I'll feel better after the NTSB releases their report sometime next year, and they tell us Jimmy had no control, and that he had to have been blacked out. I saw this happen from a mile away, and it really shook me. I cannot imagine those closer to the impact and carnage. We go to the races, for the speed, the noise, the excitement. Just about every year we see pilots die. None that I know of have ever been forced into a cockpit at gunpoint. Very sad, but it happens.
@lumberdoktor I've seen the footage. Not sure if he necessarily overbanked (by his own accord), his seat had broke and he lost control, or had he maybe had a health problem. Please let me know if you have any other info. It sure seems like the trim tab broke off because of the G's of the pitch and wasn't the cause of the veer off.
@lumberdoktor it fluttered failed then flutterd more broke off later he did a rolling pitcthup and blacked out at that point he wasnt controlling the air plane you weren't far from where i was when it happened your vid is closest to what i saw but i watched as it came over and went in and the crunch bang is a sound ill never forget my friend was in the stands as it came by so close he could count the rivets he dove under the seats
@lumberdoktor... I went and looked at your video... impressive stuff. I am still of the opinion that an overbanked condition did not cause this accident... however, what ever DID cause it caused the aircraft to buffet severely, and as seen in your video, bank past 90 deg. before pitching up sharply. I apologize for my earlier comments. It'll be interesting to see what the NTSB finds on this one.
I have seen some still shots in sequence with this climb video. right side of fuselage is buckling do to the high G forces. I am told by someone who with P51 experience the loss of the trim tab would cause the 10G climb; also that you fly the plane trimmed fully nose down. The same sequence of photos show Jimmy's face looking up as if he is lying down when he is inverted... I think the rear of the seat may have failed too. Tomorrow I will attend his Mass and Wake.. Sad day in Ocala! RIP Jimmy.
@lumberdoktor If you've got it, post it. Otherwise, you're full of shit. I've been a pilot for many years... over 10,000 hrs worth of everything from ag to warbirds. There was no overbanking in the last turn.
@lumberdoktor Stop the nonsense dude. The 'over bank' as you call it, which is when the plane went past 90 degrees in the turn was due to the first piece of the trim tab coming off. If you suddenly add lift in a turn like that, think about what happens (read a basic aeronautical flight book).
The pilot countered, and then the plane pitched up at over 15Gs. He passed out, and that was that.
I've seen a non public video of the complete cycle. The pilot did not cause the pitch into the turn.
Latest speculation is loss of control due to either the trim tab shearing off or the pilot's seat supports failing causing him to fall back while holding onto the stick or both. The wild climb and resultant G forces from the trim tab loss could have damaged the seat supports and pushed the pilot back into the rear of the cockpit. Other shots of the canopy show no pilot's head where it should be visible. Sad, fateful and perhaps preventable accident. Amazing that you got most of the crash lead
BS, The seat is fixed in a P51. Before you post anything make sure you have at leat the slightest clue about what you are talking about. OF COURSE YOU COULD ADJUST THE SEAT IN FRON T OF YOUR COMPUTER SO THAT YOU END UP HAVING THE SAME CRASH!! DOH!@!!!!!!
Man. Just terrible. Lost the trim tab and as you can tell by this video, the plane went violently up at huge Gs. The pilot would have blacked out instantly. Thank God there was no fire. To the idiot who said 'why didn't you capture the impact', are you really that lame? I'm amazed this guy was able to film it as good as he did. Were any of the Patriot jets lined up in the background hit by debris? I'm amazed at how it just disintegrated. Looks like parts didn't go very far.
@MaxxGladiator parts went everywhere. They Impact was so violent that they were just too small to see everywhere. Its asthough a giant grenade went off.
@MaxxGladiator I agree with you, whoever said "Why didn't you get the impact?" needs to grow some balls learn how to fly a plane and then "MAYBE" he would have something to say. He is a piece of shit for thinking that is the most important thing is seeing the impact. The crowd is lucky it was not a jet aircraft with JET A fuel witch would have thrown a huge fireball and would have killed a lot more people. GO TO HELL AND DIE YOU WHINEY PIECE OF SHIT!
@MaxxGladiato This is pure speculation however after looking at a few still shots & not being able to see the pilot in them I think his seat may have broke sliding him backwards so he couldn't reach the stick , then he may have finally reached the stick pulling on it causing the upward right angle climb , resulting in a stall ......and then well.... we all saw the result of that ..Terrible no matter how it happened. & God bless all those people & the pilot & all their families
@MaxxGladiator honestly I dont think he would have black out at that speed and climb he was a professional pilot. but iam not trying to say he could have saved it. he did the best he could do get it out of the crowed Iam guessing. but sadly people were killed and injured. I wish the best to the familys of the lost and injured
@MaxxGladiator also in different view it shows he was exceeding the vertical pull up speed for a p-51. Now im no expert but i fly shitloads of flight sim and i have a flight sim demo team on flight sim X. We actually fly the p-51 racing mustang which is what this was. Now based on experience I know that the p-51 racing mustang has a conciderably shortened wing span compared to your standard ww2 mustangs so they dont bank that quickly and they have a heavier rolls royce engine in them.
He G-LOC'd ("blacked out") during the plane's initial pitch up. At that high speed the elevator trim somehow "ran away", which means became uncontrollable by the pilot. The trim tab ran away in the full down position causing the elevator to slam to the full up position, which causes the tail to immediately lower/the plane starts to climb, happening so fast, the pilot blacks out. The trim tab rips off because it's gone to full deflection at around 500MPH (trim tabs aren't meant to do that).
That was awful. I was standing a wee bit closer than you were with my little brother, and all I could do when i saw him go up and do the split-S and half-circle was grab him and bury his face in my shirt so that he wouldn't see what happened. Oh my gosh. It was so bloody awful. One of our friends, who was a pilot in that race, told us that the Galloping Ghost just gave him a bad feeling. I guess they remodeled it so many times, and built it more so for speed than for stability.
