[Vid]Reno Air Race Plane crash

that's why major mitchell died in independence day when he pulled up and lost it for a second before the alien shot him

he was too fit
 
Strega said:
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Age often causes pilots to be more capable of handling positive Gs than younger pilots. Old men and women who have plugged up arteries and veins tolerate rapid G onset better because the blood won't drain out of the head very fast and the high heart rates help put it back if it does. This might have been a sudden, quite high G event that would have taken any pilot, of any age, out of the control loop for a period longer than was available before the airplane hit the ground.

The loss of an elevator trim tab will have different effects based on the type of airplane, the design of the system and the manner in which the elevator is balanced. It appears that the tab loss will cause the elevator to go to neutral, which, at high speed, will result in a very high G pitch up.

In other airplanes that do not operate at speeds as high as the P-51 the elevator trim tab may be necessary to prevent elevator flutter. An example is the Cessna 441. In about 1975 or so, one of the earliest production models (single-digit serial number) lost the elevator trim tab actuator while in level cruise in clear air. The tab fluttered immediately and departed, which drove the elevator into flutter and it departed the airframe. The airplane immediately pitched down at such a high g load that all of the occupants were apparently killed by impact with the cabin ceiling.

A note on Bob Hannah's P-51 that had a trim tab loss and radical pitch up and climb - when Bob regained consciousness he was bent down and wedged against the instrument panel. His helmet prevented a massive head injury and he had to work himself free before he could sit up and see to fly the airplane. One wonders if such a thing happened to Jimmy Leeward and caused some aileron input leading to the observed roll or if the pull up was so strong that it stalled the wing (the P-51 has a VERY abrupt stall, and the accelerated stall is just plain nasty) leading to the roll off and ensuing very steep dive - also consistent with incipient spin, but without the time and altitude to develop much rotation (the P-51 loses a bunch of altitude in a spin entry).

As an aside (and I may have missed it on the thread) the tailwheel on a P-51 is held up via an over-center mechanism, it does not have a lock the way a T-6 does. A high G event can cause it to extend. In Bob Hannah's event at Reno the tailwheel did extend.
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Strega said:
Source
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I'll buy the accelerated stall bit and subsequent blackout at least partially. Not all stalls though as associated with a dive. Lots of accelerated stalls are done in the horizontal, just watch an aerobatic airplane in a routine. I don't think this and the trim tab are the only things to be blamed though, I imagine more is going to come of the investigation. I also imagine maintenance, or the design will bear some of the brunt for the failed trim tab, which was at the very least the catalyst for the accident.
Also, I don't but the cholesterol thingy from plugged up arteries. Your arteries need great blood flow to take high g-loading so blood pressure from your heart to brain is maintained. Having clogged arteries, high blood pressure, sustained high g-forces, and poor cardiovascular health is a recipe for a heart attack, not winning races. I don't need CNN to tell me that.
I hear it from my medical doctor every year.
 
What you're referring to, g-loading wise, is sustained g-load and that makes sense. The point I was making about blood flow is only specific to rapid G onset, not regular flying. Being in shape and pulling 7-9 G's for any length of time is a completely different set of physiological parameters.

I still think the NTSB is going to say, "Trim tab failure caused the elevator to neutralize and produced a rapid pitch up and accelerated stall. This caused the pilot to black out and the accelerated stall and possibly the passed out pilot pressing the stick to the right caused him to crash."

Aurora, if I'm wrong, I'll gladly buy you a case of beer of your choice (within reason). :)

Of course, the above is just my opinion on the crash details, but the medical stuff is pretty darn close as explained to my by a FAA Doctor this morning.
 
Strega said:
What you're referring to, g-loading wise, is sustained g-load and that makes sense. The point I was making about blood flow is only specific to rapid G onset, not regular flying. Being in shape and pulling 7-9 G's for any length of time is a completely different set of physiological parameters.

I still think the NTSB is going to say, "Trim tab failure caused the elevator to neutralize and produced a rapid pitch up and accelerated stall. This caused the pilot to black out and the accelerated stall and possibly the passed out pilot pressing the stick to the right caused him to crash."

Aurora, if I'm wrong, I'll gladly buy you a case of beer of your choice (within reason). :)

Of course, the above is just my opinion on the crash details, but the medical stuff is pretty darn close as explained to my by a FAA Doctor this morning.
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Well thanks :)
Not trying to put down your theory, it sounds plausible.
 
Strega said:
http://www.flyingmag.com/news/reno-crash-update-telemetry-data-emerges
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wow 11gs...an unconscious pilot would explain the roll over. perhaps he regained consciousness right before the crash which also explains the airplane pulling up at the last second
 
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