Another warbird crash
AT-6 Texan N49961
This past weekend at the Oshkosh Airventure in Wisconsin there were two crashes involving three aircraft, which claimed the lives of four aviators. A helicopter and gyrocopter collided in midair over the portion of the airfield designated for the air show on Saturday afternoon. Both pilots perished. This was just hours after the above pictured aircraft, an unrestored AT-6 Texan crashed into Lake Winnebago just minutes after takeoff. Witness reports and ADS-B flight tracking data indicate the Texan entered a stall which induced a spin from which the pilot didn’t have time to recover. The pilot and her passenger both died instantly.
I got to see this particular aircraft fly just two weeks ago. It was part of a group of Texans doing formation flights around the Flying Cloud Air Expo just outside Minneapolis. The plane was built by Boeing during WWII, exported to Canada, and found its way to Spain, before being sold into private hands. It still wore the Spanish roundel and markings.
There have been several high profile warbird crashes in the last couple years, notably the B-17 and P-63 collide in mid-air over Dallas last year and the B-17 crash in 2019. These are 80 year old aircraft. This year, the small handful of airworthy B-17 Flying Fortresses were grounded. It remains to be seen if they will be permitted by the FAA to fly again. I sincerely hope they do, as it’s an amazing link to the past.
Category: Breaking News
Sorry to hear about these mishaps.
I was a career Marine Corps Aviator, so I, too, love to watch the old Warbirds fly.
However, and as much as I hate to say it, it’s probably getting to be time to park ’em all before the rest of them get destroyed in mishaps. Most of them are getting too old and tired to keep flying regularly.
At least then we’ll be able to enjoy them in aviation museums.
I would reluctantly have to agree. These aircraft were built in the middle of an emergency, and nobody ever intended them to be airworthy for 70+ years.
There’s obviously a huge difference between riding in a 70 year old Jeep and flying in a 70 year old plane.
Yep, a jeep crash is nowhere near as spectacular as an airplane augering in.
Engine failure is generally easier to deal with on a Jeep too. You just slowly coast to a stop. My Jeep is only 68, just getting broken in.
Miss my old Jeep, she was a bit of a rarity being a DJ3A Dispatcher. Most think of the old DJ5 Postal Jeeps but mine was a flat-fender with the Go-Devil engine making all of 60hp.
Mine is ‘55 CJ3B. Hurricane engine, but still 60hp
They make such a MACHO sound though, don’t they?
Back in 2018 the “Tante-Ju” [auntie Ju; Junkers-52] that was used in the movie, “Where Eagles Dare” crashed.
https://youtu.be/zlnKY3ZxAMk?t=153
Wiki:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Ju-Air_Junkers_Ju_52_crash
Disagree strongly, with all respect to your aviator credentials, sir.
Birds are meant to fly, and I’d prefer they all die doing so than being forcibly grounded as museum pieces.
The B-17s were grounded for a new AD. Some are already back in the air after the inspections were completed.
Reports on last nights local news of a crash involving an aircraft returning to Florida from Oshkosh. Crash not long after takeoff from rural General aviation aircraft. Both pilot and passenger airlifted the Lvl 1 trauma centers per last night report.
My prayers are with these unfortunate souls, their friends and families.
I got to fly aboard the B-17 Nine-O-Nine with my dad, a WW2
Bombardier. Greatest thrill of my life so far and I’ve had some
pretty good ones.
God bless the men and women that built and maintained
these aircraft as if their life depended on it. It did.
A 100 things can happen when you take off…and 98 of them ain’t good things. May His Peace bring some measure of His Comfort to the families.
This is “Sentimental Journey” B-17 owned and flown by the Commemorative Air Force in Mesa, AZ.
I got to watch them wheel her out, fire her up and fly her first test flight after winter maintenance in the Spring 2022. One beautiful bird!
https://pbase.com/flydutch/image/173861690
Those Studebaker engines really smoke and roar when they’re started
Wright Cyclones made by Stude?
My dad’s dad was a draftsman/test stand operator/engineer at Pratt so I should know if I’m speaking out of turn, but alas my knowledge of R-engines from WW2 is about nil.
Nice pic btws!!
Yes Studebaker produced the R-1820-97 under license. Hispano-Suiza in France even produced an R-1820 under license.
I heard some of those aircraft flying over Lakeville, which is just south of Minneapolis, during that show.
I wonder if that particular plane was one of them…
I certainly hope their wings aren’t clipped, and I cannot imagine the pilots who died flying them would want that as their legacy.
From the all too brief descriptions of what happened that is here on the info blurb, I am reluctant to place the blame on the aircraft. Yes there is a possibility that the Texan might have had an engine issue but there is nothing to say that was the case yet. I’d lean to pilot error, especially in the case of the helo / gyro copter crash. Oshkosh is one hell of an aviation gathering and has grown to be a huge concentration of aircraft of staggering performance differences and pilots of varied skills. I looked into going when I had my Comanche but after watching some videos of arrivals and departures decided I didn’t need to be there. Controlled chaos would be one term I would use to describe it and there are far too many low time pilots in small aircraft in one concentrated area / time IMO.
I love aircraft and flying so much I got my own PPL, my own plane (Piper Comanche 180) and later my own A&P certification.
I’m in the park them for their safety. The cables and connections that are still being used from those days are close to 90 years old. The aluminium shell is also that old and the general structure of these beautiful historic Birds of Prey are close to a century old too.
The design is at least 90 years old which leads to the statement that we have learned a lot about aerodynamics since those days.
The B-29 is still a hard plane to fly as are most of the others from those vintage times.
Todays fly by wire planes along with computer controls make these true museum pieces.
It’s not like we can take the first Mustang out for a drive or even the first Corvette.
I say to preserve them, fly them to different areas so the entire country can enjoy them.