The plane looked like it just disintegrated upon impact, I mean, that's just nuts. At least it wasn't a jet otherwise the death toll and injuries would have been much worse. I've never seen a crash like this one and I've seen some on here (youtube) and this one is the most interesting because the pilot, Jimmy Leeward, was aware until the pitch up and roll, after that, the tab broke away and it nosed down until, well you know. The question isn't why, or how it crashed, but how did Jimmy pass out
I disagree. First, there is no way to tell if a trim tab detached. If one did, it would not cause the airplane to go out of control. The flight path is a split-s with a 90 degree offset. He may have been pulling 5 to 6 G's max. It is not possible to pull 15 G's in a P-51. Not even an F-16 can do it. And certainly not with this maneuver. In another video from a pylon, you see him roll slightly *left* at the very end, indicating he was probably conscious.
letting a 74 year old bank turns like that is almost as stupid as the entire event is as a sport, or a pastime if you want to call it either. Its typical of the american west back to the pioneer days. Snake oil, freak shows, saloons........ and air races. There have been so many crashes at this event since it began. The crowd comes to see the CRASHES!...they got what they came for, then they lament about their trauma. It is just SO american. Like an episode of King of the Hill.
is there any good footageof the crash? in one video a dude stands for the camera, in theother other stuff blocking the view. Shore, a horific sight but still, wpuld like to see how it really happened.
I agree that he probably well exceeded the 15G limit and his brain gave in. We can be sure of this; no pilot in an airshow wants to endanger anyone other than themselves. They practice, they perfect and they stun us, and they do this for long periods of time. We can safely assume that if he was conscious he would've done everything he could to keep the people on the ground safe.
@lumberdoktor Your video is the only one that shows the entire maneuver from course exit to impact. The one gobbled up by the media is more dramatic, but far less informative. Yours, coupled with another one shot from a pylon show a pretty complete picture. It is kind of perplexing how he managed to get near the grandstands. Very low odds of that happening. The pylon video really points this out.
@lumberdoktor your video shows the sequence of events. Other videos just show the crash, but yours shows the plane already climbing abruptly, rolling a bit to the right and then some more as his climb continues. His plane also begins to veer in the direction of the crash. Given the "climb" (up elevator) condition, with an upside down rolled plane it becomes not a climb but a dive which ends in the nose down impact. This might help to confirm the final theory of the crash.
Seeing how he went vertical at 450+ knots, its obvious he GLOC'd under 15+ Gs after the trim tab broke off and was not conscious when it hit the ground. All this talk about avoiding the crowd is liberal idealism. If Jimmy was conscious, he would not have gone inverted, and would have flown straight away from the race course and come back for an emergency landing.
The plane was doomed from the second it pitched up to 90 degrees, rolled and kept pitch-up as it crashed.
@HuskyMaxx Ok Guys, it really looks asthough HuskyMaxx has made a valuable observation and well stated point here.... What are your thoughts. woodenmajor, your right in line with this too.
@HuskyMaxx I disagree with a couple of points. 1) he didn't GLOC because he got off a "Mayday" before crashing and 2) his rate of ascent was not 90 degrees, the angle of the upward pitch was too gradual for anything over 7 or 8 Gs. With the trim tab broken it would have taken some amount of physical strength to bring the aircraft level. Strength a 74 year old man very likely did not have. Thanks for not mentioning a possible stall. Too many "experts" are still claiming stallout. Didn't happen.
THats what you care about? dude, things happened fast, looked away from view finder for a half a sec. 500 mph going uncontrolled would make you forget a camera in your hands too
this is what happens when pilots make their wings shorter than they are suppose to and make planes go faster then what they were designed for. its a sad thing to see.
I'm sorry that you had to witness such a tragic event. I too have been to Reno Air Races many times and witnessed several fatal events - this day was of course much worse, but just as upsetting.
This vid makes the "broken seat" theory plausible. Pitch up, rolled inverted and then a high-g split "s" into the ground. No more than 9 seconds from pitch up to impact.
That is a devastating video to watch. It also provides a lot clearer picture of what the aircraft was doing moments before the crash. This vid shut me down for the night, don't wanna' see no more. To the family of Jimmy Leeward-You have my heartfelt condolences.
To the families of the deceased-I'm so sorry for your loss.
To the injured-I wish you a speedy and complete recovery.
I had not seen this. Clearly the aircraft rolls inverted. Why would he do an alerion turn and then pull back on the yoke? I am thinking he blacked out or had a heart attack.
After all, the pilot was in his seventies, flying a performance aircraft built for 20 year olds in its day.
I am 56. Flew for 40 years and then quit. I just knew it was time.
@michaelpilot1000 - yea...that's what I was thinking too. Plus, in one photo, you don't even see him via the canopy. Like you, I too quit after seeing events like this AND losing too many dear friends. I too told myself that if I continued, my number would come up as well. I happily grounded myself.
@THAT1ANONYMOUSDUDE ----- I HESITATED ON EVEN ALLOWING COMMENTS AT ALL, BUT IT PROVIDES PEOPLE A MEDIUM TO TALK ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCE THERE THAT DAY ASWELL.
PLEASE BE NICE OR DONT PARTICIPATE IN THIS COMMENT FORUM
I agree, though at the time i was thinking " what do you mean we are all ok?" But your right, under the circumstances he did an amazing job trying to keep people calm and organize them in a way to allow E.M,S to assist
Congratulations to the man on the loud speaker keeping everyone calm. He sounds kind of "Corny" but that was the perfect way to handle that situation. People in a crowd of panic need to hear that calm voice telling them to chill... awesome.
there wasnt any reason for him to start going up and then do a loop and ahead straight to the ground, i am not an expert and i could be wrong, but in my opinion what probably happened is that he went unconscious, thus he pulled the stick and the plane started to go up, did a loop and since he was at such low altitude he then went straight down to the ground.The trim tab probably broke when he while being unconscious pulled the stick, and at the high speed that he was flying at that mo
there wasnt any reason for him to start coming up he probably went unconscious and by being unconscious he pulled the stick started to go up , inverted, and then down towards the ground. The trim tab probably broke when him while being unconscious pulled it at that amount of speed because remember how modified this plane was; too much speed for the trim tab to hold
@Tamaslammer what kind of comment is that.... I think if you're not in shock over something like this then you're not human. It's never something easy to expect or react to once it happens. It's pure horror.
