MICHAEL PHELPS

OLYMPIAN WITH GOLD

LUCKY ESCAPE

A German couple had a lucky escape after their light aircraft hit a 380,000 volt power line and then hung upside down from a wheel for nearly three hours.

"They had a very, very lucky accident," said police officer Edmund Martin at the scene in Durach, southern Germany.

Emergency services freed the pair suspended 20 metres from the ground late on Sunday with a hydraulic lift after a helicopter rescue was ruled out as too dangerous.

The couple suffered only minor injuries.

There were concerns that increasingly gusty winds would throw the plane to the ground.

The pilot of the plane misjudged his approach on landing, clipping the high-tension cables.

With fuel leaking "everywhere", a police spokesman told the British Telegraph newspaper it was a "tense situation".

"The occupants remained in radio contact with the ground throughout but you can imagine that their psychological condition worsened as the clock ticked on," he reportedly said.

"We considered a helicopter rescue but it was ruled out because the downdraft of the rotors would have sent the plane crashing to the ground.

The couple were treated at a local hospital for shock before being released, the Telegraph said.