hand as he held the controls with his left.
Alana (right), 19, ignored the desperate pleas of Mrs Johnson, 51 (left), a married mother of two from Banbury, Oxfordshire
Gervais Damasy, the director of Madagascar's air accident investigation bureau, insisted there had been nothing wrong with the single engine Cessna carrying Alana and Mrs Johnson on the flight
Tragic Alana was hanging out of the plane (above) at 3,700ft for two minutes as the aircraft rocked from side to side with the pilot flying one-handed while desperately trying to close the door. Alana was sat in the back right-hand seat closest the door
Mr Damasy said Alana would have been given a demonstration of opening the door (pictured) in an emergency, saying: 'She would have been show how to open the door so she could escape on the ground if there was a problem like the pilot had died.'
He added: 'She [Mrs Johnson] was very brave. She did her best for her and the pilot did the same. The plane could have crashed.'
Investigators are probing whether Miss Cutland suffered a reaction to her anti-malaria drugs. The Mail can reveal the teenager had paranoia and hallucinations in the days before the tragedy, on the tropical Anjajavy peninsula where she was studying a rare species of crab during the summer holidays.
Dr Elodi, a Madagascan academic leading her on the project, said: 'She arrived on July 16, very enthusiastic to start work in this beautiful place.'
But within four days, staff at the plush resort where she was staying noticed she was 'deeply worried' about her ability to conduct the research, which involved picking up and examining tiny crabs.
Dr Elodi told police: 'She was afraid she would go to jail if she did not complete the research. She even said: 'It sounds silly when you say it out loud.'
'She thought she was not good enough, but we told her it was just a matter of practice.'
As paranoia set in, Miss Cutland held a series of fraught phone calls with her parents, Alison and Neil Cutland, both 63. Mr Nomenjanahary said: 'Her mother sent an email to the hotel manager saying she was worried about her daughter. It said they were preoccupied by [her] psychological state of mind, based on their phone conversations. The next day her mother phoned the hotel manager and said: 'We have difficulty recognising our own daughter on the phone.'
An investigator probing the incident gave a graphic account of how the Cambridge University student, who was sat in the back right seat of the light aircraft, suddenly unbuckled her belt, pushed forward the seat ahead and opened the door (above)
Miss Cutland was urged to go home, and agreed. Mrs Johnson, who was volunteering with children in the village on a placement from her school, offered to help the Cutlands by accompanying their daughter on the two-hour flight back to the capital.
But on the night before the fateful July 25 flight, Mrs Johnson was already struggling with Miss Cutland. Mr Nomenjanahary said: 'Alana was having hallucinations and seemed disorientated. She packed her bag but kept forgetting where she had left it. She did not eat any dinner.
'Ruth took her to her room and made sure she was all right, but in the morning she found her sitting in a chair with a blank look, staring into a void. She looked like she had not slept all night. She looked lost. She wouldn't talk. They told Alana to have some breakfast, but she just picked at some fruit.'
Miss Cutland was described by her family as a 'bright, independent young woman' who had a 'thirst for discovering more of the world'. In a statement released through the Foreign Office, they said: 'Alana was a bright, independent young woman, who was loved and admired by all those that knew her.
'[She] grasped every opportunity that was offered to her with enthusiasm and a sense of adventure, always seeking to extend her knowledge and experience in the best ways possible.
'We are heartbroken at the loss of our wonderful, beautiful daughter, who lit up every room.'
Investigators say tragic Alana opened the door to the out of the four-seater Cessna 182 (pictured) five minutes into the journey over Madagascar - just minutes after being given safety instructions on how to open the door in an emergency
The pilot Mahefa Tahina Rantoanina was sat in the cock pit (pictured) when he saw the door was open because he could feel wind coming into the aircraft. He flew one-handed as he desperately tried to close the door as Alana tried to jump out
Alana, 19, fell from 3,700 feet at around 130mph to the ground which is made of of lakes, marsh land and forest. The area (pictured) is populated by carnivorous wild animals and experts searching for her body fear she may never be found
Alana, a second-year Cambridge University Biological Natural Sciences student, from Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, is pictured on a family holiday two years ago with her younger brother and father Neil, who runs an energy consultancy
They were five minutes into the two hour and 20 minute flight from Anjajavy to the international airport at the island's capital Antananarivo on the first leg of their trip home when Alana tried to jump.
In silence, Alana reached forward and pushed the seat in front and turned the door handle - just as she had been shown in a demonstration before take off.
Mahefa Tahina Rantoanina, 33, a pilot with Madagascar Trans Air for 13 years, said he had no idea why Alana had jumped
Gervais Damasy, the director of Madagascar's air accident investigation bureau, said the pilot desperately tried to shut the door with his right hand to stop Alana, 19, jumping out as he held the controls with his left hand.