Fire? you're just kidding right? There wasn't anything left to burn!,,,Water? or rather,,coolant? instantly turned to vapor! In fact I'll bet there wasn't much of a wet spot except for the seats where people were sitting. I sure agree with the theory of a pretty high g-load happening really fast to the pilot and that just may be the single most critical link in the chain of events that makes tragedy occur.
Thank you for this. My husband and I were doing box security next to the Chairman's Club. This gives me a better understanding of what I witnessed in only a few seconds. We thought it was coming down on us.
He seemed to have an elevator trim tab come loose and caused him to pitch up suddenly. he was already pulling around 5 g in the turn at nearly 500 mph. the pitch up probably got up over 10 g and he took a nap. that the aircraft did not catch fire is a miracle. this one had a boil off radiator and ADI fluid (Essentially almost 100 gallons of water on board) and suppressed the fire. If it were a stock p-51 it would have exploded and we would be talking about a death toll in the 100s.
I've never met anything but good, America loving people at the air races. Watching this again has brought a tear to my eye because you know that the last thought the pilot had was either of his family or wishing he had more time to get out of the way of the people in the stands. Rest in peace brave racer.
If you are scared don't go. No need to outlaw or ban air racing. Stay in your homes and be safe. Stay quiet too. Those dead fans and the pilot would all say the same thing
Good video footage of the plane shooting up. It looked like it may have been close to stall right before the roll. I'm beginning to think that when that T-Tab seperated an aerodynamic fludder caused the Elevator to go into a high speed stall-like situation. Once the plane was heading down he had no elevator and no time to get off the throttle. It was doomed no matter! God bless the families! Sad!
RIP to all that lost their lives, and condolenses to those who lost a loved one. As for the cause, lets leave out the speculation and wait for the answer to be revealed, I have seen other photos of the plane missing a portion of his tail, and at that speed, the loss of a component like that may well have caused a g-force greater than any man could handle, causing him to black-out. Let the NTSB figure it out, and stop the senseless guessing. Thanks, and RIP again to all.
I have had the unfortunate experience of seeing a friends P51 Torque roll on a touch and go and crash and kill the pilot. This 74 year Old Man I believe had a Heart attack or blacked out as the P51 at these events pull 7-9 Gs, The plane shows all the signs of no control, "no one home at the stick", she goes up slowly and then just torque rolls into the deck, no smoke, no mechanical failure nothing. Just a nice slow Full Power Torque Roll into the deck. I do have to question the age of these guys
To all that were injured or killed my sympathys. to all the arm chair speculators on here try shuting the NTSB will find out what happened. In the Case you dont know Shut Up. People are hurt or dead have some reguard for them dont start dangerous rumors and speculation. Unless you were there in that mans shoes flying you dont know. What he did is not a high G move I have been in a light plane and witnessed the manuver. It clears the path of the other aircraft in the race SAFELY. Dont know :X
WOW what a tragedy, I bet he was going at least 5 to 600 mph upon impact and was out cold before he ever started the dive into the ground.DAMN that really is awful.
In my opinion based on a review of this video, the pilot had a cva/stroke as the plane did not evidence a sudden catastrophic failure. Rather, the plane banked up and away from the course path rollingtoward the crowdbackstick/upelevator continuing to pull back AT FULL THROTTLE w/ at the point of initiating the loop at say 350-400mph Gforces would be posLOC flight2ground! IF pilot had mechmalfunction 1st move is throttle2IDLE. Listen2 video the engine is at FULLPWR being effectedbyG's! Cont'd...
@johnrussellCD5 I believe that pilot's loss of control thru incapacity will in the end be the findings of any investigation. Loss of trim tab probably was secondary to G forces as plane looped into ground. However the fact that the plane did not come apart given the tremendous forces exerted by the hard loop at such a high rate of speed is a testimony to the integrity of the aircraft. My thoughts R w/ the families/friends of those lost/injured physically/emotionally.
@johnrussellCD5 - Good theory but you may have seen or read about the trim tab seperation. I feel Jimmy had his hands full of non-controlable modified P-51. And thought he could regain control but could not pull up. Still could be medical possiblity though! We may never know!
@lumberdoktor The law of averages is in your favor! You'll never witness another plane crash, for the rest of your life (if you stay away from those air races)! Now being involved IN a plane crash, is another story! Doesn't apply to the same law of averages!
I never been to an airshow and now I never will go to an airshow. They paid $20 or more and didn't know that they were gonna lose their life. I don't want anybody that I know to end up that way.
Shortly after this happened, I tried to notify an abundance of major Youtube personalities via Twitter about the phone number concerned family and friends could contact. I received no response from any of them. A good number of them were too preoccupied tweeting about video games. Now, 3 days later, it's in the top videos for Youtube. =/ My condolences to those who lost a friend/family member.
Its a sad day when anybody dies, im sympathies go out to everybody involved, however maybe lessons need to be learnt, i dont know much about wat happened, and i know only the very basics of aerodynamic flight, however he was flying a p-51 built in the 1940's, which had been modified greatly, vintage aeroplanes are great but maybe not for spectator racing
Best video I have seen of the events that led to the crash. It seems the most educated guess is a failure of one or more cables that operate the ailerons resulting in a stick back configuration that quickly sent the aircraft up and pitching to the right causing the 1/2 loop that ultimately ended in catastrophe. I cannot rule-out loss of blood flow to the brain during the prolonged Gs induced during that line in the track. If that is the case I would consider experience over age and of that I ha
The guy altered his plane way past design limitations to win a race. He was too old to be flying at that level that close to a crowd. If the guy had said to himself you know it is better that at my age I stop trying to be like so many and do things I may not be capable of doing he'd be alive and those people would be alive and the others wouldn't be injured. All too often man's need to show he still has the "stuff" causes or at least contributes to situations like this.
I live in Reno, and let me tell you, if the Air Races shut down for good, then we lose a lot of tourism. The crash was the plane, not the pilot, and the pilot's family even said not to close the Air Races forever.
