Meet the man who ate an entire plane. And this is not a joke (13 photos)

When Michel Lotito finished the last bite of food on his plate, he was ending a two-year challenge that would make his name famous. After all, how many people can say they just ate an entire plane?





Attention: We urge readers not to repeat the “tricks” described in this article under any circumstances. This can be life-threatening.

During his strange and fascinating life, Lotito became famous for devouring many unusual objects made of glass and metal. How is this even possible? And why didn't these tricks kill him?



An unusual childhood hobby

Michel Lotito was born in 1950 and grew up in the French city of Grenoble. The first few years of his life he was the same as all other children. However, everything changed when he turned eight years old.





At this point, Lotito began experimenting with so-called sophrology, a method of relaxation and wellness practice. He also studied and tried "self-hypnosis" and other similar practices. It is impossible to even imagine that other eight-year-old children are interested in such hobbies!

He was no longer in pain

When Lotito began to improve the above methods, he noticed something unusual for himself. He found that his pain tolerance was much higher than before. The methods he tried, which were said to help manage the pain, seemed to work. The first unusual incident occurred when he was only 16 years old. He grabbed a glass of juice from the kitchen, as he had done a thousand times before. “I accidentally broke the glass while I was drinking and there was a small piece left in my mouth,” Lotito explained in a 2006 Guinness World Records interview. “I knew there were people who ate glass, so I thought I might as well try it.”



As foolish and dangerous as it may seem, Lotito handled his glass snack without any problems. And as soon as he realized that he could do this, the teenager began to pay attention to other inedible objects.

Attracting international attention

“Then I moved on to razor blades, plates and small metal parts such as nuts and bolts,” continues Lotito. Soon his amazing talent began to attract attention.



The boy noted: "People started asking me if I wanted to eat something bigger. And then I said, 'Okay, I think I can eat a bicycle.'" It was a big success - I was invited to television shows in South America and Canada ".

How did he do it?

It's almost impossible to imagine. How to eat a bicycle? Where would you even start? Lotito had a method that made things easier for him. Before the meal began, the bicycle was cut into small pieces. He then began to swallow each bite as if he were taking a pill from a medicine cabinet. The teenager did not chew a single piece! He washed down his meal with portions of water and butter.

For most of us, this would be a pretty dangerous snack. However, Lotito remained unharmed. Speaking about his preparation, he explained: "I always sought help from a doctor."



"The doctors gave me all kinds of advice, such as drinking paraffin oils along with the metal to make the task easier. But through experience, I realized that it is better to just drink a few liters of water." As for his trips to the toilet after eating, they were surprisingly simple!

This brought Lotito a lot of money

Lotito's unusual skill proved extremely profitable. After he appeared on the TV screen, each of his appearances brought in a considerable amount of money. Using his unrivaled ability to withstand pain, he gave viewers a chance to see everything up close. Lotito invited them to throw darts at his back and light matches under his nails.

Guinness Book of Records

Ultimately, however, it was this unusual food that secured Lotito's place in the record books. In the spring of 1977, he decided to take a bicycle and thereby made history. Of course, he didn’t eat it in one day; the man took the bike apart into small pieces and ate it for 15 days. And onhe didn't finish it. In 1978, he rode a larger bike in just 12 days, breaking his previous record.

While this record and his other culinary achievements were spectacular, Lotito had something bigger in mind for his next challenge... He wanted to eat a plane. It was kind of a step forward compared to bicycles.



Choosing the right aircraft

So what kind of plane did Lotito like? The man studied many small-sized aircraft models before settling on the right one.



He ultimately chose the Cessna 150. Although this model was a “small” aircraft compared to others, this model weighed more than 450 kg. How can a person eat such a plane? As with the bicycles, the plane was cut into small pieces using power tools. This in itself is already labor-intensive work. After he finished the cutting job, using the same method he always did, he took his first bite out of a Cessna 150 in 1978.



But, unlike previous ones, this attempt will not end in a matter of days. Due to the huge amount of metal lying in front of him, Lotito had a long way to go this time.

Over the next two years, Lotito slowly devoured the plane, swallowing every bite. It was an epic performance to say the least. And by 1980, it was finally over: the Cessna 150 passed through the digestive tract.



This crazy act made him famous throughout the world! However, Lotito with his bizarre habits was not going to stop.

Lotito appeared again in the Guinness Book of World Records in 1984 when he was found to have swallowed seven televisions and a grocery store cart. Then, about 15 years later, all of his culinary achievements were summed up in one stunning list. By this point in his life, Lotito had eaten a total of 18 bicycles, 15 shopping carts, a couple of beds, an entire coffin and several skis, and of course an airplane.

Psychological problem

So how did Lotito manage to pull off these crazy food tricks without damaging his body? And if you think about it, financial rewards aside, why was he so fixated on metal and glass in particular? Science may provide some answers. It turns out he suffered from a psychological illness known as pica. This disease causes people to perceive inedible objects as food.

Lotito himself believed that his craving for eating metal was explained rather by his unique biological ability. As he told Guinness World Records in 2006, "My teeth are incredibly strong - their strength has been measured at 8 tons per square centimeter."

As for the internal organs, doctors claimed that Lotito’s intestines and stomach have a very thick lining. Thanks to this, metal and glass cannot cause life-threatening injuries to him as a result of eating such food. And yet there were shortcomings. Surprisingly, Lotito's iron intestines were unable to cope with softer snacks. Hard-boiled eggs and bananas were just some of the foods that caused him digestive problems.



The man’s attending physician, Morzol, said: “We cannot explain Lotito’s abilities. He was examined from all sides by different doctors. Together with gastroenterologists, we studied the entry of these ingredients into his blood and the changes that their absorption may cause. But we have never found a credible medical explanation.” A biopsy and blood tests showed that Lotito’s body was the same as that of any other person,” Dr. Morzol continued. “Actually, it's more of a mental problem. He's been doing this for almost 30 years, so his body is starting to wear out."

Dr Morzol added: "Such an aggressive effect on the stomach and intestines of Lotito inevitably raises the question of survival. But we don't have the answer. It's a prototype, we just don't know what will happen. We can only sound a note of caution."

But if the doctors were surprised and sometimes admired what Lotito could do, his wife did not share their delight. In fact, she was very uneasy: she feared for the health of her loved one in the short and long term.



Mrs. Lotito said: "I'm always afraid that something will happen to [my husband when he eats metal and glass]. There is always an element of risk in what he does, but to reassure him, I try to hide my fears ".

As strange as her situation was, other people undoubtedly felt the same concerns about their loved ones.

The sad end of Lotito's story

This once again emphasizes how strong Lotito's stomach turned out to be. But, unfortunately, he did not have the chance to grow old with his wife: Monsieur died at the age of 57 in June 2007.



His death was reported to be due to "natural causes"; no one could say for sure whether his eating habits contributed to this. Lotito was buried in Grenoble; Although he has been dead for over 16 years, his incredible story continues to live and amaze.