On a bright California morning in July 1969, nineteen-year-old Dale Black climbed into the cockpit of a small twin-engine Piper Navajo aircraft. He was a promising young aviator, brimming with ambition and dreams of flying the world. But in moments, those dreams shattered when the plane slammed into the Portal of the Folded Wings Shrine to Aviation in Burbank, California—a 120-foot-high monument honoring fallen pilots.
The impact killed the pilot and another passenger instantly. By all medical accounts, Dale should not have survived. His body was crushed against the instrument panel, his face disfigured, his arm mangled, his eyesight destroyed in one eye. Yet, as his broken body lay in wreckage, Dale’s spirit was caught up into an experience that would forever alter the trajectory of his life.
Hovering Between Life and Death
As doctors scrambled to save him in the emergency room, Dale remembers hovering above his body, looking down at the chaos below. He realized, in a moment of profound clarity, that his body was just a shell. “That’s not the real me,” he thought. His soul—eternal and unbroken—was what truly mattered.
This revelation echoes the Apostle Paul’s teaching: “Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16).
Through Darkness into Light
Dale describes being drawn through a tunnel, leaving the hospital behind. At first he encountered realms of darkness, a reminder that not every spiritual reality is heavenly. But then, suddenly, he was immersed in the light of Heaven.
He saw colors beyond earthly imagination, heard music so pure it seemed alive, and felt love so overwhelming that words fall short. The landscape stretched before him with rolling meadows, crystalline rivers, and a radiant celestial city shining in the distance.
Revelation 21:11 describes heaven as “shining with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal.” Dale affirms this vision in his testimony.
Meeting Jesus Face-to-Face
The climax of Dale’s NDE came when he encountered Jesus Christ Himself. The love in Christ’s eyes penetrated Dale to the core. There was no condemnation, only grace.
Jesus told Dale that he must return to earth. His mission and purpose would be revealed “one step at a time,” so that Dale would remain dependent upon God and not on his own strength. Dale longed to stay in heaven, but he was sent back with a renewed calling.
This echoes Jesus’ words in John 14:2–3: “In my Father’s house are many rooms… I am going there to prepare a place for you… and I will come back and take you to be with me.”
A Life Transformed
Recovery was brutal. Dale’s left arm was shattered, his vision permanently impaired, and his body scarred. Doctors said he’d never fly again. But with perseverance, prayer, and the miraculous hand of God, Dale returned to the cockpit.
One year after the crash—on July 18, 1970—he passed his FAA medical exam. Ten years later, on the anniversary of the crash, he flew a Boeing 707 for TWA. Against all odds, the boy who should have died became a seasoned airline captain.
Yet flying was no longer about ambition. Dale and his wife Paula eventually sold their multimillion-dollar business and gave away their possessions to serve as missionaries. They built orphanages, planted churches, distributed Bibles, and trained leaders across the world.
Jesus’ words rang true: “Whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it” (Matthew 16:25).
The Message Dale Brings
Today, Dale’s story carries a simple but profound message: Heaven is real, Jesus is alive, and His love is beyond comprehension. In heaven there is no racism, no division, no hatred—only the unity of the family of God. “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).
Every day Dale lives with the awareness that time is a gift. He testifies: “Every day I’ve had since the crash has been borrowed time, a gift from God.” His encounter with Christ compels him to share the gospel and urge others to prepare for eternity.
Watch and Read Dale’s Story
To experience Dale Black’s story in his own words, watch his interview on Two Christian Dudes:
👉 Watch the episode here
For a deeper dive into Dale’s testimony—including his detailed descriptions of heaven and his encounter with Jesus—read his book Visiting Heaven.
👉 Order Visiting Heaven on Amazon
Final Word
Dale Black’s NDE reminds us that eternity is not a distant concept—it begins now. Each breath is a gift, each day an opportunity to walk closer with Jesus, and each testimony like Dale’s is a call to fix our eyes on the reality of heaven.
As Hebrews 12:2 says, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.”