I'll feel better after the NTSB releases their report sometime next year, and they tell us Jimmy had no control, and that he had to have been blacked out. I saw this happen from a mile away, and it really shook me. I cannot imagine those closer to the impact and carnage. We go to the races, for the speed, the noise, the excitement. Just about every year we see pilots die. None that I know of have ever been forced into a cockpit at gunpoint. Very sad, but it happens.
mtlassen1992 4 months ago in playlist Reno Air Race
The Trim tab DOES NOT COME OFF until way later. not the cause
lumberdoktor 4 months ago
@lumberdoktor I've seen the footage. Not sure if he necessarily overbanked (by his own accord), his seat had broke and he lost control, or had he maybe had a health problem. Please let me know if you have any other info. It sure seems like the trim tab broke off because of the G's of the pitch and wasn't the cause of the veer off.
mjbab73 4 months ago
@lumberdoktor it fluttered failed then flutterd more broke off later he did a rolling pitcthup and blacked out at that point he wasnt controlling the air plane you weren't far from where i was when it happened your vid is closest to what i saw but i watched as it came over and went in and the crunch bang is a sound ill never forget my friend was in the stands as it came by so close he could count the rivets he dove under the seats
wendellb36 3 months ago
Guys. I've flown aerobatics in a Pitts and an Extra 300.
This guy pulled over 15Gs.
The issue is the SPEED at which he went vertical (and the acceleration).
I pulled 6.5gs at 150 kts in the Extra (loop).
At 500 knots, I would be dead!!!
MaxxGladiator 4 months ago
@MaxxGladiator He maxx, i have a video i'd like to share with you
lumberdoktor 4 months ago
He's seat broked flat.
zappaflorida 4 months ago
@lumberdoktor... I went and looked at your video... impressive stuff. I am still of the opinion that an overbanked condition did not cause this accident... however, what ever DID cause it caused the aircraft to buffet severely, and as seen in your video, bank past 90 deg. before pitching up sharply. I apologize for my earlier comments. It'll be interesting to see what the NTSB finds on this one.
agcatdriver 4 months ago
I have seen some still shots in sequence with this climb video. right side of fuselage is buckling do to the high G forces. I am told by someone who with P51 experience the loss of the trim tab would cause the 10G climb; also that you fly the plane trimmed fully nose down. The same sequence of photos show Jimmy's face looking up as if he is lying down when he is inverted... I think the rear of the seat may have failed too. Tomorrow I will attend his Mass and Wake.. Sad day in Ocala! RIP Jimmy.
jamba470 4 months ago
Guys, i know what happened. He over banked the last turn. Trim tab came off way after he was in trouble. Want video proof? e mail me
lumberdoktor 5 months ago
@lumberdoktor If you've got it, post it. Otherwise, you're full of shit. I've been a pilot for many years... over 10,000 hrs worth of everything from ag to warbirds. There was no overbanking in the last turn.
agcatdriver 4 months ago
@lumberdoktor Stop the nonsense dude. The 'over bank' as you call it, which is when the plane went past 90 degrees in the turn was due to the first piece of the trim tab coming off. If you suddenly add lift in a turn like that, think about what happens (read a basic aeronautical flight book).
The pilot countered, and then the plane pitched up at over 15Gs. He passed out, and that was that.
I've seen a non public video of the complete cycle. The pilot did not cause the pitch into the turn.
MaxxGladiator 4 months ago
Latest speculation is loss of control due to either the trim tab shearing off or the pilot's seat supports failing causing him to fall back while holding onto the stick or both. The wild climb and resultant G forces from the trim tab loss could have damaged the seat supports and pushed the pilot back into the rear of the cockpit. Other shots of the canopy show no pilot's head where it should be visible. Sad, fateful and perhaps preventable accident. Amazing that you got most of the crash lead
panther105 5 months ago
HIS SEAT BROKE SLIDING BACKWARDS CAUSING HIM TO PULL STICK DOWN & RIGHT ,, UNABLE TO REACH HIS FOOT PEDALS.. RESULTING IN THIS HORRIFIC CRASH
jumpa01 5 months ago
@jumpa01
BS, The seat is fixed in a P51. Before you post anything make sure you have at leat the slightest clue about what you are talking about. OF COURSE YOU COULD ADJUST THE SEAT IN FRON T OF YOUR COMPUTER SO THAT YOU END UP HAVING THE SAME CRASH!! DOH!@!!!!!!
rbetts1 5 months ago
Comment removed
gabezYTchannel 5 months ago
Man. Just terrible. Lost the trim tab and as you can tell by this video, the plane went violently up at huge Gs. The pilot would have blacked out instantly. Thank God there was no fire. To the idiot who said 'why didn't you capture the impact', are you really that lame? I'm amazed this guy was able to film it as good as he did. Were any of the Patriot jets lined up in the background hit by debris? I'm amazed at how it just disintegrated. Looks like parts didn't go very far.
MaxxGladiator 5 months ago 3
@MaxxGladiator parts went everywhere. They Impact was so violent that they were just too small to see everywhere. Its asthough a giant grenade went off.
lumberdoktor 5 months ago
@MaxxGladiator I agree with you, whoever said "Why didn't you get the impact?" needs to grow some balls learn how to fly a plane and then "MAYBE" he would have something to say. He is a piece of shit for thinking that is the most important thing is seeing the impact. The crowd is lucky it was not a jet aircraft with JET A fuel witch would have thrown a huge fireball and would have killed a lot more people. GO TO HELL AND DIE YOU WHINEY PIECE OF SHIT!
ianac88 5 months ago
@MaxxGladiato This is pure speculation however after looking at a few still shots & not being able to see the pilot in them I think his seat may have broke sliding him backwards so he couldn't reach the stick , then he may have finally reached the stick pulling on it causing the upward right angle climb , resulting in a stall ......and then well.... we all saw the result of that ..Terrible no matter how it happened. & God bless all those people & the pilot & all their families
jumpa01 5 months ago
@MaxxGladiator honestly I dont think he would have black out at that speed and climb he was a professional pilot. but iam not trying to say he could have saved it. he did the best he could do get it out of the crowed Iam guessing. but sadly people were killed and injured. I wish the best to the familys of the lost and injured
terraformer5 5 months ago
@terraformer5 Nobody could stay conscious at 15-20 G's. Even trained aerobatic pilots can't withstand more than 10.
