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By definition, odds provide a measure of the likelihood of a particular outcome. Sometimes odds are very likely, like the fact that nothing good will come out of 2020 (and thankfully, we are almost past it!), and sometimes not so much.

But on very rare occasions, odds-defying things happen against all possible likelihood, proving that after all, this world of ours is inherently random. So this time, we’re taking the ride of a lifetime featuring this selection of nearly impossible odds as presented by the r/nevertellmetheodds subreddit.

Created in 2015, the online community has a whopping 1.7m members who are all in for bizarre and wonderful chances that shouldn’t have happened. The subreddit’s description says it’s all about “Nearly impossible feats of achievement, those with a great degree of difficulty or incredible odds,” so let’s find out what exactly all this fuss is about.

#2

Many Of You Might Have Seen This . But For Those Who Haven't

Many Of You Might Have Seen This . But For Those Who Haven't

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Joyce Melton
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Later that same day, he was elected president of Australia and married Gal Godot.

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#3

Small World

Small World

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AzKhaleesi
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Thats crazy I wonder if the Coach / Dad ever looked at him and thought hmmm he looks a lot like me.

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No matter what we think we know about odds-defying things, the truth is they do happen and they happen more often than we think. British statistician David J. Hand claims that even “extremely improbable events are commonplace.”

This is due to the improbability principle that’s comprised of five laws “analogous to the four laws of thermodynamics or Newton’s three laws of motion.” David insists that “These laws, the law of inevitability, the law of truly large numbers, the law of selection, the law of the probability lever, and the law of near enough, explain exactly why we should expect to encounter highly unlikely events, and indeed why we should expect to do so on a regular, even frequent, basis.”

#5

In 1990, A Panel Of The Windscreen On British Airways Flight 5390 Fell Out At 17k Feet, Causing The Cockpit To Decompress & Its Captain To Be Sucked Halfway Out Of The Aircraft. The Crew Held Onto Him For More Than 20 Minutes As The Copilot Made An Emergency Landing. The Pilot Made A Full Recovery

In 1990, A Panel Of The Windscreen On British Airways Flight 5390 Fell Out At 17k Feet, Causing The Cockpit To Decompress & Its Captain To Be Sucked Halfway Out Of The Aircraft. The Crew Held Onto Him For More Than 20 Minutes As The Copilot Made An Emergency Landing. The Pilot Made A Full Recovery

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Joe Reaves
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

They considered letting go of him since they all assumed he couldn't possibly have survived and the engineer and flight attendant were getting injured keeping hold of him. The Co Pilot was worried if they did he'd go right into the engine and they'd be in even worse trouble so they had to keep hold of him until they landed.

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Jayne Kyra
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

https://home.bt.com/news/on-this-day/june-10-1990-miracle-of-ba-flight-5390-as-captain-is-sucked-out-of-the-cockpit-and-survives-11363985642960

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wandile dludlu
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Imagine being on that flight and finding out when you land that s**t like this was happening while you were harassing the flight attendants

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Martha Meyer
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I saw a documentary about this incident. At the speeds they travelled at, this poor guy was flapping against the outside of the airplane like a piece of clothing in a storm. The sounds were horrible.

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Kayla J
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This photo is the reenactment of the situation from a TV show. If you'd like to see the whole episode it is on YouTube under "Air Crash Investigations Mayday 02x01 Blow Out British Airways Flight 5390"

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Batwench
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Was. Think BS at this one so I did a check. Well blow me, it did actually happen.

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Kay blue
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If I remember rightly the co-pilot landed at an airport he hadn't flown into before. One of the people involved never flew nor spoke of it again either.

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N G
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I felt the sorriest for the co-pilot. All the other flight crew had worked together before - he was a complete outsider. So he had to deal with the entire thing with little support (they were concentrating on the captain), to an unfamiliar airport, no charts, and could hardly hear the ground crew. The man was a hero - and a wreck when he landed (according to eye witnesses)

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Pangolin Pal
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As rotten as people can sometimes be, this is an example of why the human race actually should continue to exist. Sometimes, I just love people!

