Thread: Bad weekend for airshows....

It's been a rough weekend for airshows, and aviation in general. A 737 went down in Alaska, I lost a friend in Bryan Jensen at the Kansas City Airshow, and the Red Arrows lost a pilot as well. Today Todd Green fell to his death during a wing walking performance at the Selfridge Airshow. Blue Skies to all.

Their Flying high above the clouds now.

sorry to hear about your friend. At one point or another, all of us in aviation lose someone we care about. It sucks.

Originally Posted by subLV

sorry to hear about your friend. At one point or another, all of us in aviation lose someone we care about. It sucks.

Yeah, it wasn't the first, and won't be the last. This year has been a lot worse than usual though. I just hope we make it through Reno without losing anyone.

Sorry to hear about that... It's an inherent risk in the trade and we all know it, but it doesn't make it any easier to cope with when someone passes. RIP.

Sad news. They passed doing what they loved.

Originally Posted by David@MR

Sad news. They passed doing what they loved.

Agree. Quite sad.

its a fact that we all in the aviation industry deal with (and honestly i think the danger aspect might have something to do with the draw to it) But you are right it really doesn't help when someone you know is taken, I had 4 go in the span of 6 months and that was rough but we make it through it and will be a stronger better pilot in the long run.

Originally Posted by Saleenfan

its a fact that we all in the aviation industry deal with (and honestly i think the danger aspect might have something to do with the draw to it) But you are right it really doesn't help when someone you know is taken, I had 4 go in the span of 6 months and that was rough but we make it through it and will be a stronger better pilot in the long run.

Agreed. What are your thoughts on the surface level waivers for the acro guys? It seems to be getting a little out of hand to me. Some of the guys are pushing maneuvers so low that if you are in the first two rows of the crowd, you can't see them. Skip Stewart's insane knife edge passes come to mind. I don't like a lot of regulations, but I am starting to think a 100' minimum would be better. Most of the crowd wouldn't know the difference, and it gives a little better margin.

Originally Posted by MX304

Agreed. What are your thoughts on the surface level waivers for the acro guys? It seems to be getting a little out of hand to me. Some of the guys are pushing maneuvers so low that if you are in the first two rows of the crowd, you can't see them. Skip Stewart's insane knife edge passes come to mind. I don't like a lot of regulations, but I am starting to think a 100' minimum would be better. Most of the crowd wouldn't know the difference, and it gives a little better margin.

Honestly, I think it will take a few more serious accidents to get the conversation started, but I agree completely with a minimum altitude for airshows. I wonder if some of the riskier maneuvers would even be possible without assistance from ground effects.