mjbab73 4 months ago
@MaxxGladiator also in different view it shows he was exceeding the vertical pull up speed for a p-51. Now im no expert but i fly shitloads of flight sim and i have a flight sim demo team on flight sim X. We actually fly the p-51 racing mustang which is what this was. Now based on experience I know that the p-51 racing mustang has a conciderably shortened wing span compared to your standard ww2 mustangs so they dont bank that quickly and they have a heavier rolls royce engine in them.
patrickRoy33kaw 5 months ago
He G-LOC'd ("blacked out") during the plane's initial pitch up. At that high speed the elevator trim somehow "ran away", which means became uncontrollable by the pilot. The trim tab ran away in the full down position causing the elevator to slam to the full up position, which causes the tail to immediately lower/the plane starts to climb, happening so fast, the pilot blacks out. The trim tab rips off because it's gone to full deflection at around 500MPH (trim tabs aren't meant to do that).
Twister051 5 months ago
@brightsun23 Really? wow whats with the hate?
lumberdoktor 5 months ago
That was awful. I was standing a wee bit closer than you were with my little brother, and all I could do when i saw him go up and do the split-S and half-circle was grab him and bury his face in my shirt so that he wouldn't see what happened. Oh my gosh. It was so bloody awful. One of our friends, who was a pilot in that race, told us that the Galloping Ghost just gave him a bad feeling. I guess they remodeled it so many times, and built it more so for speed than for stability.
9LRCenturion 5 months ago
The plane looked like it just disintegrated upon impact, I mean, that's just nuts. At least it wasn't a jet otherwise the death toll and injuries would have been much worse. I've never seen a crash like this one and I've seen some on here (youtube) and this one is the most interesting because the pilot, Jimmy Leeward, was aware until the pitch up and roll, after that, the tab broke away and it nosed down until, well you know. The question isn't why, or how it crashed, but how did Jimmy pass out
angelisreal 5 months ago
@huskymaxx
I disagree. First, there is no way to tell if a trim tab detached. If one did, it would not cause the airplane to go out of control. The flight path is a split-s with a 90 degree offset. He may have been pulling 5 to 6 G's max. It is not possible to pull 15 G's in a P-51. Not even an F-16 can do it. And certainly not with this maneuver. In another video from a pylon, you see him roll slightly *left* at the very end, indicating he was probably conscious.
mjl1966y 5 months ago
oh jesus, shut the fuck up.
Polybun 5 months ago
QUESTION:
How fast do you think he was going to have a plane to break up into that many small bits ?
Even that massive engine broke up into small flying bits.
Also they said he flew away from the stands, I doubt it, he passed out so quick, he really didnt have a chance to do anything. Adleast he went quick
Know that - WAS - the Oldest racing made P-51 ever
Now Reno Nevada officials are prohibiting ANY kind of avaition racing for the future. The sport is now banned. how sad is that ?
apatheticempathy 5 months ago
letting a 74 year old bank turns like that is almost as stupid as the entire event is as a sport, or a pastime if you want to call it either. Its typical of the american west back to the pioneer days. Snake oil, freak shows, saloons........ and air races. There have been so many crashes at this event since it began. The crowd comes to see the CRASHES!...they got what they came for, then they lament about their trauma. It is just SO american. Like an episode of King of the Hill.
hoowansum 5 months ago
is there any good footageof the crash? in one video a dude stands for the camera, in theother other stuff blocking the view. Shore, a horific sight but still, wpuld like to see how it really happened.
TheNewVideos 5 months ago
I agree that he probably well exceeded the 15G limit and his brain gave in. We can be sure of this; no pilot in an airshow wants to endanger anyone other than themselves. They practice, they perfect and they stun us, and they do this for long periods of time. We can safely assume that if he was conscious he would've done everything he could to keep the people on the ground safe.
jctripplesticks 5 months ago
thank you for bringing us more useful footage than i've seen so far. hope the dreadful feeling will pass.
garbageguy 5 months ago
@garbageguy I am curious, what do you find is "more" or most useful about this video that others do not have or explain.
I mean that in from an educational standpoint
lumberdoktor 5 months ago
@lumberdoktor Your video is the only one that shows the entire maneuver from course exit to impact. The one gobbled up by the media is more dramatic, but far less informative. Yours, coupled with another one shot from a pylon show a pretty complete picture. It is kind of perplexing how he managed to get near the grandstands. Very low odds of that happening. The pylon video really points this out.
mjl1966y 5 months ago
@lumberdoktor your video shows the sequence of events. Other videos just show the crash, but yours shows the plane already climbing abruptly, rolling a bit to the right and then some more as his climb continues. His plane also begins to veer in the direction of the crash. Given the "climb" (up elevator) condition, with an upside down rolled plane it becomes not a climb but a dive which ends in the nose down impact. This might help to confirm the final theory of the crash.
tropicalrambler 5 months ago
@lumberdoktor the direction of the spin, the banking and sudden ascent - that's a lot of info in a short amount of time that you captured.
garbageguy 4 months ago
Seeing how he went vertical at 450+ knots, its obvious he GLOC'd under 15+ Gs after the trim tab broke off and was not conscious when it hit the ground. All this talk about avoiding the crowd is liberal idealism. If Jimmy was conscious, he would not have gone inverted, and would have flown straight away from the race course and come back for an emergency landing.
The plane was doomed from the second it pitched up to 90 degrees, rolled and kept pitch-up as it crashed.
HuskyMaxx 5 months ago
@HuskyMaxx Ok Guys, it really looks asthough HuskyMaxx has made a valuable observation and well stated point here.... What are your thoughts. woodenmajor, your right in line with this too.
Have you subscribed yet btw?
Need thumbs ups too
lumberdoktor 5 months ago
@HuskyMaxx agreed on gloc, I wonder if it was prop torque dragging the aircraft into the roll. I doubt he even had time to chop the throttle.
