Metro Detroit man thankful to be on the ground, saying plane was struck by lightning

DETROIT (FOX 2) - A man is immensely excited to be back on the ground again and safe following an incident where he says his plane was struck by lightning on Sunday.

The father from metro Detroit, Parker Dinu, was flying home from Milwaukee, which turned from a short flight to the scariest 45 minutes of his life. 

As Dinu boarded his Delta flight on Sunday afternoon, he knew they would have to fly through some weather.

"It was only a 45-minute flight, so I figured, okay, a little bit of turbulence, no big deal," he told FOX 2.

But just minutes after take off, a bright white flash of light engulfed the plane.  Dinu sat in terrified silence, waiting to see what would happen next.

"Out of nowhere there was a loud explosion," he said. "The pilot eventually did come on the intercom and mentioned that we had been struck by lightning. He didn’t see anything wrong with the plane, all the sensors were good, and I tell you we were white knuckling the whole way until we landed." 

As they exited the plane safe and sound, Dinu saw the captain.

"I said has this ever happened to you before? He said no," Dinu said. "I have been flying a long time and this has never happened to me."

A rare occurrence, to say the least. According to the National Weather Service, commercial flights are hit by bolts of lightning one or two times a year.

"It could go in one side and out the other, and no damage at all," said retired US Air Force pilot General Doug Slocum. "Other things it can literally like punch holes in metal and things like that, that would blow your mind when you're thinking about the physics of what's happening."

Slocum has flown fighter jets and other planes for three decades, and said technology and engineering aircrafts have come a long way.

"We design airplanes really well and are able to dissipate a lot of that energy," he said. "They happen and sometimes there is damage but rarely is it going to end up hurting or killing somebody."

Dinu is living proof of that. A successful flight, and now with both feet on solid ground, the gravity of the situation is starting to hit him.

"Planes are safe. Statistics are with it. And clearly, the plane is fine," said Dinu. "It was able to take a hit by lightning and continue. We landed safely, the pilot stayed calm and did everything he was supposed to do and for that I’m thankful."

He is very thankful and feeling so lucky that he bought a couple of lottery tickets with the flight number of the plane he was on. 

FOX 2 did reach out to Delta and is still waiting to hear back.