What just happened at Reno?

[mgeorge51]

Thanks Stoney, sorry I didn't see you guys this year

I had guessed 20 plus and I asked a childhood friend who is an aeronautical engineer about the wings and he thought they would take more G's due to being shortened. He was 11 boxes away.

The figures you stated are exactly what I remember seeing from the pits. The pitch up was exactly like what you see from model airplanes or computer generated images similar to the last Pearl Harbor movie.

[RyanShort1]

I wonder if that 22 could be a typo. There was that earlier report of 11 Gs, and it wouldn't be too hard to be one key off... of course, if that data is correct, it would certainly explain a LOT.

[aeroeng]

I wonder if that 22 could be a typo. There was that earlier report of 11 Gs, and it wouldn't be too hard to be one key off... of course, if that data is correct, it would certainly explain a LOT.

It's very possible that it is correct if it came from a data recorder. But it might have been at one instant moment and dropped down to 11g's after a second. They don't mention a duration. When they started installing boxes on race cars they were amazed at the g-forces during accidents (some over 80 g's). But these were at one instant point in the time line of the data.

aeroeng

[Saville]

I suspect there is a physicist-type that can calculate the amount of energy released at the moment of impact, but I think most people can’t really comprehend how that would translate to an effect.

DB

Give me the weight and the velocity at impact. Convert the weight to mass and it's

KE = 1/2 M V**2

velocity is squared so if it's 500 mph the KE is going to be colossally high.

[Randy Haskin]

I wonder if that 22 could be a typo. There was that earlier report of 11 Gs, and it wouldn't be too hard to be one key off... of course, if that data is correct, it would certainly explain a LOT.

It really depends on what type of instrument is measuring G, where it's located, and how it measures. It could be possible that BOTH numbers are legitimate.

One airplane I've flown has a system with mutiple sensors all over the aircraft that measures the G both in terms of an absolute number, but also in terms of the % of acceleration allowed on that particular portion of the airplane -- you'd be surprised how different the G readings can be at different points on the aircraft, even under what appears to be a totally symmetric application of G. Under this situation, it would be possible to have one spot on the airplane record 11G and a different sensor record 22G.

Another airplane I've flown samples G at something like 20Hz, but doesn't display the individual samples to the pilot. Instead, it averages the G over a rolling set of three samples, and then displays that average. In this scenario, it would be possible that there was a "spike" of 22G in one of those 20Hz samples, yet the "average" G displayed and recorded would be 11G.

So, until we know the source of the G readings, and have some idea about what recorded them, it's impossible to know if they're spurious or not.

[dano]

I have been thinking about if I should write something about what happened at Reno and I will say something brief about it. We have been going to the races for about 29 years, we have box A 50 and 51. When the plane hit about 50 feet from our booth. At the time we have about 10 people sitting in our both and we have 4 people standing in the walkway. By the time you saw the plane roll over and start down, you hardly had time to do anything. Our people in the aisle started to run but did not get far, they got shrapnel cuts in the back , head and legs, 3 ended up in the hospital and were operated on, luckily ok and will be fine in a couple of months. All of us sitting in the booth were blown to the far side of the booth and had minor injuries. There were 2 people standing in the walkway behind me at the corner of the closer booth and our booth who were killed. After the accident, I checked on our people in the booth and went to help the people in closer to the crash. I applied first aid to a person with a head wound ( wrapping his head with the booth skirt and getting my dad to hold it) moved over to a man who had a deep cut on his leg, among other injuries, a person was trying to stop the bleeding in the leg, I got a belt and applied a tourniquet to his leg and got the blood stopped. Mover over to a another person who had massive head injuries, a women doctor was trying to wrap his head with a bandage, I helped hold his head while she wrapped it. By then, the fire man and other starting to show up and take over. The amount of body parts and devastation that was around those booths was beyond belief. Parts and pieces of airplane and people were mixed together, it will be something that I will never forget. The hole were the plane hit was about 2 to 3’ deep and about 6’ to 7’ wide. When it hit, it pulverized the asphalt, so what flew out was bits of asphalt, airplane, gas, and other liquids. I counted myself around 10 to 11 dead and I can’t say how many injured. My deepest sympathy to everybody who lost somebody and who was injured.
Dan

[mrhenniger]

I have been thinking about if I should write something about what happened at Reno and I will say something brief about it. We have been going to the races for about 29 years, we have box A 50 and 51. When the plane hit about 50 feet from our booth. At the time we have about 10 people sitting in our both and we have 4 people standing in the walkway. By the time you saw the plane roll over and start down, you hardly had time to do anything. Our people in the aisle started to run but did not get far, they got shrapnel cuts in the back , head and legs, 3 ended up in the hospital and were operated on, luckily ok and will be fine in a couple of months. All of us sitting in the booth were blown to the far side of the booth and had minor injuries. There were 2 people standing in the walkway behind me at the corner of the closer booth and our booth who were killed. After the accident, I checked on our people in the booth and went to help the people in closer to the crash. I applied first aid to a person with a head wound ( wrapping his head with the booth skirt and getting my dad to hold it) moved over to a man who had a deep cut on his leg, among other injuries, a person was trying to stop the bleeding in the leg, I got a belt and applied a tourniquet to his leg and got the blood stopped. Mover over to a another person who had massive head injuries, a women doctor was trying to wrap his head with a bandage, I helped hold his head while she wrapped it. By then, the fire man and other starting to show up and take over. The amount of body parts and devastation that was around those booths was beyond belief. Parts and pieces of airplane and people were mixed together, it will be something that I will never forget. The hole were the plane hit was about 2 to 3’ deep and about 6’ to 7’ wide. When it hit, it pulverized the asphalt, so what flew out was bits of asphalt, airplane, gas, and other liquids. I counted myself around 10 to 11 dead and I can’t say how many injured. My deepest sympathy to everybody who lost somebody and who was injured.
Dan

I was out at pylon #2, so quite far away. Your perspective was much differrent to say the least. Thanks for your report. Please be sure to take care of yourself. I am sure others like myself would like to see more WIX contributions from you in the future.