Polybun 5 months ago
@HuskyMaxx I disagree with a couple of points. 1) he didn't GLOC because he got off a "Mayday" before crashing and 2) his rate of ascent was not 90 degrees, the angle of the upward pitch was too gradual for anything over 7 or 8 Gs. With the trim tab broken it would have taken some amount of physical strength to bring the aircraft level. Strength a 74 year old man very likely did not have. Thanks for not mentioning a possible stall. Too many "experts" are still claiming stallout. Didn't happen.
MrSgtYork 5 months ago
@MrSgtYork : I've read/heard there was no "MayDay" call, per the Event people on duty there.
60knightsix 5 months ago
@MrSgtYork: I read the Event controllers stated there was no MayDay call.
60knightsix 5 months ago
hmmm...looks like mabey a high speed stall ? anyone ?
woodenmajor 5 months ago
This is the best video of the flight path of the P51 right before impact that I have seen. Thanks for sharing this.
doctorxring 5 months ago
Thanks for posting this. Wow.
phrva 5 months ago
THats what you care about? dude, things happened fast, looked away from view finder for a half a sec. 500 mph going uncontrolled would make you forget a camera in your hands too
lumberdoktor 5 months ago
You didn't 'get the whole thing on video'....you were filming the ground in front of you during impact.....go back and watch it again.
rdwoodw 5 months ago
this is what happens when pilots make their wings shorter than they are suppose to and make planes go faster then what they were designed for. its a sad thing to see.
R.I.P. Jimmy Leeward
AirForceKid512 5 months ago
I'm sorry that you had to witness such a tragic event. I too have been to Reno Air Races many times and witnessed several fatal events - this day was of course much worse, but just as upsetting.
pocodino 5 months ago
This vid makes the "broken seat" theory plausible. Pitch up, rolled inverted and then a high-g split "s" into the ground. No more than 9 seconds from pitch up to impact.
DeserveLibertyDotCom 5 months ago
That is a devastating video to watch. It also provides a lot clearer picture of what the aircraft was doing moments before the crash. This vid shut me down for the night, don't wanna' see no more. To the family of Jimmy Leeward-You have my heartfelt condolences.
To the families of the deceased-I'm so sorry for your loss.
To the injured-I wish you a speedy and complete recovery.
stixie211 5 months ago 4
ITS HOLY JESUS!!!! NOT "HOLY SHIT" FORGIVE OUR TOUNGES DEAR JESUS
morito1u1 5 months ago
This is why people go to these things
Ethan07895 5 months ago
@Ethan07895 This is NOT why we go to air races. The last thing in the world we want to see is this.
KayakMike1963 5 months ago
I had not seen this. Clearly the aircraft rolls inverted. Why would he do an alerion turn and then pull back on the yoke? I am thinking he blacked out or had a heart attack.
After all, the pilot was in his seventies, flying a performance aircraft built for 20 year olds in its day.
I am 56. Flew for 40 years and then quit. I just knew it was time.
michaelpilot1000 5 months ago
@michaelpilot1000 - yea...that's what I was thinking too. Plus, in one photo, you don't even see him via the canopy. Like you, I too quit after seeing events like this AND losing too many dear friends. I too told myself that if I continued, my number would come up as well. I happily grounded myself.
pocodino 5 months ago
Why do I have to sign in to see this version of the video? yet there are way better ones that do not require this...
Ass hole comments whore.
THAT1ANONYMOUSDUDE 5 months ago
@THAT1ANONYMOUSDUDE Because people flagged it for me saying holy shit. thats why you have to log in
lumberdoktor 5 months ago
@THAT1ANONYMOUSDUDE ----- I HESITATED ON EVEN ALLOWING COMMENTS AT ALL, BUT IT PROVIDES PEOPLE A MEDIUM TO TALK ABOUT THEIR EXPERIENCE THERE THAT DAY ASWELL.
PLEASE BE NICE OR DONT PARTICIPATE IN THIS COMMENT FORUM
lumberdoktor 5 months ago 7
@lumberdoktor for fucks sake, don't use all caps. It's fucking annoying.
Polybun 5 months ago
@Polybun Roger that
lumberdoktor 5 months ago
@lumberdoktor You did a great job don't listen to the Internet arm chair warriors.
plumber97 4 months ago
I agree, though at the time i was thinking " what do you mean we are all ok?" But your right, under the circumstances he did an amazing job trying to keep people calm and organize them in a way to allow E.M,S to assist
lumberdoktor 5 months ago
Congratulations to the man on the loud speaker keeping everyone calm. He sounds kind of "Corny" but that was the perfect way to handle that situation. People in a crowd of panic need to hear that calm voice telling them to chill... awesome.
R.I.P. =:(
spreadeagle311 5 months ago
"I got the whole thing on video" "Did you see that?" - well, part of it.
Biffbradford 5 months ago
there wasnt any reason for him to start going up and then do a loop and ahead straight to the ground, i am not an expert and i could be wrong, but in my opinion what probably happened is that he went unconscious, thus he pulled the stick and the plane started to go up, did a loop and since he was at such low altitude he then went straight down to the ground.The trim tab probably broke when he while being unconscious pulled the stick, and at the high speed that he was flying at that mo
vzlan999 5 months ago
there wasnt any reason for him to start coming up he probably went unconscious and by being unconscious he pulled the stick started to go up , inverted, and then down towards the ground. The trim tab probably broke when him while being unconscious pulled it at that amount of speed because remember how modified this plane was; too much speed for the trim tab to hold
vzlan999 5 months ago
Yes, the tail wheel retracts on P-51's. I did an annual on one.
sunseeker52 5 months ago
So.... uh.....everybody is shocked that an airplane crashed at the most dangerous sporting event in the world?
Tamaslammer 5 months ago
@Tamaslammer what kind of comment is that.... I think if you're not in shock over something like this then you're not human. It's never something easy to expect or react to once it happens. It's pure horror.
bonzelite 5 months ago
Our heartfelt condolences go out to you all who were there in the race :(
From Kuwait
RIP Jimmy
umbrellagrl 5 months ago
Segment of crash starts at :37.
MsWhatsit 5 months ago
Did he say holy shit?
