Yakovlev Yak-3 Found Struck by Bullet

[VintageAviationNews]

We just published this story.

Kinda nuts...

BREAKING NEWS!

http://www.warbirdsnews.com/warbird-new ... ullet.html

[John Dupre]

I once read a story of a pilot in California who discovered a fuel leak in his high wing aircraft after New Years day one year. The source was a bullet apparently fired miles away into the air to celebrate the new year which when it fell to earth penetrated the hangar roof and lodged in the transfer line between two fuel tanks.

[Jerry O'Neill]

Not so unusual. We found this on the taxiway at Lakefront Airport during the Super Bowl weekend in February. They said it happens all the time, especially after the New Year. The locals like to celebrate by shooting their guns in the air, a la Wild West!

[bdk]

A friend of mine had this happen to his Sundowner tied down outside at Compton airport. The bullet made a hole in the upper skin of his aileron, a dent in the lower skin, and was lodged inside.


Editing required due to the confounded iPad...

Last edited by bdk on Tue Apr 30, 2013 9:30 am, edited 1 time in total.

[Punisher05]

Doesn't surprise me a bit.

We get a lot of ambulance helo traffic here late at night. Most of our hospitals are only 3-5 miles due west of the airport so it's only a 30-45 second flight to get to them, but there's a lot of 'culture' (quoting Family Vacation here) between here and there.

One New Years Eve I had a MedFlight bird request a departure to the north (over the river). ATC asked "Don't you want to go to the west to reach so-and-so hospital?"

The MedFlight came back with "Negative, I'd like to depart to the north to avoid all the lead fireworks I'm hearing."

ATC immediately cleared him for a north departure and then to turn on course at his discretion.


-Brandon

[ErrolC]

Note that Warbirds Over Wanaka is the only location that the Ardmore-based P-40 fires its .50cals (blanks!). Someone asked 'Aren't they worried about FOD? - No, the casings fall down the rabbit holes!'

Here's the Yak in question in 2010 - my photos of it at Omaka (with the other one based there) at Easter aren't up yet.

Wanaka2010_8934f by errolgc, on Flickr

[hang the expense]

A friend of mine ad this happen to his Sundowned tied dow outside at Compton airport. The bullet made a hole in the upper skin of his aileron, a dent in the lower skin, and was lodged inside.

You know its been some years since the bowling ball through the front door treatment.Might be time for a reminder. I know you know the story.

[The Inspector]

At the height of the disagreement in Viet Nam about three times as many commercial airliners were struck by bullets while flying over the U.S. mainland than those doing military charters in and out of Viet Nam.

Years ago a guy on downwind East of KBFI had a golf ball come through the side window of his airplane as he flew over a metropolitan Seattle golf course on Beacon Hill.

[tom d. friedman]

you are correct. due to that it was s.o.p. to corkscrew for landing, or "bite the bullet"!!

[AvroAvian]

I remember Neil Anderson telling me (in one of his many great stories ) how he had been "shot down" in Mr Awesome, the uber-modified Yak 11, at Reno in 1989 (?). Apparently, the hangar where Mr Awesome was residing at in Palm Springs was caught in the cross fire of a drive by shooting. A stray bullet had punctured one of the oil lines going to the oil cooler. The maintainer duly spotted this and replaced the section of oil line and thought he had accounted for all the bullet fragments. Neil says the aeroplane flew a couple of times early in the mornings at Palm Springs, when it was cool, so the oil system didn't get really hot. However, when it got to Reno and Neil took it up to race power for the first time on a hot day, a bullet fragment became lodged in the oil cooler vernatherm causing the oil cooler to be bypassed. Needless to say, the R3350 fitted to Mr Awesome became "unhappy", forcing Neil to call a Mayday and come in for a very fast emergency landing.
I have some really crap slides I took "somewhere" of Mr Awesome coming in hot, with only one main gear leg extended, and then disappearing off the end of the strip towards the dreaded cliff in a great cloud of dust. All of us in the pits thought the worst, because he still "motoring" when he disappeared from sight. Neil says he was well aware of the rapidly approaching end of the strip and elected to ground loop. Poor Mr Awesome got torn up pretty bad but the cockpit stayed intact and Neil walked away without a scratch. The way Neil told the whole story though had me in stitches.
A great guy and a great pleasure to meet. He will be sorely missed....

[Chappie]

I read year's ago that Steve Wittman was over rural Alabama in Bonzo and took a bullet in his engine cowling. He applied a Rebel flag sticker over the hole.

Steve

[Richard W.]

"The plane is estimated to have suffered $2,000.00NZD worth of damage."

Is that anywhere close to $30,000 US?

[Boeing666]

"The plane is estimated to have suffered $2,000.00NZD worth of damage."

Is that anywhere close to $30,000 US?

I agree - a scratch vs. a bullet hole. I would also say that the Yak more likely had deliberate vandalism done to it. A careless ignorant golf cart driver vs. some angry Redneck New Zealand version of Elmer Fudd mad that he is no longer allowed to hunt wabbit on Airport property and decides to shoot at the hangar.

[bdk]

A friend of mine had this happen to his Sundowner tied down outside at Compton airport. The bullet made a hole in the upper skin of his aileron, a dent in the lower skin, and was lodged inside.

You know its been some years since the bowling ball through the front door treatment.Might be time for a reminder. I know you know the story.

If anyone would have had experience with the trajectory of a bowling ball, it would have been Fred!

[bdk]

Apparently, the hangar where Mr Awesome was residing at in Palm Springs was caught in the cross fire of a drive by shooting.

Van Nuys I think, not Palm Springs.