A former British Airways pilot who saved 152 lives when he crash-landed his Boeing 777 at Heathrow Airport two years ago will be telling his dramatic story at this year’s Yorkshire International Business Convention in June.

Peter Burkill had only 35 seconds to plan the emergency landing after his aircraft lost power to both engines two miles from the runway. He eventually cleared the perimeter fence of the airport by only seven feet before guiding the plane to safety.

Mike Firth, convention chief executive, said Mr Burkill’s story was all about leadership and the ability to stay calm in a crisis. “Let’s face it, you can’t get much more of a test than knowing you have just 35 seconds to avoid a potentially catastrophic crash and I’m sure that Peter’s story will prove an inspiration for the delegates.”

Mr Burkill said although an air crash investigation cleared him of any blame – ice in the fuel system had caused the engines to fail – he claimed his reputation as a pilot was badly damaged by false rumours immediately after the accident.

“I had a gagging order from my employer and I wasn’t allowed to speak to the press although I wanted to,” he said.

Last year he took voluntary redundancy from BA and has now developed a new career talking about his experience and the lessons he has learned from it. He has also written a book about the crash with his wife, Maria, called Thirty Seconds To Impact.

He joins a list of speakers for the convention which includes actor and adventurer Brian Blessed, business woman Michelle Mone, who set up one of the most successful lingerie brands in the world, Rene Carayol, who is the author of the best-selling business book Corporate Voodoo, and Brian Kalma, who is part of the team at the multi-award winning online retail business Zappos.com.

The key-note speaker is expected to be announced just after Easter.

All the speakers will be heard by delegates at the Convention’s twin sites at the Yorkshire Event Centre in Harrogate and The Spa at Bridlington on Friday, June 11.

For further details visit the web site on yibc.biz