Posted on 09/17/2011 6:47:33 PM PDT by Doogle
MARTINSBURG, W.Va. -- A plane crashed Saturday at an air show in Martinsburg, W.Va., FOX News Channel reported.
Kimmie Shipley, a spokeswoman for the West Virginia University Hospital said that there are no fatalities as a result of the crash other than the pilot.
There were no initial reports of injuries in the crowd.
West Virginia Air National Guard spokesman Lt. Nathan Mueller said the T-28 aircraft crashed while it performed during a routine at the Thunder over the Blue Ridge Open House and Air Show in Martinsburg. Mueller did not have any details on the pilot's condition.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
I beleive the Navy still fly them as trainers. One went into Corpus Christi Bay last month.
Next air show, I’m wearing my folding chair on my head.
I wonder if we read about air show crashes as often as they happen...
I saw one at the NAS Oceana Air Show in September of 2007. There was no national news and the air show continued after a hour delay.
I just went back and read some info on the net about the crash that day. The 74 year old pilot had lied about heart problems to keep his ticket.
This has been a bad year on the airshow circuit; a female wing-walker died in May of burns she received when her stunt plane crashed in March. And, more recently, we had a aerobatic pilot die during a show in Kansas City, and another wing-walker died in Michigan while attempting to transfer from an aircraft to a helicopter(a stunt he performed hundreds of time). The same weekend, a member of the RAF Red Arrows died in a crash in England.
Now, with the disaster in Reno, I’ve actually heard politicians call for more regulation of airshows and performers. Please. Aviation is inherently risky; pilots and other airshow performers make daring maneuvers look routine because of long hours of preparation and exacting standards. Inevitably, accidents will happen and people will die. But we don’t need to regulate airshows and air races out of business.
It’s worth remembering that the two worst airshow disasters in history occurred in Europe, where performing aircraft have long been allowed to fly over crowds and conduct maneuvers that would never be authorized in the States. Airshow pilots, performers and air racers understand the risks they face and are willing to accept the odds. The FAA provides a sufficient level of regulation and supervision. Mourn for the dead, learn from the accidents and move on. That’s the way it has always been in aviation and the way it should be.
I'm pretty sure the T-28s are long gone from active service. T-34 Mentors and T-6 Texan IIs have replaced them, as far as I know.
Well said.
Well said.
Politicians gotta "politic". I swear they're all camera whores. Would be nice to find a few to run this country who know when to let well enough alone.
Is it just me or is this entire country undergoing one round of problems after another? So much death that it’s like the Angel of Death is let loose and merrily cutting his scythe through humanity. I wonder why God let him out.
They can use Outlaw Field (TN).
“That’s the way it has always been in aviation and the way it should be.”
That’s the way it should be with everything.
Already had a crash in Kansas City last month at there airshow. Then a day later a man fell off a plane at their airshow.
correction: The man who fell off was in Detroit’s airshow.
I used to skydive and I think this is absolutely nuts!
Just another waste of tax payers money, not much different than building a bike path. Except that people get killed. Poor pilots family.
Waste of money? Shame on you.
One of the most inspiring things to see in this nation.
Aviation is a major part of why this nation is what it is.
Airshows will never stop. Never. It’s in our blood as Americans to fly, it’s a celebration of freedom that this nation gives us and those that defend it. It inspires people to join the military, it inspires people to become engineers and pilots.
The money spent on them is tiny for what they give back.
It is very disconcerting that all these accidents are happening to high time very proficient pilots . These war bird planes are also high time aircraft and may have metal fatigue. The P 51 in Reno seems to have lost a control surface and the accident in Kansas city looked like the pilot had a G-loc.
Condolences to the families of these brave men and women who push the limits of aviation.
Yes sure, attendance is right up there with football. Dang, !!?! Sac intended.
Unless they have changed their ways recently, the CAF was only 1939-1945 aircraft.
I used to maintain a T-33A and a T-28C for a private owner and he had to fight to get fuel credits for airshows with the T-33 because he proved that the F-80 actually flew in Italy in 1945 however the T-28 was never accepted by the CAF because it was a '50's vintage trainer for the strait winged Navy Fury and the Air Force F-86 Sabre Jet.
The T-28 is very comfortable aircraft to fly.
In a pigs eye!!
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