Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Location: By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea
68,271 posts, read 53,985,563 times
Reputation: 40551
When Steve Hinton crashed the Red Baron race plane at Reno in 1979 I remeber the the front page article in the Reno newspaper reporting Hinton's last words were "Man, I'm in deep s**t!".
Fortunately he survived relatively unscathed and continues to fly the pace plane T-33 at the Reno races.
We had a tragic crash here in 1978. PSA 727 aircraft that collided mid air with a private plane. I can actually look out from my top floor condo balcony and see the crash site. Just seconds after the fatal impact as the aircraft plunged straight down a male voice from the cockpit "Mom I love you." Heart breaking.
It's incredible how brave these pilots are - right up to the end. I know that's part of their training, but it's still very impressive. They don't panic: They stay focused and clear.
Some years ago, in the Flying magazine feature Aftermath, a mishap was detailed in which a VFR-rated private pilot in a Piper Aztec flew into instrument conditions and was trying to get out of them. He was talking to Center and while the last words in the cockpit will never be known, his last words to the ARTCC were the title of the article: "Center, am I inverted?"
These tapes are of course a necessity for other professionals to analyze and learn from, but... Am I the only one who feels like I'm prying a bit?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.