RNO Air Races Crash

[waveflyer]

Death toll climbs to 9.
I've been in those seats.
Rest in peace. Grace alone go us all.

 

[densoo]

Now 10. What a tragedy.

http://usat.ly/pUqcOJ

 

[bubbers44]

My wife and I were directly below where he went inverted over the west side of the stands and for a couple of seconds was coming almost vertically directly at our section. I thought we were done and running anywhere in 5 seconds was not possible. It diverted towards the center of the stands then in front of the stands where it hit just behind the front VIP boxes. My wife was in the box behind it until 15 minutes before the crash to come see me in the stands. A lot of my friends were hit by debris and flying body parts but suffered only minor injuries. One was hit in the back by a blown off leg and went to the hospital but was ok. A womans head was below one of our flight attendant friends when one of our pilots put her in a chair when she got knocked down.

A similar event happened in 1999 with a P51 modified the same, Voodoo. Losing that elevator trim tab caused a 10 G pull up blacking out the pilot and 9,000 feet higher he regained consciousness and recovered. This plane rolled inverted above us about 600 ft. and it appears that the pilot not shown in one of the final photos was below the canopy unconscious.

 

[densoo]

Wow.IIIIII

 

[say again]

Horrific!! Godspeed to all involved.

 

[ackattacker]

11 now. Unbelievably tragic.

 

[saabcaptain]

When they were reporting the total as 10 yesterday a friend stated that privately sources at the races indicated about 8-9 additional "missing" were likely to be classified as dead once DNA etc. came in so the totals will continue to climb quite a bit. Horrifying.

 

[Erlanger]

This new video is unbelievable. The sound of the impact is shocking.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2011/09/20/von-reno-air-crash-new.kgw?hpt=hp_t2

Another theory about the crash emerges.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/09/2...-broken-seat-aviation-expert/?test=latestnews

 

[808pilot]

Bubbers... You and I must have been sitting pretty close to each other... I was in the box seats just to the west as well... Same thing... When he rolled out of being inverted he was pointed right at us... I shuffled left then right and realized there was no way to judge in a split second what was going to happen... I just stood there in complete shock... That entire flight and crash is on constant loop right now in my mind... Amazing the devastation that it caused... But could have been even worse had he not pulled up what little he did... And the fact that the blast shot out towards the taxiway... Pretty nuts...

 

[HalinTexas]

Todays WSJ echoed these sentiments. They're estimating a 10g uncontrolled pitch-up after the trim tab failed. That would knock out anyone. I would imagine that the seat would fail somewhere between 8-12g's as that would be more than enough for a pilot without a g suit. Also, strengthening a seat beyond that would add weight that they don't want to deal with.

My guess is that he blacked out shortly after the pitch-up. Probably partially regained consciousness at the top of the loop, but maybe not. The g loading at this point and after probably made sitting upright impossible. Notice that this thing was still developing quite a bit of power, if not the same power setting he was using to race.

I suspect that Providence was the factor in determining where the aircraft hit. Amazed that there was no fire whatsoever.

God be with those that were there.

 

[dougdrvr]

This new video is unbelievable. The sound of the impact is shocking.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2011/09/20/von-reno-air-crash-new.kgw?hpt=hp_t2

Another theory about the crash emerges.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/09/2...-broken-seat-aviation-expert/?test=latestnews

The Fox news theory from a GA mechanic is disgusting. They even rotated the photo 90 degrees to fit their story. I realize this aircraft was highly modified but a stock Mustang seat, which I would guess is engineered to well in excess of 12 G, only adjusts in the vertical. The rudder pedals are adjustable fore and aft, not the seat. Typical lack of knowledge from a media organization in an attempt to get out in front of everyone else.

What's amazing is the quality and sharp focus of that photo (in a vertical dive). When I first saw it, I was convinced it was photoshopped and they forgot to erase the tailwheel, but apparently, it legit!

 

[DznFr$$]

I was there also and saw the whole thing from the time of the initial pullup. My point of reference was the west side of the airport facing pylon nine about 100 yards away. He was coming around the last pylon when the aircraft snapped level and then violently pulled vertical, most likely 20 G's. That stress would have caused the tailwheel to fall out. My guess is that he was unconscious from that point. The aircraft continued a vertical climb and right roll until it was pointed straight down and horizontal to impact. At the top point inverted, you can see in the photo that the pilot is slumped forward in his seat face down. The subsequent photos right before impact, he is no longer visible in the cockpit. I agree that his seat and or harness failed because of the violent pitch change, but disagree that he was still capable of flying the aircraft, or that the aircraft stalled. It was producing full power and hit at 300+ mph.

 

[ultrarunner]

Another theory about the crash emerges.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/09/2...-broken-seat-aviation-expert/?test=latestnews

I would theorize the massive G-load as a result of lossing the trim tab could have easily broken seat mounts. No surprise there....

 

[JumpersAway]

A truly sad loss. I know the Reno Air Races are THE reason I'm flying today- went as a kid and got hooked on aircraft at a young age. I hope they are able to rebound and continue, although insurance costs alone will be prohibitive after this.

Several interesting photos on WIX (Warbird Information Exchange) regarding the accident. The sound from the merlin as it hit close in to one of those filming is erie, to say the least.

God speed and my thoughts and prayers go to those lost and affected...........

 

[glasspilot1]

My guess is after much arguing back and forth that air racing will continue. But they'll have to follow what "air shows" have had to do for decades........move the course away from the crowds.