THE pilot who captivated the Hunter as he safely landed with no wheels at Williamtown on Monday has been identified as Queenslander Peter Schott.
The pilot spoke out the day after the dramatic incident, which saw the small King Air flight make a successful 'belly-landing' after its retractable wheels failed to come down.
It was forced to fly for several hours, battling difficult weather conditions, as it burned off fuel before attempting to come down on the tarmac.
Mr Schott had plenty of time to work out a plan, and call as many experts as possible from the air.
"About an hour before, I started preparing for the landing mentally," Mr Schott told Nine news.
"Almost like a football player, I just executed what I had to do.
"It's all about minimising risk."
It took just 10 seconds for the plane to grind to a halt on the Williamtown runway just before 12.20pm on May 13, but for the thousands of people that had been watching with bated breath, it felt like a lifetime.
Emergency services and Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) vehicles swarmed the aircraft but the two Central Coast passengers on board and the 53-year-old pilot were unharmed.
Passenger Michael Reynolds praised the pilot's skill and calm demeanour in landing him and his wife to safety.
"He did a wonderful job ... he was 100 per cent calm all the time, you gotta give it to him," he told Nine news as the couple left the tarmac.
Mr Schott said he "felt bad" for Mr Reynolds who was on the flight to celebrate his 60th birthday, but instead ended up vomiting from the turbulence as the plane circled near the airport for nearly two hours.
The Eastern Air Services flight had taken off from Newcastle bound for Port Macquarie, but it was quickly discovered that the landing gear had failed.
Mr Schott said he knew shortly after takeoff that something was wrong after he heard "mechanical sounds" and he quickly made the decision to stay near Williamtown.
"By making an early decision I could stay visible over the cloud and carry out my checks," he said.
He then spoke with every King Air expert he could to make sure his landing plan was the best option for a good outcome, but unexpected rain and bird hazards made the job more complicated.
"And at the end of the day, I just, you know, implemented, the plan of action," he said.
The plane's strange flight pattern caught the attention of those underneath its path.
Medowie resident Scott Campbell rushed to watch the emergency landing as "it's not something you see every day".
Mr Campbell said people in the crowd had their "fingers crossed" as the plane descended through the clouds.
"Everyone was sort of there and freaking out about what was going on," he told the Newcastle Herald.
"It came in really smooth and really slow, and landed with no issue.
"When it hit the runway, you heard the scraping of metal ... it was just like a metal-on-metal sort of scraping or loud grinding sound."
In a public statement, Newcastle Airport has said it was "incredibly relieved" the aircraft landed safely.
Williamtown's only runway - for both civilian and military aircraft - was closed for several hours while the light plane was recovered. It reopened on Monday night and affected passengers were urged to contact their airline.
"We want to thank all the emergency services who responded, the RAAF staff, our staff and importantly, the pilot who did an incredible job landing the aircraft," a Newcastle Airport spokesperson said.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) confirmed on Tuesday evening it was still interviewing relevant people and gathering information.
The ATSB had not yet made a decision about whether a full investigation would be launched, but it's understood that could take a number of days.
