Welcome to Flightinfo.com

  • Register now and join the discussion
  • Friendliest aviation Ccmmunity on the web
  • Modern site for PC's, Phones, Tablets - no 3rd party apps required
  • Ask questions, help others, promote aviation
  • Share the passion for aviation
  • Invite everyone to Flightinfo.com and let's have fun

P-51 Crash at Reno

Welcome to Flightinfo.com

  • Register now and join the discussion
  • Modern secure site, no 3rd party apps required
  • Invite your friends
  • Share the passion of aviation
  • Friendliest aviation community on the web
Unbelievable. This is definately not a good year for warbirds. Bob Hannah had a strikingly similar incident in Voodoo, several years ago- servo tab seperated from the elevator. Bob managed to recover it though, and got it safely on the ground. I wish Jimmy had been as fortunate.

Best wishes and prayers to all involved. God speed Jimmy.
 
Heart Attack.........................happened in front of me in Ft. Lauderdale when a guy went straight down into the Atlantic.

70+ yr old guys doing hard core aerobatics and pulls = doesn't work.

RIP
 
Heart Attack.........................happened in front of me in Ft. Lauderdale when a guy went straight down into the Atlantic.

70+ yr old guys doing hard core aerobatics and pulls = doesn't work.

RIP

Definitely not good either. However, I don't think there was anything "hard core" about this incident. IMHO, the trim tab broke loose, and immediately prompted the aircraft to pull a 20+ G load factor. At least that's what the telemetry on board GG spit out moments before the impact. Durring the pitch up, there was enough stress on the airframe to "oil can" the side of the fuselage- ripples all over the side, according to some of the photos floating around on line. With those many g's, it's not going to matter what your age is- instant black out.
 
Perhaps its time to stop racing 65 year old museum pieces.
 
Perhaps its time to stop racing 65 year old museum pieces.


There is very little about the unlimited racers that is vintage. The age of the design is not a factor; The airplanes, like any other true racing machine, are pushed to their design limits. Sometimes things fail.

I won't speak any further on that subject but to call it a matter of racing "65 year old museum pieces" is sort of an ignorant statement. I sincerely mean no offense by that.
 
A postwar study by the Australians showed that the P-51 had an airframe life in excess of 50,000 hours.

There's not a problem with the design, construction, maintenance, or operation of the vast majority of Unlimited racers over the years.

Sometimes, mechanical things fail. In aviation, sometimes those failures have catastropihic outcomes.

There's no reason to change anything.
 

Latest resources

Back
Top