Croozer 5 months ago
Horrible...These planes shouldnt be allowed to fly near crowds....OMG them poor fukin ppl....just GEEZUS...this was terrible
maxredbin 5 months ago
Fire? you're just kidding right? There wasn't anything left to burn!,,,Water? or rather,,coolant? instantly turned to vapor! In fact I'll bet there wasn't much of a wet spot except for the seats where people were sitting. I sure agree with the theory of a pretty high g-load happening really fast to the pilot and that just may be the single most critical link in the chain of events that makes tragedy occur.
danfour10 5 months ago
Another place people do not belong: the sky.
heliscat 5 months ago
Thank you for this. My husband and I were doing box security next to the Chairman's Club. This gives me a better understanding of what I witnessed in only a few seconds. We thought it was coming down on us.
csnedek 5 months ago
He just ran out of sky.
R.I.P
gogogeedus 5 months ago
He seemed to have an elevator trim tab come loose and caused him to pitch up suddenly. he was already pulling around 5 g in the turn at nearly 500 mph. the pitch up probably got up over 10 g and he took a nap. that the aircraft did not catch fire is a miracle. this one had a boil off radiator and ADI fluid (Essentially almost 100 gallons of water on board) and suppressed the fire. If it were a stock p-51 it would have exploded and we would be talking about a death toll in the 100s.
ttg850 5 months ago 5
@ttg850 thanks for that info indeed, explains a lot
bonzelite 5 months ago
NO FIREBALL!???
EBIKERIDER2 5 months ago
Looks like its that time again,...... to remind folks that i was not anticipating this and im truly sorry for any "shakyness"
Please also note that this is the ONLY video of this angle and piece to what happened.
So quit with the Micheal J Fox Jokes etc.
Thanks!!
lumberdoktor 5 months ago 9
I've never met anything but good, America loving people at the air races. Watching this again has brought a tear to my eye because you know that the last thought the pilot had was either of his family or wishing he had more time to get out of the way of the people in the stands. Rest in peace brave racer.
wizardofahhz 5 months ago 4
If you are scared don't go. No need to outlaw or ban air racing. Stay in your homes and be safe. Stay quiet too. Those dead fans and the pilot would all say the same thing
teamlongriders 5 months ago 2
Good video footage of the plane shooting up. It looked like it may have been close to stall right before the roll. I'm beginning to think that when that T-Tab seperated an aerodynamic fludder caused the Elevator to go into a high speed stall-like situation. Once the plane was heading down he had no elevator and no time to get off the throttle. It was doomed no matter! God bless the families! Sad!
Rocknranchman 5 months ago
so sad!
TheSpudwrenchgirl 5 months ago
RIP to all that lost their lives, and condolenses to those who lost a loved one. As for the cause, lets leave out the speculation and wait for the answer to be revealed, I have seen other photos of the plane missing a portion of his tail, and at that speed, the loss of a component like that may well have caused a g-force greater than any man could handle, causing him to black-out. Let the NTSB figure it out, and stop the senseless guessing. Thanks, and RIP again to all.
tjterpsma 5 months ago
I was there 2 hours before the plane crash for a school field trip and some of my classmates interviewed the pilot :(
BlackShadow644 5 months ago
I have had the unfortunate experience of seeing a friends P51 Torque roll on a touch and go and crash and kill the pilot. This 74 year Old Man I believe had a Heart attack or blacked out as the P51 at these events pull 7-9 Gs, The plane shows all the signs of no control, "no one home at the stick", she goes up slowly and then just torque rolls into the deck, no smoke, no mechanical failure nothing. Just a nice slow Full Power Torque Roll into the deck. I do have to question the age of these guys
BHSuperchargers 5 months ago
I was there 2 hours before the plane crash for a school field trip and some of my classmates interviewed the pilot :(
BlackShadow644 5 months ago
80 year pilot + 60 year old plane = nothing can go wrong?
Chakotay2222 5 months ago
End of the races....forever !! Too old to fly ! FAA needs to set a max age !
monte61 5 months ago
To all that were injured or killed my sympathys. to all the arm chair speculators on here try shuting the NTSB will find out what happened. In the Case you dont know Shut Up. People are hurt or dead have some reguard for them dont start dangerous rumors and speculation. Unless you were there in that mans shoes flying you dont know. What he did is not a high G move I have been in a light plane and witnessed the manuver. It clears the path of the other aircraft in the race SAFELY. Dont know :X
ChiefChuck100 5 months ago
Holy Shit!!! Holy shit! Holy shit!!!
Jasun1974 5 months ago
air race is pretty dangerous
xAngecielx 5 months ago
@jorge7547
I dont know why you have to bring out a Chuck Norris Joke this is Very Sad
Nazcom91 5 months ago
WOW what a tragedy, I bet he was going at least 5 to 600 mph upon impact and was out cold before he ever started the dive into the ground.DAMN that really is awful.
gojeff221 5 months ago
In my opinion based on a review of this video, the pilot had a cva/stroke as the plane did not evidence a sudden catastrophic failure. Rather, the plane banked up and away from the course path rollingtoward the crowdbackstick/upelevator continuing to pull back AT FULL THROTTLE w/ at the point of initiating the loop at say 350-400mph Gforces would be posLOC flight2ground! IF pilot had mechmalfunction 1st move is throttle2IDLE. Listen2 video the engine is at FULLPWR being effectedbyG's! Cont'd...
johnrussellCD5 5 months ago
@johnrussellCD5 I believe that pilot's loss of control thru incapacity will in the end be the findings of any investigation. Loss of trim tab probably was secondary to G forces as plane looped into ground. However the fact that the plane did not come apart given the tremendous forces exerted by the hard loop at such a high rate of speed is a testimony to the integrity of the aircraft. My thoughts R w/ the families/friends of those lost/injured physically/emotionally.
johnrussellCD5 5 months ago
@johnrussellCD5 :Agreed - I'll bet this will be the NTSB conclusion.
dgrant775 5 months ago
@johnrussellCD5 - Good theory but you may have seen or read about the trim tab seperation. I feel Jimmy had his hands full of non-controlable modified P-51. And thought he could regain control but could not pull up. Still could be medical possiblity though! We may never know!
