Reno Air Race

[robfisher]

As of yet we don't know what happened. Possibly we will never know. But this video frightens me. Jimmy Leeward, the pilot is talking about all the modifications made to the P-51.

His last words in the video are, "Hopefully we'll be able to guide it to victory."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0DS65HJzYg

[Maureenm]

10 feet off the wings? Defies logic to me.

[Sam I am]

Wings make lift, but lift makes drag, so less wing area equals less drag, which makes more speed. The trade-off is that stall speed and therefore landing speed must be higher. In the video, he compared the landing speed to Mig jet fighters!

[Maureenm]

Thanks for clarifying. I hope that trade off was not the cause of this tragedy.

[Catherine+twins]

My uncle crews for the Rare Bear, a modified Bearcat, similar era, that was in that same race. It also has shortened wings from stock, and has been running that way for years. Clark and Lulu (uncle and aunt) were sitting on top of an RV as the plane came over the RV row and crashed into the box seating. Clark was actually "taking it easy," recovering from a mild heart attack three weeks ago, instead of working in the pit area. What a shock! I haven't talked to Clark yet, only to my cousin who has talked to them. They have stayed in LV to attend the memorial service, and will be home tomorrow. I hardly know what to say to them, except that I am so glad they are safe!

Catherine

[asianflava]

We're in Vegas now and it has been all over the news. This is one of my favorite pics I took of Rare Bear and Dago Red during an exhibition at Nellis about 6 or 7 yrs ago. Shortened wings are pretty much the norm for that class of racers.

[eamarquardt]

I guess the air races are very exciting for some. Few sports are 100% safe. Look at the number of boxers and football players (in particular) that are physically destroyed after a few years.

Anyone attending a race like this must be aware of and accept the inherent risks of being in the vicinity of several aircraft going 500 mph 50 feet off the deck.

What I find disturbing is the inane reporting. After the crash a reporter stated that the status/condition of the pilot was unknown. Anyone with 1% of a functioning brain knew instantly that the pilot did not survive the crash. Another stated that flying 500 mph 50 feet off the deck is at the edge of aircraft performance (or words to that effect). Having flown and landed a twin engine jet at 140 knots (with no flaps, hydraulic boost, or speed brakes) it is MHO that these races are over the cliff, not at the edge. I'm "not entirely convinced" that they should be banned as spectators have also been killed at auto races (my cousin's mother in law was killed at a race where her daughter was a driver) but anyone in proximity to the races is putting their lives in the hands of the pilots, the aircraft, and God and should not be surprised or hold anyone else liable should they be injured or "worser" while attending a race.

One of the current theories is that a trim tab broke and caused the crash. The forces required to control an aircraft , w/o a functioning trim tab, are simply beyond the strength of a pilot.

A terrible accident, yes. 100% preventable, yes (IMHO). Are folks willing to change and prevent this type of accident in the future, no (IMHO).

Gus

[planovet]

One of the current theories is that a trim tab broke and caused the crash. The forces required to control an aircraft , w/o a functioning trim tab, are simply beyond the strength of a pilot.

[eamarquardt]

One of the current theories is that a trim tab broke and caused the crash. The forces required to control an aircraft , w/o a functioning trim tab, are simply beyond the strength of a pilot.

Sure looks like the tab is missing!

Gus

[Lesbest]

AirShowBuzz.com has a thread going about the accident. The trim tab loss has occured before some years back,in that plane it pitched up subjecting the pilot to 12-14G's. He blacked out and when he came to he was flying level at 9,000 ft. He recovered and landed saftly. The after accident report stated he was folded over and jammed between tne stick and the cockpit side. Being so close to the ground and the attitude that the racer was in when it happened pretty much means Mr. Leeward was unconsious, and stuck folded over in the cockpit at the time of the crash.

Let's pray for those injured and recovering.

God Bless
Les

[doug hodder]

I always used to like air shows, never attended the air races however. I saw an old jet fighter (Sabre I think) pancake into the ground in Broomfield Co. a number of years back and knowing, I just saw someone die while trying to entertain others bugged me. Same thing with Dale Earnhardt.

It's their passion, and some are willing to tempt fate for it....me, I'm sorry to see it happen, speed combined with man and machine is always a great show. I sure wish all injured a speedy recovery, and to those lost, my heart goes out to them. Doug

[robfisher]

When I started this thread I wanted to sit back and see what others felt. The posts have been interesting. What frightens me about such modifications is that millions of dollars and testing go into an aircrafts whole package. Each part is designed to take the expected stress as the craft was designed. When some parts are re-engineered for more performance others may not be up to the task.

It's what they said about hotrodders in the 40's and 50's when people soupped up the horsepower. Were the brakes then adequate?

Then to put people in harms way of these machines just bothers me. In auto racing we put barriers between the racing and the spectator. Hard to accomplish that in plane racing.

[planovet]

AirShowBuzz.com has a thread going about the accident. The trim tab loss has occured before some years back,in that plane it pitched up subjecting the pilot to 12-14G's. He blacked out and when he came to he was flying level at 9,000 ft. He recovered and landed saftly. The after accident report stated he was folded over and jammed between tne stick and the cockpit side. Being so close to the ground and the attitude that the racer was in when it happened pretty much means Mr. Leeward was unconsious, and stuck folded over in the cockpit at the time of the crash.

It's very possible he blacked out. In a picture taken right before the crash you can not see him in the cockpit.

[DrCrash]

from what I was reading from Avation weekly was the crew cheif said" Even if he had passed out he would still be visable in the cockpit. He went on to say the g forces from the trim tab may have sheared the bolts on the seat assembly causing the pilot to loose controll."

[doug hodder]

I know nothing about P-51's other than the models I built, but what's the tail wheel doing down in the last pic...doesn't it retract as well? Looks like there is a hatch for it. Doug