[7th Cavalry]

You will notice in the last photo that you can see the pilots helmet over the controls and towards the front. This is on the final rollover before impact. In the other photo you can see the lack of the pilot in the canopy. This was taken directly after the last. Speculation is that his seat malfunctioned while pulling out of the race and it made him lose control... along with the tail issue. There is the possibility that he was passed out over the controls but it was obvious that "something" was steering the plane before impact. Hopefully the cockpit video will show the details we lack right now.

[pacha1]

its what god wanted

[DeeMarieGK]

:0(

[Cumulonimbus]

How horrible

[Arkoquisa]

Originally Posted by Jimbo836 ↗

I was there, with a perfect view of the whole accident. The trim tab failed on the elevator, the plane shot up causing high G's causing the pilot to black out, the plane did a torque roll to the right, and rolled right into the crowd. From our perspective it looked like he hit right in the middle of the crowd, but actually he missed them by about 20'. The explosive impact killed 11 now and injured over 50+. On this version of the video, if you look you will see the pilot fly out of the wreckage. I suspect it is nothing more than his torso since hitting the ground at 450-500 mph leaves little of the body. Look for the parachute trailing the body in the video.

LiveLeak.com - Reno air show (HD) races crash 9/16/2011

thanks for that vid, totally no legs attached to the meat chunk that is left, MEGA

[Bluegill]

You'll prolly get ribbed for not embedding the video but ignore them, they'll gripe and moan ;)

It's actually a decent video and not one I've seen before.

[Hunted]

NSTB Preliminary 9/23/11

NTSB Identification: WPR11MA454
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Friday, September 16, 2011 in Reno, NV
Aircraft: NORTH AMERICAN/AERO CLASSICS P-51D, registration: N79111
Injuries: 11 Fatal,66 Serious.

This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed.

On September 16, 2011, about 1626 Pacific daylight time, an experimental North America P-51D, N79111, impacted terrain following a loss of control while maneuvering at Reno Stead Airport, Reno, Nevada. The airplane was registered to Aero-Trans Corp, Ocala, Florida, and operated by the pilot as Race 177 under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91. The commercial pilot sustained fatal injuries; the airplane sustained substantial damage. Casualties on the ground included 10 fatalities and 74 injured. As of the time of this preliminary report, eight of the injured remain hospitalized, some in critical condition. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident, and no flight plan had been filed for the local air race flight, which departed from Reno Stead Airport about 10 minutes before the accident.

The airplane was participating in the Reno National Championship Air Races in the last event of the day. The airplane had completed several laps and was in a steep left turn towards the home pylon when, according to photographic evidence, the airplane suddenly banked momentarily to the left before banking to the right, turning away from the race course, and pitching to a steep nose-high attitude. Witnesses reported and photographic evidence indicates that a piece of the airframe separated during these maneuvers. After roll and pitch variations, the airplane descended in an extremely nose-low attitude and collided with the ground in the box seat area near the center of the grandstand seating area.

Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Aviation Administration examined the wreckage on site. They documented the debris field and identified various components of the airplane’s control system and control surfaces. The wreckage was removed to a secure storage facility for detailed examination at a later date.

The airplane’s ground crew noted that the airplane had a telemetry system that broadcast data to a ground station as well as recorded it to a box on board the airplane. The crew provided the ground station telemetry data, which includes engine parameters and global positioning satellite system data to the NTSB for analysis. The onboard data box, which sustained crush damage, was sent to the NTSB’s Vehicle Recorder laboratory for examination. Investigators recovered pieces of a camera housing and multiple detached memory cards from the airplane’s onboard camera that were in the debris field. The memory cards and numerous still and video image recordings were also sent to the Vehicle Recorders laboratory for evaluation.

The Federal Aviation Administration and the Reno Air Race Association are parties to the investigation.

[utley]

Looking at those pics, part of the left elevators trim tab is missing...but it shouldnt have caused the accident. All it does is trim the nose up or down by a few degrees. Now if it were an elevator, I would have to say yeah it would be likely.

[Azimuth]

Thanks for posting the NTSB prelim report! I love reading those.

Unfortunately at those speeds, at that (low) altitude, performing those maneuvers, that entire airframe needed to be in perfect working order, which it was not. There was absolutely no wiggle room. RIP to all killed.

[Illusion]

You can't really compare the special effects today with the intensity of watching a real crash.