Kyle and Amanda Franklin

[eric_stevens]

Pray for them, they were in an accident. Both are alive but badley injured/

[lmritger]

Just found out, news item from Brownsville: http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/fiesta-123823-air-crash.html

I hope to God they'll pull through.

Lynn

[Zachary]

Just terrible news. They are in my thoughts and prayers. Godspeed in their recovery!!!

[Bluedharma]

Thoughts and prayers for them both.

[Robbie Stuart]

My thoughts, & prayers go out to them. I really pray for a good recovery for them both. They are brave aviators that carry on a family tradition that is not your average air show routine, it takes a lot of willpower, training, & "Just darn Well We Will Do This" attitude, to carry on, as they do. If you never saw their fathers perform before they were killed, you probably don't understand. Sorry to rant. God Bless them, I hope they will be ok.
Robbie

[spookythecat]

G@DDAMMIT!!!!

Sorry. This was the last thing I expected to find out about today.

Anyone else notice that the odd years seasons have been the worst lately.

[The Inspector]

All I can do is echo everyone else's comments and concerns. I spent many hours over the years watching Jimmy and later, Kyles perfection with that airplane. Between Japan on Friday and now this, it's a pretty depressing weekend-

[Tim Adams]

I don't know what to say. I saw Jimmy and Bobby just a couple of weeks before they were killed in 2005. The dedication and skills shown by both families may be unmatched in the air show industry. I wish them both a speedy recovery.

[RyanShort1]

All I can do is echo everyone else's comments and concerns. I spent many hours over the years watching Jimmy and later, Kyles perfection with that airplane. Between Japan on Friday and now this, it's a pretty depressing weekend-

And the Skyraider earlier this week.

Ryan

[Jerry O'Neill]

I was stunned when I heard this.
Let's all pray that they get through this horrible event.
Jerry

[barnbstormer]

Prayers sent for Kyle and Amanda's recovery and pain relief.

Last edited by barnbstormer on Sun Mar 13, 2011 10:45 am, edited 1 time in total.

[DoraNineFan]

Very sad indeed.

I hope the man upstairs will give them a little help and I wish them a full recovery.

[DoraNineFan]

From the forum at airshowbuzz, Matt Younkin says that both Kyle and Amanda are presently stable.

[Zachary]

From Matt Younkin on Facebook today:

All, Please forward this letter on to who ever you see fit... Good morning all. Let me first express on behalf of Amanda, Kyle, Myself and both of our families so many thanks for all of your prayers and well wishes. We are all so fortunate to have s...uch a wonderful support network in all of you. We are still waiting for updates and it could be many hours, days, or weeks before we know exactly how the recovery process will play out between Amanda and Kyle. I can however report that Kyle was not injured and or burned as badly as reported earlier by the media and is expected to make a full and rapid recovery. I can also say that the updates we are receiving on Amanda are increasingly optimistic and though she has a long road of recovery ahead of her, the doctors are giving us the impression that things are not as bad as first reported and her chances for a full recovery are getting better not worse. The first 24 hours will set the tone for the story ahead. I also have to extend a very sincere thanks to my brother-in-law Kyle who I strongly credit for the fact that my little sister is still with us. Having witnessed the accident and being on of the first on the scene, I can say without a shadow of a doubt that he made no less than five quick decisions in the air and on the ground that gave her a second chance at life!! When the engine quit, Amanda was on the top wing in the rack. Kyle continued to fly the airplane in a straight and level fashion as long as he could to give Amanda every opportunity to unstrap and get into the front cockpit where she would have the best chance in the event of a hard landing. He also resisted the tendency to turn for the pavement which typically induces a fatal stall/spin situation. He avoided a landing in the pyro field which could have proven to be fatal, and faced with the only other option of land in mesquite woods, Kyle landed into the wind drastically reducing the forward speed at impact. Upon reaching the scene, I noticed that he set the airplane down in the only Waco sized piece of ground in that dense woods that didn't have tall trees in it. Kyle sustained the majority of his burns trying to pull his wife from the wreckage and when his efforts produced no results, he stayed in the cockpit and transmitted a repeating distress call about the post impact fire that had started. I honestly believe this motivated the rapid responders to press through the brush and douse the airplane at a more rapid rate which meant the split second difference that saved Amanda, who was still in the plane. The first responders on the scene did an excellent job of responding to the situation in a rapid manner. Having a professional air boss teamed up with professional CFR personnel made a world of difference that could be the single most important factor that both Amanda and Kyle are still with us. Please continue to send your thoughts and prayers this direction because we sincerely believe they are helping. I will pass updates along as I receive them. Sincerely Matt
By: Younkin Airshows

[aeroeng]

Hope they'll be OK. There was a video of the crash on YouTube this morning.

aeroeng