This is disaster porn. You can't learn from it. It is just to see what it looks like when an airshow goes horribly wrong.
James Gosling witnesses and blogs Reno airshow crash.
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Re: James Gosling witnesses and blogs Reno airshow crash.
#22I know this is the internet and everyone (including me) watches every video link to any event, but please seriously consider whether you really want to watch the links people are posting here. Effectively what happens is the plane is being followed by the camera, then when it crashes the camera loses focus for 2s, then refocuses in on a dead body, pans around to a few dead bodies, and zooms out to show you a bunch of…
That's is what affects me most about these things. When I see videos of people being murdered (beheadings, the hammer video) it's shocking but there's no connection because I at least never think "I could be murdered next! Someone wants to hurt me!" but with this it's people just in the wrong place at the wrong time. It's scary how fragile human life is and this is a reminder even if you're the most wonderful purpose…
FWIW, I'm pretty sure going to an air show/air race is a fairly risky decision in the grand scale of things.
Re: James Gosling witnesses and blogs Reno airshow crash.
#23Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's is what affects me most about these things. When I see videos of people being murdered (beheadings, the hammer video) it's shocking but there's no connection because I at least never think "I could be murdered next! Someone wants to hurt me!" but with this it's people just in the wrong place at the wrong time. It's scary how fragile human life is and this is a reminder even if you're the most wonderful purpose…
FWIW, I'm pretty sure going to an air show/air race is a fairly risky decision in the grand scale of things.
I wouldn't think so. How many people have ever died at airshows compared to how many go to them?
It may look dangerous, but (except for very rare exceptions) it's just a fun day out.
Re: James Gosling witnesses and blogs Reno airshow crash.
#24My wife and I had air race tickets for tomorrow and Sunday right in that general area. They were box seats. That (likely) malfunction in Galloping Ghost could have happened when we were there, so we're counting our blessings tonight. But we feel awful for those involved. As stupid as these races seem, everyone loves them here. Part of me hopes they can continue.
Auto racing used to be a lot more dangerous for spectators than it is today. We're only 30 years or so removed from a time when bails of hay and waist-high walls were all that separated crowds from the track. Go back a little bit further and you'd see things that would be laughably unsafe by today's standards like gigantic trees lining the sides of several race tracks.
I'm not even sure where you could begin improving safety for crowds at air racing events without forcing them to move much further back from the action. With cars you can move back 50 feet, put up a barrier, and improve your safety tremendously. For planes, you'd probably have to move the crowds way further back than they are now. I imagine being up close and in front of the action is part of the spectacle though.
One unorthodox approach could be restricting these events to landscapes where the crowds could be on an elevation above the planes. I watched the video and in the background are hills/mountains where crowds could safely be located above the planes.
Re: James Gosling witnesses and blogs Reno airshow crash.
#25Earlier quoted context omitted.
FWIW, I'm pretty sure going to an air show/air race is a fairly risky decision in the grand scale of things.
I wouldn't think so. How many people have ever died at airshows compared to how many go to them? It may look dangerous, but (except for very rare exceptions) it's just a fun day out.
There's a comment further down this thread that shows four air show related fatalities in the past month.
I would think that going somewhere where you know you will be in close proximity to aircraft performing advanced stunts is one of the riskier places most people decide to go, even if the actual fatality rate is pretty low.
Re: James Gosling witnesses and blogs Reno airshow crash.
#26Earlier quoted context omitted.
FWIW, I'm pretty sure going to an air show/air race is a fairly risky decision in the grand scale of things.
I wouldn't think so. How many people have ever died at airshows compared to how many go to them? It may look dangerous, but (except for very rare exceptions) it's just a fun day out.
We can look at the Reno air races as an example. It's been going on for 49 years and prior to today there were 19 deaths, none involving spectators. I've been going to the races for a lot of years though we decided not to this year, the course isn't that close to the spectators and much of it happens over open desert.
Re: James Gosling witnesses and blogs Reno airshow crash.
#27My wife and I had air race tickets for tomorrow and Sunday right in that general area. They were box seats. That (likely) malfunction in Galloping Ghost could have happened when we were there, so we're counting our blessings tonight. But we feel awful for those involved. As stupid as these races seem, everyone loves them here. Part of me hopes they can continue.
Auto racing used to be a lot more dangerous for spectators than it is today. We're only 30 years or so removed from a time when bails of hay and waist-high walls were all that separated crowds from the track. Go back a little bit further and you'd see things that would be laughably unsafe by today's standards like gigantic trees lining the sides of several race tracks. I'm not even sure where you could begin improvin…
The vast majority of the hills around the airport are further away than they look.
Re: James Gosling witnesses and blogs Reno airshow crash.
#28Earlier quoted context omitted.
I wouldn't think so. How many people have ever died at airshows compared to how many go to them? It may look dangerous, but (except for very rare exceptions) it's just a fun day out.
There's a comment further down this thread that shows four air show related fatalities in the past month. I would think that going somewhere where you know you will be in close proximity to aircraft performing advanced stunts is one of the riskier places most people decide to go, even if the actual fatality rate is pretty low.
So quite safe relative to the risk of driving to the airshow?
Re: James Gosling witnesses and blogs Reno airshow crash.
#29My wife and I had air race tickets for tomorrow and Sunday right in that general area. They were box seats. That (likely) malfunction in Galloping Ghost could have happened when we were there, so we're counting our blessings tonight. But we feel awful for those involved. As stupid as these races seem, everyone loves them here. Part of me hopes they can continue.
Auto racing used to be a lot more dangerous for spectators than it is today. We're only 30 years or so removed from a time when bails of hay and waist-high walls were all that separated crowds from the track. Go back a little bit further and you'd see things that would be laughably unsafe by today's standards like gigantic trees lining the sides of several race tracks. I'm not even sure where you could begin improvin…
If something's going to go wrong in big uncontrollable way, it's most likely going to be in (or coming out of) a corner. These races should see fast turns being made way outside of the viewing area. Quite simply, an aircraft should never be in a situation where it is flying towards a crowd.
Re: James Gosling witnesses and blogs Reno airshow crash.
#30My wife and I had air race tickets for tomorrow and Sunday right in that general area. They were box seats. That (likely) malfunction in Galloping Ghost could have happened when we were there, so we're counting our blessings tonight. But we feel awful for those involved. As stupid as these races seem, everyone loves them here. Part of me hopes they can continue.
Auto racing used to be a lot more dangerous for spectators than it is today. We're only 30 years or so removed from a time when bails of hay and waist-high walls were all that separated crowds from the track. Go back a little bit further and you'd see things that would be laughably unsafe by today's standards like gigantic trees lining the sides of several race tracks. I'm not even sure where you could begin improvin…
Indeed. I remember reading about how magnesium frames were all the rage in the 24 hours of Le Mans, until a car summersaulted into the audience. They had to just let it burn because they couldn't extinguish the fire.
Of course, nothing will take your breathe away like the unbelievable near-miss videos of rally racers missing spectators by inches on YouTube.