Mike

[51fixer]

I just received the following note
"Speed around the #8 pylon - 500mph 102" MP
When trim tab let go 22.6 G's

Speed decayed to 375mph then accelerated again to 500+mph just before impact."

No doubt these numbers came from the aircraft's telemetry. If verified, these numbers are stunning!"

Please take into account that unless this info is released by the NTSB or the crew directly it is speculative.
And I don't think they are going to release it officially at this point.
As I recall Strega runs 120-130" MP. 102" sounds low to do 500MPH.

[spookythecat]

Thank you so much for jumping right in to help. Those may have been friends and members of my local Warbird group and your actions are very much appreciated.

That thank you goes out to all who were involved and were able to focus on the help that was needed. After such a traumatic event I don't know if what my head would be thinking whether i'd just freeze up in terror or rush in to help. I like to believe it would be the latter.

I have been thinking about if I should write something about what happened at Reno and I will say something brief about it. We have been going to the races for about 29 years, we have box A 50 and 51. When the plane hit about 50 feet from our booth. At the time we have about 10 people sitting in our both and we have 4 people standing in the walkway. By the time you saw the plane roll over and start down, you hardly had time to do anything. Our people in the aisle started to run but did not get far, they got shrapnel cuts in the back , head and legs, 3 ended up in the hospital and were operated on, luckily ok and will be fine in a couple of months. All of us sitting in the booth were blown to the far side of the booth and had minor injuries. There were 2 people standing in the walkway behind me at the corner of the closer booth and our booth who were killed. After the accident, I checked on our people in the booth and went to help the people in closer to the crash. I applied first aid to a person with a head wound ( wrapping his head with the booth skirt and getting my dad to hold it) moved over to a man who had a deep cut on his leg, among other injuries, a person was trying to stop the bleeding in the leg, I got a belt and applied a tourniquet to his leg and got the blood stopped. Mover over to a another person who had massive head injuries, a women doctor was trying to wrap his head with a bandage, I helped hold his head while she wrapped it. By then, the fire man and other starting to show up and take over. The amount of body parts and devastation that was around those booths was beyond belief. Parts and pieces of airplane and people were mixed together, it will be something that I will never forget. The hole were the plane hit was about 2 to 3’ deep and about 6’ to 7’ wide. When it hit, it pulverized the asphalt, so what flew out was bits of asphalt, airplane, gas, and other liquids. I counted myself around 10 to 11 dead and I can’t say how many injured. My deepest sympathy to everybody who lost somebody and who was injured.
Dan

[ZRX61]

After such a traumatic event I don't know if what my head would be thinking whether i'd just freeze up in terror or rush in to help. I like to believe it would be the latter.

One of the videos clearly shows someone in a black shirt rush into the impact zone with his camera up by his face to take photos & then he quickly turns & runs away....

[spookythecat]

After such a traumatic event I don't know if what my head would be thinking whether i'd just freeze up in terror or rush in to help. I like to believe it would be the latter.

One of the videos clearly shows someone in a black shirt rush into the impact zone with his camera up by his face to take photos & then he quickly turns & runs away....

As a photographer I can promise that would not be my reaction.

[Lynn Allen]

After such a traumatic event I don't know if what my head would be thinking whether i'd just freeze up in terror or rush in to help. I like to believe it would be the latter.

One of the videos clearly shows someone in a black shirt rush into the impact zone with his camera up by his face to take photos & then he quickly turns & runs away....

What the next picture should show is someone's boot approaching in the 6 O'Clock area of the said person...

[marine air]

The news stations were reporting this morning that the NTSB will have a preliminary report to release this Friday, the 23rd.

[gary1954]

After such a traumatic event I don't know if what my head would be thinking whether i'd just freeze up in terror or rush in to help. I like to believe it would be the latter.

One of the videos clearly shows someone in a black shirt rush into the impact zone with his camera up by his face to take photos & then he quickly turns & runs away....

What the next picture should show is someone's boot approaching in the 6 O'Clock area of the said person...

Man what a Frickin Jerk, probably thinking that his wallet would get fatter to match his fat head. Two minutes.....that's all the time I need.

[Speedy]

After such a traumatic event I don't know if what my head would be thinking whether i'd just freeze up in terror or rush in to help. I like to believe it would be the latter.

One of the videos clearly shows someone in a black shirt rush into the impact zone with his camera up by his face to take photos & then he quickly turns & runs away....

Not everyone is that way.

I had my son with me out at pylon 8 and it was his first time shooting out there with credentials. Once things settled down his exact words were 'Dad, is it bad that as soon as I saw him start to roll over I knew he was going to die, and my only reaction was to lower my camera?'

No, son....it's not bad at all.

The kid's 18. Even at that age, he gets it.