Grandpa Straps in Baby, Saving Her Life in Plane Crash

Jan. 24, 2008— -- The miracle baby who survived a deadly plane crash in her car seat is now alive and "doing very well," according to her mom.

A 3-year-old girl was the sole survivor in a tragic Oct. 28 plane crash in the dangerous Rocky Mountain terrain that took the lives of two other people, including her grandfather.

"Super Kate" as her grandfather, Allen Williams liked to call her, was found alive in the plane's wreckage, after hanging upside down for four hours, still securely secured in her car seat.

Today Kate Williams and her parents Sheldon and Nancy joined "Good Morning America" in an exclusive interview. They credit Allen's care in strapping Kate in for saving her life, in the still-unexplained crash that took his life and that of his business companion.

"He was very safety conscious, not just using the car seat every time he flew, but putting it in properly. There are no anchor straps [for the car seat in a plane], but he took the time on that flight, on all flights, to strap it in. Without that being done she properly she never would've survived," said his son Sheldon.

The 65-year-old Canadian businessman was an experienced pilot and had a background in engineering, which helped him understand how best to brace Kate's seat. When rescue workers found her, the seat had flipped upside down, but Kate was still snuggly buckled in.

The Williamses said that Allen and his granddaughter were practically inseparable. Only her beloved stuffed penguin, "Pablo," got more attention. In fact, rescue workers who found Kate said her first request was for Pablo, who was returned to her covered in snow.

Disaster Strikes

An hour into a routine short flight from his home in Golden, British Columbia to Edmonton, Alberta in a Cessna 172 Allen was operating himself, the craft began transmitting a distress signal.

It suddenly fell from the sky, plunging nose-first into an icy creek bed in Canada's snow-capped Rocky Mountains. A rescue helicopter located the craft four hours later, during which time Nancy remembers the horrible uncertainty of not knowing.

"There was a lot of uncertainty to begin with. Details came in gradually over the period of an hour," said Nancy. "You're just overwhelmed. You feel sick. … Soon we knew she was alive, but until you get to the hospital and hold her in your arms, you don't know if she's all right."

At the time, Nancy was eight months pregnant with the Williams' second child. The baby boy was born just a few days after the crash and the Williamses named him Allen, after his grandfather.

Nancy said Kate is "doing very well." She's turning four this weekend and "is a very happy little girl."

Now the Williamses are struggling to get their lives back to normal as they deal with the loss of their beloved grandfather. "He was a great father, great grandfather and a special friend," said his son Sheldon.

A fund has been set up in Allen's memory. For more information you can write to them at the address below:

Allen Williams Memorial Fund

c/o Golden and District Community Foundation

P.O. Box 1485

Golden, B.C. Canada

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