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Zophra
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Another reason to be nice to your coworkers... just in case.

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Jennifer Crompton
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

He did get frostbite. And luckily, they were only at 17k feet (and the copilot immediately took the plane to a lower altitude)

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David Retsler
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm guessing neither of these pictures is of the actual event.

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Nadine Bamberger
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The copilot has been deeply traumatized though, he never flew again.

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Jennifer Crompton
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's not true. I googled this story and he kept flying until he was 65 years old in 2015

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Malinda Petersen
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Better luck than even the lottery! and the best co-workers in the world!

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Jennifer Crompton
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Amazingly, both pilot and copilot kept flying for years afterward. But I bet they kept their seat belts on after that 😉

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Grumble O'Pug
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

17k feet is Everest base camp and aside from not being able to breath well, you are also probably freaking out and peeing your pants.

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backatya
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I saw this on TV in Air Disasters. I'm glad he survived.

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CrunChewy McSandybutt
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I looked up the Wikipedia article on this and it's crazier than I even guessed.

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n i k o
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I think stories like these should be higher since not only do they require luck, they also have an element of human willpower and compassion.

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Sijing J
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This one deserves an upvote because the other incidents might have happened due to luck, this one also due to human willpower.

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D. Pitbull
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I am very impressed... that the Pilot made a full recovery and isn't a gibbering mess to this day. I mean 20 minutes... **20 minutes** of 'knowing' you're going to die. (I mean really... at that point... how much are you really believing that they can hold on or that someone doesn't slip?)

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Jean Thompson
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I wonder whether he ever wanted to pilot an aircraft again, poor man!

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Janelle Collard
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And people wonder why I don't like to fly... (I know, the odds are astronomical.)

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David L Rattigan
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Wow. Even The Concorde... Airport '79 wasn't this far-fetched, and that's saying something.

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Michael Stettler
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Nowadays the Captain would have been left for dead! Why? Because the Cabine Crew is reduced to only two nowadays! So the first Officer had to have his hands free for the landing!

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Caroline Driver
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Fuuu... His life must've been flashing before his eyes. And I bet he got hyperthermia as well. Looks a bit more than 'halfway' too.

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Claire Armstrong
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I've seen this one on an episode of Air Crash Investigation! I think that that's where these pictures are from actually, the reenactment of it on show, I don't think they are pictures from the actual event! I have a feeling that the cockpit crew would have been too busy to be taking pictures, and I'm pretty sure they didn't have a plane accompanying them to take pictures off the captain hanging out the plane! Nevertheless, it's still a fascinating story!

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Jeff Dingmann
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

How do they have a picture from the top... while he’s still hanging out of the cockpit?

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Damon Tripodi
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Blown out... Like a tire. They're both pressurized. A tire blows out, it doesn't suck out.

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Cupcake168
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I#m just wondering who made the photos in such a situation

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Chris Lee
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Being sucked off at 17,000 feet isn't all it's cracked up to be!

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Kimberly Reetz
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And someone with a camera just happened to be in the cockpit with them?

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Kashmir
Community Member
3 years ago

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

People are not sucked out of planes, they are pushed. Pressure inside plane is higher than outside the plane.

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Al Jones
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Actually, it's not that simple. When there is a pressure differential the second law of thermodynamics says this will naturally even itself out. The force doing so comes from both the pressure inside the aircraft and the lack of it (in effect a vacuum) outside, sucking the high-pressure towards it. The same can be seen in meteorology - high-pressure weather systems don't just push into low-pressure systems, they also get sucked. It even applies to the generation of lift on an aircraft wing, where the pressure above the wing is lower than that below, generating a push-pull effect.

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This is where mathematics comes into play to define these principles and calculate what effect they have on each other. For example, the law of near enough “says that events that are sufficiently similar may be regarded as identical,” David explains.

In fact, this similarity is what precisely makes a dramatic difference. David adds the law of truly large numbers and the result is that “given enough opportunities, the probabilities of even very unlikely events can mount up to be almost certain.”

Those laws raise the number of opportunities for any unlikely happening to actually happen. Read more about David’s philosophy of probability in his book “The Improbability Principle.”

