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P-51 Crashes at Reno Air Races, Spectator Casualties

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  • P-51 Crashes at Reno Air Races, Spectator Casualties

    UPDATE at 5:07 p.m.: There were 30 serious and 30 intermediate injuries, Reno Fire Chief Michael Hernandez said.

    Tara Trovato, spokeswoman for the Reno National Championship Air Races, confirms an aircraft crashed into the box seats at the races. She said it did not go into the grandstands.

    "It did crash and it did go into the box seats," Trovato said. She could provide no additional details.


  • #2
    Already on YouTube

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    • #3
      Unlimited plane has crashed at the Reno Air Races just after 4 p.m. Friday, hitting people seated in the box seats in the grandstand.

      According to witnesses pilot Jimmy Leeword was flying the Galloping Ghost, that went down soon after take-off during the beginning of the Unlimited race.

      The Unlimited plane slid into the grandstand, box seats injurying an unknown number of spectators. Reno-Stead airport authorities are asking everyone to go home.

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      • #4
        Shit! What a shame. Best to all injured and hope no more deaths.

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        • #5
          Multiple fatalities at the Reno Air Races after an Unlimited plane crashed into the grandstand soon after take-off.

          According to the Director of Communications at Renown, Kathy Carter, they are under 'code triage' which means extra available personnel will be called in and extra beds will be made available.

          Renown has been told to expect 80-100 injured. Right now 6 have been received but the severity of their injuries is unknown at this time.

          Unlimited plane has crashed at the Reno Air Races just after 4 p.m. that has killed 12 people and injured at least 30 Friday, hitting people seated in the box seats in the grandstand.

          According to witnesses pilot Jimmy Leeward was flying the Galloping Ghost, that went down soon after take-off during the beginning of the Unlimited race.

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          • #6
            pilot was 80 years old
            moving quickly in air

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            • #7
              Live coverage @ both these sites.



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              • #8
                It appears the aircraft and most of the debris missed the actual grand stands, but hit the "reserved box seats" which were in front of the stands.

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                • #9
                  Per the just on going press conference.

                  -NTSB has assumed control of the crash site and investigation

                  -54 transported to hospitals

                  -Confirmed there are fatalities, but the NTSB is withholding that for right now

                  -Pilot was 74, not 80, passed all medical requirements and was in good health

                  -Witnesses, including aviation professionals, say it appeared there was clearly something mechanically wrong with the aircraft

                  -Race is cancelled for the year, despite the pilot's family saying it should go on. No decision on future races

                  -NTSB board member is on the way from Washington D.C. to oversee the investigation

                  -Did not hit the grandstands, crashed into the tarmac, close to the box seats

                  -Pilot's first Reno race was in 1975

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by B757300 View Post
                    Per the just on going press conference.

                    -NTSB has assumed control of the crash site and investigation

                    -54 transported to hospitals

                    -Confirmed there are fatalities, but the NTSB is withholding that for right now

                    -Pilot was 74, not 80, passed all medical requirements and was in good health

                    -Witnesses, including aviation professionals, say it appeared there was clearly something mechanically wrong with the aircraft

                    -Race is cancelled for the year, despite the pilot's family saying it should go on. No decision on future races

                    -NTSB board member is on the way from Washington D.C. to oversee the investigation

                    -Did not hit the grandstands, crashed into the tarmac, close to the box seats

                    -Pilot's first Reno race was in 1975
                    Thanks for keeping us posted on this.

                    Although it is noble of the pilot's family to say the race should go on, they seem to be overlooking the fact that it wasn't just their loved one who was (presumably) lost, but people who did not wittingly risk their lives for the sake of this entertainment.

                    I know it's the immediate aftermath, but I'll be the first here to ask how justifiable a risk these airshows really are?

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                    • #11
                      From stuff.co.nz

                      Stephanie Kruse, a spokeswoman for the Regional Emergency Medical Service Authority, told The Associated Press that emergency crews took a total of 56 injury victims to three hospitals. She said they also observed a number of people being transported by private vehicle, which they are not including in their count.

                      Kruse said of the total 56, at the time of transport, 15 were considered in critical condition, 13 were serious condition with potentially life-threatening injuries and 28 were non-serious or non-life threatening.
                      Sam Rudge
                      A 5D3, some Canon lenses, the Sigma L and a flash

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                      • #12
                        Looks like a piece is missing from the horizontal tail.

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                        • #13
                          The pilot is among the deceased.

                          Not knowing much about this type of racing, I've started to look around:

                          The competition is like a car race in the sky, with planes flying wingtip-to-wingtip as low as 50 feet off the sagebrush at speeds sometimes surpassing 500 mph. Pilots follow an oval path around pylons, with distances and speeds depending on the class of aircraft.
                          Apparently these planes are also modified by their owners, and the Mustang has been at the wrong end of several accidents like this in recent years, because, presumably, it is built for speed. Hard to imagine there won't be significant tightening of rules soon.

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by Fear_of_Flying View Post
                            I know it's the immediate aftermath, but I'll be the first here to ask how justifiable a risk these airshows really are?
                            Not sure what you mean by justifiable? If there was no demand for these shows, then why would the organizers bother putting up the show? I would think that there are enough people that would choose to attend knowing something like this CAN happen.

                            In any case, I'm pretty sure the odds that you die at an airshow is much smaller than dying in a automobile crash.

                            This accident will probably mean new rules for the aircrafts competing in these events (the FAA is involved in the planning of this race), as well as moving spectator areas further away.

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                            • #15
                              BBC news here in the UK is reporting 3 fatalities (including the pilot) which seems an amazingly low number having seen video of the crash site. Very much reminiscent of the Frecce Tricolori Ramstein crash scene.

                              I fear there may yet be more deaths given the severity of some of the reported injuries.

                              RIP.
                              If it 'ain't broken........ Don't try to mend it !

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