Mrs Johnson also grabbed hold of Alana's leg to stop her falling while half her body was hanging out of the four-seater Cessna 182, which was being rocked from side to side in mid-air.
Mr Damasy said that Alana remained half out of the aircraft while being buffeted by the wind for up to two minutes before she was finally wrenched from Mrs Johnson's grasp and plunged out.
Describing the action of Mrs Johnson, he said: 'She was very brave. She did her best for her and the pilot did the same. In this situation the plane could have crashed.' Mr Damasy said that Mrs Johnson had been working with Alana on a conservation project on the remote Anjajavy nature reserve in northern Madagascar.
She said that Mrs Johnson told the teenager's parents that she would fly back to the UK with her due to concerns about her mental health.
Mr Damasy insisted there had been nothing wrong with the single engine Cessna which was carrying Alana and Mrs Johnson on the two hour and 20 minute flight from Anjajavy to the international airport at the island's capital Antananarivo on the first leg of their trip home.
He said: 'According to the safety procedures, passengers are told how to get out of the plane in case of an accident.
'Alana would have been told how to open the door so she could escape on the ground in case there was an emergency, and if there was a problem like the pilot had died. 'The plane had just taken off and was climbing to 8,000ft. Everything was normal in the flight and the plane was in a good condition.
Fellow passenger Ruth Johnson, 51, who was sat in the back left seat, also grabbed hold of Alana's leg to stop her falling while half her body was hanging out of the four-seater Cessna 182 (pictured) which was being rocked from side to side in mid-air
Alana cut short her trip to Madagascar at the request of her parents and was on a two hour and 20 minute flight from Anjajavy where she was staying to the international airport at the island's capital Antananarivo on the first leg of their trip home
Images taken by a Madagascan air rescue team who are currently searching forests and swamp land for the body of Alana Cutland
Local police chief Sinola Nomenjahary said Alana fell into a zone (pictured) which is full of 'carnivorous Fossa felines'. The Fossa is the largest carnivorous mammal on the island, and can reach up to six feet in length
Alana was flying back from Anjajavy Le Lodge where she was staying in a remote area in the north of the island (pictured) to the capital where she was due to fly back to the UK at the request of her parents when she is said to have fallen ill
'It had reached an altitude of 3,700ft when the event occurred. I am not sure of the exact time, but I think it was five or six minutes after they were airborne. 'Alana was on the right hand side rear seat sitting next to Mrs Johnson while the pilot was in front on the left side.
'She suddenly unbuckled her seatbelt and pushed forward the seat in front of her so she could reach the door handle.
'She pulled the handle up to open it. She never spoke at all. Something happened in her head and we do not now what it was.'
Mr Damasy said the pilot Mahefa Tahina Rantoanina, 33, was flying normally and did not realise what was happening due to the noise of the engine.
He added: 'I think Mrs Johnson had headphones on so she did not hear.
'But the pilot realised what was happening when the right side door opened and the wind was coming in.
'He tried to reach over and pull the door with his hand while keeping his other hand on the controls – but Alana already had half her body out.
'Mrs Johnson grabbed hold of her legs while the girl's front half was out of the plane. She maintained pressure on her leg. Alana was wearing long grey/blue trousers.
'The plane was flying at 100 to 120 knots (115mph to 138mph) and the air was rushing in. The plane was rocking from side to side because it was unbalanced.'
Mr Damasy said the pilot was forced to let go of the door after a short time so he could have both hands on the controls while the plane was rolling around.
He added: 'The pilot tried to maintain pressure on the door, but it was not very easy for him to do while flying the plane.
'The plane could have crashed if he had tried to maintain pressure for a long time.
'I am not sure how long Mrs Johnson held her for. It was a maximum of one or two minutes. The wind would have been puling her out of the plane. The plane was rocking around. It was a very dangerous situation in a little plane.
'Mrs Johnson is an older woman. I don't think she was strong enough to hold her. She wanted to jump. Mrs Johnson was tired and the plane was rocking. She could not maintain her grip. She could not pull her back.'
Describing the moment she fell, Mr Damasy said: 'There was nothing that anybody could do. I am very sure that she would not have survived a fall from that altitude.
'She fell from a height of more than 1km. I think that she would have been killed instantly. I don't know the cause of why she jumped.'
Mr Damasy said that Alana had fallen into an area which included a lake, dense forest, woodland and swamps. Her body has still not been found, despite intensive searches by air force personnel in spotter planes as well as between 180 and 200 people on the ground including police and local villagers.
