Jay Leno, 71, explains he had ‘no fear’ while untethered during climb out the nose of a plane

Jay Leno climbed out the nose of an airplane while it was flying at 147mph to look at the pilot in a stunt that seemed incredibly brave.

And on Thursday the former late night talk show host explained that he had ‘no fear’ during the zany move as the plane was flying so low that if he had fallen he would have just gone in the ocean, he told Entertainment Tonight. 

‘We were over water, so I would’ve just fallen in the water,’ the king of comedy said. The small plane was 200 or 300 feet up in the air. ‘It’s not like a jet where you’re going 500 miles per hour.’

Old school plane: Jay shared a photo of the plane, a Grumman HU-16 Albatross with the propellers located to the sides on the wings, leaving the nose free

And Leno also said that because the wind was blowing so hard it pretty much pinned him to the front preventing a fall. 

‘The force of the plane going forward was keeping me there,’ he said. 

He was not harnessed when he stuck his head out, though the majority of his body was enclosed within the plane. A white cord also ran across the hatch and pushed down into his shoulder, so he was somewhat protected. 

As far as if the stunt was pre-meditated, Jay said no. ‘You don’t plan something like that. You can’t plan it, or else someone will stop you if you planned it.’

He then got in a joke: ‘The plane was 71 years old, so you had an old guy and an old plane. Well, what could go wrong there?’ he laughed. 

Still seems crazy: ‘We were over water, so I would’ve just fallen in the water,’ the king of comedy said. The small plane was 200 or 300 feet up in the air. ‘It’s not like a jet where you’re going 500 miles per hour’ 

‘I’m not some bright person, believe me. It just seemed like a fun thing to do and it got a laugh.’ 

It began when he noticed a door in the front of the plane.

‘My friend said, “The front of the plane opens,” so I opened the front and then came out and crawled out on the front of the plane,’ Leno told ET. ‘Then, of course, they have to try to buzz the mountain. It’s just men behaving stupidly is basically what it is.’

Jay acknowledged that it was a silly move. ‘It doesn’t make any sense. It’s so stupid,’ he added. ‘I was just trying to have some fun with my friends, and of course they had to video it with an iPhone. I wanted to get out on the front of the plane, so when he looked through the windshield he’d see me outside and not realize what was going on,’ he said. ‘That’s what happened and it worked pretty good.

‘It’s stupid, I know. I’m glad my mom is not here. Oh God. It was fun. It was silly.’

And he was surprised it went viral: ‘I was stunned at the amount of publicity it got. It seems to be everywhere.’ 

Albert Benjamin, one of the people flying the plane while Jay was riding with them, shared a video to Instagram on Sunday illustrating how Jay crawled through the empty storage area and opened up a small hatch in the ceiling to pop his head out. 

Since the propellers were located on the wings, the nose had free space that allows a person to stick out.

The force was with him: And Leno also said that because the wind was blowing so hard it pretty much pinned him to the front preventing a fall. ‘The force of the plane going forward was keeping me there,’ he said 

Video from the high-flying encounter shows the funnyman trying to get a laugh out of the pilots while zooming about at more than 100 mph.

On Wednesday, the comedian was featured on Spike Feresten’s podcast Spike’s Car Radio, where he talked about the crazy stunt.   

‘That’s me climbing out on the wing — on the front of an airplane,’ Jay explained, before insisting that it’s not a digital fake. 

‘I was with some friends of mine and they didn’t know the front of the plane opened, so I went up to the front and then climbed up onto the windshield,’ he explained, as if the stunt was no big deal. 

No seat belt required: He was not harnessed when he stuck his head out, though the majority of his body was enclosed within the plane. A white cord also ran across the hatch and pushed down into his shoulder, so he was somewhat protected 

Behind the comedian were the rocky hills of Catalina Island, just off the coast of Los Angeles. 

‘That plane runs at about — it’ll do 200 [mph] — but it cruises about 125 [mph],’ he explained, before adding that it was flying at 147 mph when he stuck his head out.

In the clip, his shock of white hair can slowly be seen emerging at the front of the airplane, before he sticks out from the shoulders up.

The beaming comic then waves to the pilots and gives a thumbs-up, before he starts to bang his open palms onto the top of the nose as if he’s going to climb across it to the windshield.

Didn’t expect that: In the clip, his shock of white hair can slowly be seen emerging at the front of the airplane, before he sticks out from the shoulders up 

Stunning vistas: Behind the comedian were the rocky hills of Catalina Island, just off the coast of Los Angeles

Super fast: He waves to the pilots and gives a thumbs-up, before he starts to bang his open palms onto the top of the nose as if he’s going to climb across it to the windshield

Relaxing: Another part of the anxiety-inducing flight video featured more soothing views of the low-flying plane soaring over a marina in Catalina, California

The seaplane has been used in the past by the United States Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard, due to its ability to land both on water and dry land.

The craft was originally designed for open ocean rescues, though the US military phased it out in the 1970s and early 1980s.

Now, they’re primarily used as private airplanes and are mostly banned from commercial operations.

Another part of the anxiety-inducing flight video featured more soothing views of the low-flying plane soaring over a marina.

Elsewhere in his podcast interview, Leno stuck to his first love, cars, and chatted about the superior speeds and acceleration of new electric vehicles, including a beloved Tesla. 

Retired: The seaplane has been used in the past by the United States Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard, due to its ability to land both on water and dry land. It was designed for open sea rescues, though it was phased out by the military in the ’70s and ’80s

Daredevil: Albert Benjamin, one of the people flying the plane while Jay was riding with them, shared a video to Instagram on Sunday illustrating how Jay crawled through the empty storage area and opened up a small hatch in the ceiling to pop his head out