Tragedy Averted in Karmanos Family Outing

A family outing to see “The Lion King” in New York ended safely Sunday for members of the Peter and Danialle Karmanos family, thanks to the alertness of two of the prominent metro Detroit couple’s four young sons.

About 15 minutes outside of Detroit, the boys noticed a fire in the cockpit after lightning struck the plane, blowing two circuits, and the plane made an emergency landing at Oakland County International Airport in Waterford Township, WXYZ-TV reports.

Two pilots and a flight attendant were also on board at the time. No one was injured.

Peter Karmanos Jr. is the majority owner and chief executive of the Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Everglades hockey franchises, and owned the Plymouth Whalers junior hockey club from its establishment in 1990 until earlier this year.