Mr Damasy said he had also viewed the area from a light aircraft and could appreciate the difficulties faced by local search teams. He said the search was being concentrated in an area measuring 4kms by 10kms.
Mr Damasy added: 'We told the local population what had happened. These people have been giving their own time to look for her. Some of them have dogs. They are being supported by gendarmes.
'The local population are very gentle people and they are working very hard.'
Mr Damasy said that an aircraft from the Madagascar air force had flown two hour missions over the search area every morning and afternoon for four days to try and find the body.
He said: 'They flew a zig zag search pattern every day between Saturday and Tuesday. They saw nothing, however. Due to the density of the forest and the presence of the swamp, there are difficulties.'
He insisted that he was hopeful her body would be found, but admitted it was possible that she might have been taken by cat-like creatures called fossas which are the island's largest carnivores, often compared to small cougars.
He added: 'The local people are continuing their search. The search of the ground will continue until the local people are tired.
'Of course they are very sad. It is the first occurrence like this that we have had, so they are very upset. Nobody has ever jumped from a plane before.'
Mr Damasy said Alana's family were welcome to come over and join in the search. He described Mrs Johnson and Mr Rantoanina as reliable and consistent witnesses, saying: 'They are good people. They are telling the truth. Their information is the same.'
Mr Damasy said he had interviewed Mrs Johnson at the British embassy before she flew home yesterday.
He added: 'When she told me this story, she was crying. She was really sad.'
Mr Rantoanina decided to divert his plane to the airfield at Mahajanga about 25 minutes flying time away after Alana jumped because he knew that police would be there and he could immediately report what happened, said Mr Damasy.
Mr Damasy said he had been told the teenager (pictured with a friend) was 'very normal' when she joined conservation workers in Anjajavy on July 16. But she decided to cut the trip short after just eight days after suffering from paranoia
Alana from Milton Keynes had been due to stay for 40 days in Madagascar while working on a conservation project investigating crabs in the remote Anjajavy nature reserve in the north of the island.
Mr Damasy said he had been told the teenager was 'very normal' when she joined conservation workers in Anjajavy on July 16.
But she decided to return home after just eight days after suffering a series of panic attacks. He said that Mrs Johnson had been due to fly home alone on Thursday last week, but Alana's parents had asked her to take the teenager with her.
Alana's place on the flight was booked by the hotel the days before they flew. The pair had been due to catch a flight from Antananarivo airport to Mauritius, and then another flight back to the UK.
Mr Damasy said that Mrs Johnson and Alana had met while working together at the reserve, but by coincidence had come from the same area of the UK.
He said: 'Ruth Johnson told me afterwards that Alana didn't sleep the night before the incident. She perhaps thought about what she wanted to do tomorrow. She was perhaps thinking a lot of things. 'I asked Mrs Johnson what was wrong with her, but she didn't know.'
He said that Mrs Johnson had been talking to Alana's parents Alison and Neil about their daughter's mental health issues and had agreed to fly home with her.
Mr Damasy said: 'The little plane was only expecting to take Mrs Johnson to the airport, but the day before the company was told that there was another girl coming.'
Cessna pilot Mr Rantoanina earlier described the mid-air drama. He told The Sun: 'I had just taken off and I was still climbing when all of a sudden there was a rush of wind and Ruth started screaming.
'I turned round and saw Alana hanging out of my plane. I immediately levelled the aircraft to try and keep us on course, then I reached over and held the door.
'I was trying to pull it shut while Ruth was holding on to Alana's leg. The plane stayed level, there was no rocking but it was very noisy from the wind.
'I was trying to fly and stop her from falling at the same time. I was absolutely terrified, we all were.
'Ruth and I were shouting at her to come back inside the plane. But for the whole time Alana did not say a word she just struggled to get away from us.
'I have no idea why she opened the door but she did. She opened the door and she jumped. The door did not open itself.'
Mr Rantoanina, a pilot with Madagascar Trans Air for 13 years, said Alana had 'looked a little sick' as she boarded his plane.
He added: 'She also said she had a headache but I didn't make anything of it at the time.' Mr Rantoanina continued: 'We were trying to hold her for five minutes but in the end there was nothing we could do.
'She struggled free and she fell out of the plane over the savannah. Ruth was hysterical, she was screaming and after we closed the door I turned the plane round and landed at the airport.
'The whole thing lasted maybe 45 minutes from take-off to landing. 'I can only think Alana had some sort of crisis, maybe it was to do with the fact she was ill. Ruth was in a very bad way, she had just seen her friend fall from the plane.
'When we landed, Ruth was too upset to speak and it was the people at the hotel where Alana was staying who had to call the parents. 'I just can't explain why Alana would do that. I have never experienced anything like that as a pilot.'
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