#8

Unexpected Reunion

Unexpected Reunion

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Martha Meyer
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What a lucky coincidence for them! They probably would have never found out otherwise.

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#10

Two Strangers Sit Next To Each Other On A Flight And Meet Their Doppelganger

Two Strangers Sit Next To Each Other On A Flight And Meet Their Doppelganger

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#13

Lucky Nurse

Lucky Nurse

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#15

“And I Took That Personally” - Tsutomu Yamaguchi (Probably)

“And I Took That Personally” - Tsutomu Yamaguchi (Probably)

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#16

Neighbor Brings Owner Identical Cat

Neighbor Brings Owner Identical Cat

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#17

Saw This Photo Posted Here.. Noticed I Have The Photo The Grandmother Took That Day. (Bought At An Antique Shop Years Ago In Phx)

Saw This Photo Posted Here.. Noticed I Have The Photo The Grandmother Took That Day. (Bought At An Antique Shop Years Ago In Phx)

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#18

Lightning Striking Simultaneously On Chicago's Three Tallest Buildings

Lightning Striking Simultaneously On Chicago's Three Tallest Buildings

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#19

None Of Their Feet Are Touching The Floor

None Of Their Feet Are Touching The Floor

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#20

The First Time My Friend Visited My Apartment She Was Mind-Blown That My Shower Curtain Looked “Exactly” Like One Of Her Shirts. I Half-Seriously Said That Her Story Sounded Made Up And Promptly Forgot About It Until She Returned The Following Week To Demonstrate. I Forever Stand Corrected

The First Time My Friend Visited My Apartment She Was Mind-Blown That My Shower Curtain Looked “Exactly” Like One Of Her Shirts. I Half-Seriously Said That Her Story Sounded Made Up And Promptly Forgot About It Until She Returned The Following Week To Demonstrate. I Forever Stand Corrected

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#21

This Mother Deer Has Two Albino Fawns...

This Mother Deer Has Two Albino Fawns...

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#22

My Grandma Died On My Grandpa’s Birthday. My Grandpa Died On My Grandma’s Birthday

My Grandma Died On My Grandpa’s Birthday. My Grandpa Died On My Grandma’s Birthday

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Daria B
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What a sad birthday for the one who passed away afterwards. I'd be devastated.

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#23

This Is A Tomato That Accidently Grew Inside Of The Fence

This Is A Tomato That Accidently Grew Inside Of The Fence

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#26

Twins Married Twins To Give Birth To Another Twins

Twins Married Twins To Give Birth To Another Twins

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#27

Landslide Splits Just Before Hitting A Farm In Iceland. Happened This Morning. No One Got Hurt

Landslide Splits Just Before Hitting A Farm In Iceland. Happened This Morning. No One Got Hurt

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#28

Went To Take A Picture Of The Rainbow And Lightning Struck At The Same Time!

Went To Take A Picture Of The Rainbow And Lightning Struck At The Same Time!

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#32

This Is How The Newspapers Were Stacked Up At My Job

This Is How The Newspapers Were Stacked Up At My Job

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#33

Beluga Whale Saves An iPhone!

Beluga Whale Saves An iPhone!

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#34

We Were Seconds Away From Losing Our Home To The California Fire. Thank You To All The Firefighters That Saved Our Community!

We Were Seconds Away From Losing Our Home To The California Fire. Thank You To All The Firefighters That Saved Our Community!

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#36

The Cat Knocked My Daughter’s Fish Bowl Off The Dresser

The Cat Knocked My Daughter’s Fish Bowl Off The Dresser

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Pan Narrans
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The perfect opportunity to get a decent size aquarium for the fish. A bowl is too small.

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#38

It's Gotta Be Weird To Go To The Mall One Day And Run Into... Yourself

It's Gotta Be Weird To Go To The Mall One Day And Run Into... Yourself

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#40

Two Drunk Guys Imitate Connor Mcgregor As He Drives Past

Two Drunk Guys Imitate Connor Mcgregor As He Drives Past

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Note: this post originally had 75 images. It’s been shortened to the top 40 images based on user votes.

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