Amazing photos - pilot survives impact with runway . . .

[robbreid]

This is the moment when a stunt glider slammed into a runway in front of 15,000 horrified fans at Shoreham, West Sussex.
Amazingly pilot Mike Newman, 35, crawled out of the wreckage of the high performance Swift S-1 aircraft after the cockpit broke up on impact.
The former racing driver suffered three broken vertebrae in the accident, but doctors expect him to make a full recovery.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z0zVk7gybB

photo; Albanpix.com

G-IZII.jpg (99.82 KiB) Viewed 4684 times

photo Albanpix.com

G-IZII 2.jpg (141.18 KiB) Viewed 4684 times

[jpilot77]

WOW!!! I'm pretty sure his underwear didn't survive the impact!

[ZBBYLW]

Forget about the impact. I am pretty sure he had a catastrophic uncontained underwear failure on frame #1

Jesus, what good pictures. I am glad he made it through.

[Splatm]

Looking at the pictures the crash is just about perfect, almost straight on so little twisting and no tumbling, nose absorbed about as much energy as it could, canopy popped up and away so no head strike, and the plane rolled onto its back instead of tipping over. Must be hard to fly with that many horseshoes where they would need to be.

[. ._]

Amazing short field landing technique!

[sky's the limit]

Wow.

You don't see pix like that everyday. One lucky fellow. Thanks for putting them up Rob.

stl

[Rudy]

Amazing short field landing technique!

[Phileas Fogg]

[dieselbro]

Wow very interesting read and certainly very graphic photos. I'm more interested in what led up to these events, did he just stall it? The artice was not very clear.

Glad to hear the pilot is okay!

[optimus]

Jeez, is that blood on the canopy?

[iflyforpie]

Jeez, is that blood on the canopy?

Negative, those are the canopy jettison handles....

[bic]

Here is another one.....

[Bushav8er]

Video of the glider -

[Gogona]

When I see pictures like these, I'm always thinking, how lucky are glider pilots just because they don't have fuel tanks...

[Tim]

great pics...lucky guy!

the fuse is already starting to buckle just from the initial wing strike (first photo just aft of wing root)

[Big Pistons Forever]

From the video it looks like a very low altitude release.........broken tow rope ?

[The Old Fogducker]

I've flown radio controlled model sailplanes on the hill in the background of this sad event many many times ... Mill Hill. Great place overlooking the airport. Superb slope soaring site.

In the summer months the model club flies RC on the airport on one evening ... Wednesday I think ... makes for a neat show.

OFD

[cgzro]

I'm more interested in what led up to these events, did he just stall it?

Sure looks like a classic stall / spin from base to final. Presumably his tow rope broke low and he tried to turn back to the runway. Another land approx straight ahead lesson.

[ktcanuck]

I have two bulging discs in my lower back. Looking at that second photo makes my eyes water.

[iflyforpie]

I'm more interested in what led up to these events, did he just stall it?

Sure looks like a classic stall / spin from base to final. Presumably his tow rope broke low and he tried to turn back to the runway. Another land approx straight ahead lesson.

Normal rope break procedure in a glider is to turn back to the runway--it's pretty much instinctive (and taught before solo) from 300-400 feet. I have a feeling that the combination of a strong wind, a light glider, and a powerful but slow Pawnee towing it made him too high going downwind and by the time he realized he couldn't get down it was too late, so he tried to turn around again for an into wind landing (the A27, the Adur River, and an Industrial Park limiting overshoot landing options).

There were options for an 'out' landing in the direction he was taking off, however...

[cyeg66]

Holy smokes. What was the outcome in the RV7 situation? Looks like it could have been gruesome. Just look at the passenger bracing for impact....

[Pratt X 3]

According to the pictures of the RV-7 on Airliners.net, (search G-CDRM), this was a nose-over on landing.

The nosewheel appeared to dig into the ground and the aircraft flipped over... Both occupants escaped without major injuries.

[linecrew]

Holy smokes. What was the outcome in the RV7 situation? Looks like it could have been gruesome. Just look at the passenger bracing for impact....

Minor injuries to the pilot and none to the passenger:

http://www.aaib.gov.uk/publications/bul ... g_cdrm.cfm

[mag check]

great pics...lucky guy!

the fuse is already starting to buckle just from the initial wing strike (first photo just aft of wing root)

Notice in the second pic the fuse is straight again, so while it was deflecting on impact, it didn't yield.
Amazing to see these pics, and amazing that he survived it.