German Airshow mid-air - Extra 300 goes down . photos

[bizjets101]

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A Extra 300 registered D-EXHO and a Xtreme3000 D-ETOJ performing at an airshow in Germany collided mid-air - the Xtreme managed to land safely, however the Extra 300 lost most of a wing and spiraled to the ground killing the pilot. Accident occurred at Warngau, South of Munich on Sept. 18/10.

Photos and story

Photo of Extra 300 D-EXHO

[Tim]

i often wonder if airshows are worth it...it too often feels like an exercise in vanity ("hey look what i can do in my plane!") which isn't worth the lives lost.

i know every precaution is taken, and the vast majority of pilots treat things with a very high sense of professionalism and safety. but still, these accidents happen to some of the best pilots in the world. i cant think of any display or show or event of any kind which leads to the loss of life as often as airshows do.

so, are air airshows worth it?

[Localizer]

i often wonder if airshows are worth it...it too feels like an exercise in vanity ("hey look what i can do in my plane!") which isn't worth the lives lost.

i know every precaution is taken, and the vast majority of pilots treat things with a very high sense of professionalism and safety. but still, these accidents happen to some of the best pilots in the world. i cant think of any display or show or event of any kind which leads to the loss of life as often as airshows do.

so, are air airshows worth it?

My 2 cents .. I think the answer is more complicated then a simple "is it worth it". To those that perform .. Yes its worth it, or they wouldn't do it. Its there craft .. its what they love to do .. this could be there whole reason for getting into aviation. Airshows, like a lot of sporting events come with inherent risk .. Boxing, M.M.A, Nascar/Indy .. all have the potential to be life threatening. You mitigate risk the best you can and hope the negative side doesn't rear its ugly head.

On a more personal note .. I love watching airshows. I really enjoy heading to Oshkosh for the EAA fly-in.

[Hedley]

Deleted.

[bizjets101]

[Jerz]

Tim, are airshows worth it? Of course they are.
Any activity worth doing involves a certain inherent risk. That includes getting out of bed in the morning. Our nanny governments nowadays may give you the false sense of security, but I have news for you: life is still exercise in risk management. The sooner we realize that, the safer we will be. BTW, the biggest killer in the West is a Big Mac. Is it worth it? I don't think so, but obviously majority of population disagrees.
Most airshow pilots are true professionals, and safety record is quite good, especially in North America. Those who aren’t are straitened out, or pushed out, hopefully before they manage to kill themselves. We have a self regulating industry , and I think it works quite well. The accidents, incidents, and dangerous attitudes are reviewed every winter and necessary changes to rules and polices are made. We also have ACE and buddy system and we look after each other. There were cases where pilots felt they needed to outdo each other some years back, and we lost several talented people. That has been addressed and you don't see much of that anymore. IIRC there was not a single spectator fatality at an airshow in North America since WW2. Compare that to any sport or spectator event.
It is a bad form to criticize the recently departed, but sorry, these two guys in Germany had no business flying formation at all, never mind at the airshow. I'd like to think this would never be allowed to happen here. Formation flying is a difficult and unforgiving activity, and you better get proper training, preferably from some military experts.

[Hedley]

Deleted.

[. ._]

I know people that have had ZERO training in formation flying and have done it perfectly legally because they talked about doing it beforehand. As far as I know this is legal.

Formation Flight

602.24 No person shall operate an aircraft in formation with other aircraft except by pre-arrangement between

(a) the pilots-in-command of the aircraft; or

(b) where the flight is conducted within a control zone, the pilots-in-command and the appropriate air traffic control unit.

Inadequate as hell, IMHO, but legal.

And for aerobatics and airshows:

623.06 Participant and Aircraft Eligibility

(1) Participant Eligibility

Pursuant to section 603.06 of the CARs, to be eligible to operate an aircraft in an air show, each flight crew member has to meet the following requirements:

(a) hold a pilot licence and medical certificate appropriate to the aircraft to be operated in the air show;

(b) to conduct solo air show aerobatic manoeuvres, be in possession of one of the following documents:

(i) a Transport Canada "Statement of Aerobatic Competency" (form 26-0307),

(ii) an FAA "Statement of Acrobatic Competency" (form 8710-7), or

(iii) an aerobatic competency certificate equivalent to (i) and (ii) above and recognized by Transport Canada;

(c) to conduct formation air show aerobatic manoeuvres as part of an aerobatic team:

(i) be in possession of one of the following documents on which is annotated "Formation":

(A) a Transport Canada "Statement of Aerobatic Competency" (form 26-0307),

(B) an FAA "Statement of Acrobatic Competency" (form 8710-7), or

(C) an aerobatic competency certificate equivalent to (i) and (ii) above and recognized by Transport Canada, and

(ii) have within the preceding 12 months;

(A) performed with the other members of the formation in 8 aerobatic performances, or

(B) carried out a minimum of 25 aerobatic practice sessions with the other members of the formation;

You have never flown a Sukhoi before, but you flew a couple practice sessions with the guys and your Sukhois each day for a couple of weeks, then you take a weekend to buzz into 8 local airports to do a quick roll, loop, photo flyby and see ya later. You don't fly for 11 months, then you do an hour of circuits in a 172 and you're now legal to fly a Sukhoi in formation aerobatics in front of a crowd. Am I reading the CARs right?

Personally, having only flown formation a few times (as a passenger, no aerobatics). There's no friggin' way you'd get me that close to another plane without a big pre-flight brief, an experienced guy in the other seat, and a debrief session. Not at my incompetency level right now. And even if I was at the top of my game, I'm not sure I'd want to do it. You have to REALLY trust the next guy.

I think Hedley might be onto something here with the "good on paper" vs. "good in real life" theory. (Don't tell Transport Canada I said that, though. )

-istp

[TG]

i often wonder if airshows are worth it...it too often feels like an exercise in vanity ("hey look what i can do in my plane!") which isn't worth the lives lost.

This is why it's worth it:
http://thecommunitypaper.com/archive/20 ... /index.php
Good reading...