[f-AA] Fw: rENO sTORY

[Robert Steuber]

 

----- Original Message -----

From: Thomas Browne

To: Chris Rosacker

Cc: jack...@theunion.com ; steu...@theunion.net

Sent: Sunday, September 18, 2011 3:37 PM

Subject: rENO sTORY

                        “What the hell just happened?!”

What happened at the Reno National Championship Air Races last Friday was an absolute worst case, nightmare scenario-an aircraft into the crowd. Though there have been seventeen pilot fatalities over the years this was the first time in 48 years that the Reno Air Races has suffered any civilian casualties. Large aviation safety enhancements generally evolve after the fact. I’m sure this will be one of those watershed events.

Based on the outstanding professional work of local photographers Tim and Brian O’Brien who took crystal clear photos of the stricken aircraft moments before impact, the NTSB will soon be able to come up with the preliminary accident report. Unfortunately it appears that the events leading up to this accident are not unique. Investigators are focusing on the missing elevator trim tab clearly seen in Tim’s photos.

        I witnessed this accident from a safe three miles away, on the other side of the race course. I spent the rest of the evening and next morning reviewing photos and questioning friends, professional pilots and colleagues who witnessed the crash and aftermath and were located as close as 30 feet from the impact area.

        The accident aircraft was Race #177, tail number NX7911, named “The Galloping Ghost” a highly modified, experimental P-51D, and piloted by Jimmy Leeward—the 74 years old developer of the Leeward Air Ranch in Ocala Florida. Jimmy had been racing at Reno since 1972 and had yet to win an unlimited championship Gold Race. He was planning on retiring from air racing, but not without one more shot for the Gold win. Based on his hard charging performance during this last race, passing the “Rare Bear” (Race #77) on the 2^nd or 3^rd lap, and trying to close on the two lead aircraft “Strega” and “Voodoo” clocked unofficially at 490+ mph, you could tell he was serious.

        I had the unique experience of crewing for Jimmy in the early 1980’s as a ramp rat and aircraft polisher. Back then the plane was known as “Jeannie” and was all polished aluminum. This allowed me to gain a real inside, hands on view of the vicissitudes of Unlimited Air Racing. This experience also gave me the confidence to enter the races myself in the biplane class a few years later.

PREVIOUS RELATED EVENTS

        In 1998 during the Saturday Gold Heat, Race #5, “Voodoo” another highly modified, experimental P-51D piloted by Bob “Hurricane” Hanna of Yamaha motocross fame suffered an inflight failure of the left elevator trim tab at approximately 450 mph. This resulted in an instantaneous, abrupt pitch up of the aircraft of over 10 G’s (10 times the force of gravity) temporarily knocking out Hanna in a classic case of G Induced Loss of Consciousness (G-LOC-lack of blood/oxygen to the brain). Hanna was able to regain consciousness at 9,000 feet and safely recover the aircraft.  The owner promptly put the aircraft up for sale. Ironically it was this same aircraft, “Voodoo”, that Leeward was trying to catch in the number two position during his last race on Friday.

In 1999 another very highly modified, almost unrecognizable P-51D, “Miss Ashley”, piloted by Gary Levitz of Levitz furniture fame literally vaporized before our very eyes in midair after high speed flutter of the elevator caused the tail to fail and subsequent breakup of the airframe at full race speed.

        Unfortunately it looks like Fridays disaster is shaping up to be a similar situation. Somewhere between the #8 pylon and the Home Pylon in front of the grandstands at approximately 490 mph Jimmy Leeward’s “Galloping Ghost” developed elevator flutter or elevator trim tab flutter, ripping off the left elevator trim tab. Flutter is the aerodynamic phenomenon of a movable control surface violently oscillating back and forth due to either a control surface imbalance, loose linkage, or excessive aerodynamic loads (speed).

 I know, the elevator trim tab looks like a tiny part of the plane, how could it bring the plane down? As an airplane flies faster and faster, the wings develop more and more lift which tends to make the aircraft climb. In order to maintain level flight you need to hold more and more down elevator (forward stick).  Soon this stick force builds up and needs to be ‘relieved’ so you roll in some down elevator trim to relieve this force. Pilots always trim the airplane to keep the stick forces neutral. At racing speeds, the elevator trim is nearly maxed out in the ‘nose down’ position to compensate for the huge amount of lift the wings are now generating, placing huge aerodynamic loads on the airframe. As soon as the trim tab departed the aircraft, the plane pitched up violently, so violently that the tailwheel extended and the pilot slumped over the controls, possibly G-LOC’d (unconscious). With no further input from the pilot except for perhaps body weight on the stick the stricken aircraft continued to climb and roll to the right towards the grandstands until inverted (upside down). As the speed decayed, the nose pitched down, while continuing to roll to the right, descending almost vertically under full power to impact.

Words cannot express the sorrow felt for all those affected by this tragedy. This was a worst case, nightmare scenario and there will be changes. There was a large group of local Nevada County residents volunteering, participating, and spectating who witnessed Friday’s tragedy. Please do not hesitate to seek a little Post Traumatic Stress counseling, I know I am.

Juan Browne

Nevada City, CA

[ryanaero]

As an accident investigator, I would suggest the group take anything posted about this tragedy as “opinion only” until the NTSB & FAA find the actual cause. It may seem obvious, but I will wait for the experts to publish the probable cause.

 

Gregg Horrell

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[Roger Anderson]

True...it awaits an official NTSB pronouncement someday.  However, in this unusual case, this accident,  it is the "experts" that are making the judgments already.  Meaning, these persons already "pronouncing" are part of one of the most tight knit groups found in any activity (warbird air racing).  Their knowledge of ever nut, bolt, modification, and secret of every person and plane in the group is  part of that total  air racing family.  It is members of that tight knit group that have speculated on the cause, not to mention in this high tech world of photography all the photos showing the tragic event.  And of course, there's the previous history of this apparent scenario having happened some years before.  Were I to be a betting man.......I think I'd put money on this speculation being professed by the warbird community actually  turning out to be the cause of the event.....if in fact anything can be determined with 100% certainty from what little remains of both plane and pilot.   It's very sad to have such a tragic event available for us to speculate upon, but none the less still interesting to judge from our cyber world. 

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From: "ryanaero" <ryan...@gci.net>
To: aer...@westmont.edu
Sent: Sunday, September 18, 2011 10:39:18 PM
Subject: Re: [f-AA] Fw: rENO sTORY