The question "what if" doesn't bear thinking about, according to Papamoa couple Barry Winslade and Dee Mansfield.
The pair stared death in the face when their microlight trike cart-wheeled off a runway in a desperate attempt to avoid crashing with a plane.
They were at an aero club meet in Hawera last Sunday - and were lucky to come out of the accident alive.
"I just remember thinking: I hope we don't die," Mr Winslade recalls, as he surveys the damage to his written off machine.
Mr Winslade and Ms Mansfield this week spoke about the crash after returning to Tauranga and taking some time to recover from the ordeal.
For a shaken Mr Winslade, also the Tauranga Microlight Club president, the crash was his first in 18 years of flying.
The couple had been on a picturesque flight atop the cloud banks over Taranaki when they came into land.
But about 10 metres from the ground another pilot began moving down an alternate runway that crossed over.
A crash was inevitable.
Ms Mansfield spotted the movement to their left and thumped her partner on the shoulder. She pointed at the Cessna 152 heading straight into their path.
Taking evasive action, Mr Winslade swerved to the left, still moving at an estimated 30-40mph but the craft's wing clipped the ground and the microlight began flipping.
The impact of the crash fractured some of Ms Mansfield's ribs and left her partner feeling like he had been thrown around a boxing ring.
"But it could have been so much worse, we could have been killed," Mr Winslade said.
More than a dozen people had gathered for the friendly meet, including members of the Gyrocopter Association of which Mr Winslade is a member.
They quickly came to the couple's aid.
They had bought the microlight trike just before Christmas and enjoyed many flights above Tauranga, with a favourite loop around Mount Maunganui.
"When you think of the adventures we've had in this, it is quite heartwrenching," Mr Winslade said outside his hangar at Tauranga airport.
"We are just absolutely lucky. If you'd seen it, you would appreciate how lucky we were."
The Civil Aviation Authority is investigating the near tragedy, which had emergency services on standby throughout South Taranaki.
Police said early investigations found the single-engine Cessna was preparing to take off from the grass runway, unaware the microlight was landing on an opposing strip.
And Mr Winslade and Ms Mansfield? Despite both having thoughts that the day may have been their last, they've vowed to take to the skies again.
Cartwheel couple cheat death
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