DC-3 Crash in Florida

[Jack Cook]

Just saw on the news a report of a DC-3 crash in a Fort Lauderdale, Florida neighborhood. The 3 ended up in the middle of the street and looks intact but they were foaming the heck out of the forward fuselage. Anyone with further info????

[Scott Rose]

I saw that but was waiting for another view, thought it was a DC-3. Will post more infor if I come across it.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050613/ap_ ... NlYwN0cw--

[Warbirdnerd]

Pictures can be found here...
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nati ... i-news-hed

[Aircraft Mech Paul]

Hi All,

What can I say but WOW ! Looks like the fire was contained quickly and that no homes were damaged, but the photo's were small so I am only speculating. I forget, but the pilots made it out didn't they ? I think this is one of those instances that the old saying is true "God was their co-pilot".

Godspeed to everyone where it happened.

Paul

[Rob Mears]

Someone contact those pilots so I can get this weeks lottery numbers. :D

[GIJOE290]

I'm glad to hear the pilot and crew are okay, but it's sad to hear the death of an old warrior of the Skys.....

[V1VRV2]

It's not a 3, its a Super 3., and I've got an idea which one

Rob G.

[BrianB]

My first flying instructor.... an old Beech 18 freight dog... told me "no matter how much things go to SH** in an emergency, never stop flying the airplane" If you look at all of the news clips, the pilot of this DC-3 threaded it right down a tree lined residential street and walked away. Luck or great flying? I know what my guess is!

[Randy Haskin]

"no matter how much things go to SH** in an emergency, never stop flying the airplane"

The guy who taught me to fly pounded the same axiom into my brain...never stop flying the airplane until it impacts the ground and stops, for better or worse.

Interestingly, that's an idea that I've sort of had to wipe from my decisionmaking tree while flying ejection seat equipped aircraft. Most guys who die in ejections do so because they delayed the decision to eject. We study human factors a lot, which tells us that as pilots we're going to *want* to try and keep flying the airplane because of our innate need to fix things. There's a saying which goes something like "the decision to eject is made at zero knots, zero feet, and 1G" -- in other words, know when it's time to fight that b*tch until the very end and when it's time to pull the yellow-and-black handles and get out.

So, I've come to realize that, depending on the aircraft you're in, there just might be a time to say "awww, f*ck it" and give up on the airplane![/i]

[N3Njeff]

Talked to my father who is OPS Dir. at FLL. He told me that it was a Super 3 that had been working out of Executive for the last couple of months to the Islands. He had a load of Granite on this flight, the pilot was a 62 yr old ex-Vietnam helicopter pilot and the co- pilot was a couple of yrs younger.

Cant beat expirence...........he did a hell of a job! To bad the fire, but I bet "as usual" load bounced at impact and went through the floor and into the fuel tanks.

[krlang]

The registration comes up as an R4D-8 Super.

You can see the big square tail in the pics

[Paul Krumrei]

[Robbie Stuart]

This airplane had served as an R4D with VX-6 in support of "Operation Deep Freeze" in Antarctia as then s/n: 39061. I bet that ole gal could have told some cold tales.
Regards
Robbie

[marine air]

When I was a senior in High school in 1981, I remember talking to the Marine recruiters about going to recip school. He checked and told me they closed the ADR school in 1980. He said "the only two duty stations are the Air museum in Quantico and they a few C-117's based in Iwakuni Japan. I think the Marines operated the C-117 (R4d-8) into the 1980's.
CHarlie CLements also has a "Super 3" at Tamiami parked next to his Supercat PBY. I thought it was his aircraft at first. Also, they only built about thirty or so of these for the Navy and Marines. THe Civil Type rating for the Super 3 is called a DC-3S. The airplane is that different from a standard C-47 that it requires a separate type rating. There's a short piece in the movie "The Great Santini" where Bull Meachem arrives in a Marine C-117 and I'm curious if that is the same serial number of the one that went down this week. Charlie Clements Super 3 still has the remnants of its U.S. Navy paint scheme. I hear they are a hoot to fly and are faster and have much longer range than the standard DC-3.
Regards,

[N3Njeff]

Thought Charlie finally got his RD4 painted???? My father usually help crew it from time to time. That and switch hits between the 2 PBY's that call Tamiami home.