Rocknranchman 5 months ago
no fire couldnt of been much fuel in it
doh1959 5 months ago
dame mess :(
Buzzmonkey24 5 months ago
lol chuck norris would survive but this is reall serious
flylilmaine 5 months ago
lol chuck norris would survive but this is reall serious
flylilmaine 5 months ago
Thats sad
9bailey7 5 months ago
It's sad that someone died during an air show or any show,
9bailey7 5 months ago
very sad
PiNkFlAmEs19 5 months ago
The pilot should have known that he could not survive that maneuver & he never should have attempted it !
JesusWasAnAsshole 5 months ago
Excellent footage. Thank you for posting this. Such a horrible tragedy :(
cjURGEns970 5 months ago
looks like he wasn't high enough to pull off a full loop.....
MrEnergyCzar 5 months ago
is the driver dead
smilebro100 5 months ago
It sounds like WWII......kamikaze
pinoybreaker23 5 months ago
0:42 for the crash !!! THUMBS SO YOu DONT HAVE TO WAIT!!!
chrisrules7 5 months ago
You hear a little girl @ 1:45 saying "what happened daddy?"
poptart087 5 months ago
Holy shit!
waynetaylor66 5 months ago
HOLY SHIT!
dirtykkkoon 5 months ago 20
I love how the guy is like... "we had the same problem last year so..."
TheSultanofBLING 5 months ago
@25exploder yes. He did die.
If you notice the wind made him loose control and he couldn't recover
numbers4and0 5 months ago
rip to uploaders dad as well, but why did this guy pull up which lead him down since he was upside down, instead of maybe doing a 180 to get upright?
Dem0nz890 5 months ago
@25explorer yes he did die
Very sad
Airsoft21x 5 months ago
Next time you record a plane crash, can you hold the camera still please.
kiesersozay 5 months ago 8
@kiesersozay lets hope that never happens
lumberdoktor 5 months ago 28
@lumberdoktor The law of averages is in your favor! You'll never witness another plane crash, for the rest of your life (if you stay away from those air races)! Now being involved IN a plane crash, is another story! Doesn't apply to the same law of averages!
MalcolmXcrement 5 months ago
@kiesersozay word
chupapairro 5 months ago
@kiesersozay Yeah...because...you know...he can totally predict when a plan is just gonna drop out of the sky and bring his tripod along /sarcasm
matrix86 5 months ago
@matrix86 You obviously missed his sarcasm dumbass
1978deus 5 months ago
@kiesersozay Next time he records a plane crash, can you be in it please.
hockeyguy820 5 months ago
@kiesersozay you're kidding right?
bonzelite 5 months ago
I never been to an airshow and now I never will go to an airshow. They paid $20 or more and didn't know that they were gonna lose their life. I don't want anybody that I know to end up that way.
mike39648 5 months ago
did he died?
25exploder 5 months ago
Shortly after this happened, I tried to notify an abundance of major Youtube personalities via Twitter about the phone number concerned family and friends could contact. I received no response from any of them. A good number of them were too preoccupied tweeting about video games. Now, 3 days later, it's in the top videos for Youtube. =/ My condolences to those who lost a friend/family member.
xXxDeiFieDxXx 5 months ago 2
the pilot may have passed out. at least he went peacefully
JaymzEberhardt 5 months ago
@JaymzEberhardt too bad no one can say that about the people that died because of him
TheCVMC 5 months ago
@MrJonJuda the p51 here was heavily modified to reach higher speeds.
testermanish 5 months ago
Chuck Norris would survive that crash
jorge7547 5 months ago
@jorge7547
I dont know why you have to bring out a Chuck Norris Joke this is Very Sad
Nazcom91 5 months ago
Its a sad day when anybody dies, im sympathies go out to everybody involved, however maybe lessons need to be learnt, i dont know much about wat happened, and i know only the very basics of aerodynamic flight, however he was flying a p-51 built in the 1940's, which had been modified greatly, vintage aeroplanes are great but maybe not for spectator racing
legaliseme 5 months ago
That is :(
jakatlin 5 months ago
0:43 you can see some elevator trimmer lost from plane on the left.
xwojtassx 5 months ago
"Did he pull out?"
Should I say it? No, I shouldn't... But, it's just so easy...
ZezimaXL 5 months ago
@antigonish63 im guessing there is....
OakMoB510 5 months ago
@chillin80424 no he did not
nameistakenUser 5 months ago
people shoulnt be racing those damn things
czriderz 5 months ago
Heartbreaking. Sending prayers
roxycheergurl 5 months ago
R.I.P JIMMY LEEWARD
kasim442 5 months ago
@kasim442 RIP also the 10 spectators who lost their lives.
DarkRider69 5 months ago
It kind of looks like something happened to the pilot, which then caused the plane to climb, stall, and crash.
The guy was 74 after all. Who is to say he didn't have a stroke or something which caused the plane to go out of control?
kaikou1098 5 months ago
Those planes are fucking old, truly unwise to be racing them.
n3rdbear 5 months ago
it looks to me it as if the elevator is jammed in the up position thats why he's climbing.
6124shawn 5 months ago
How many people died or was it just the pilot?
xxjon11 5 months ago
@xxjon11 10 ppl as of today have died.
DarkRider69 5 months ago
Steady hands of this video.
thesilverfighter 5 months ago
i felt sick after watching this
clangersb 5 months ago
I feel worse for the killed and injured bystanders. At least the pilot knew the risks involved.
MengoMango 5 months ago
Speed. Kills.
snake5807 5 months ago
no disrespect to the people who lost their lives
negativemotherfucker 5 months ago
that was fucking awesome
negativemotherfucker 5 months ago
Best video I have seen of the events that led to the crash. It seems the most educated guess is a failure of one or more cables that operate the ailerons resulting in a stick back configuration that quickly sent the aircraft up and pitching to the right causing the 1/2 loop that ultimately ended in catastrophe. I cannot rule-out loss of blood flow to the brain during the prolonged Gs induced during that line in the track. If that is the case I would consider experience over age and of that I ha
n3ckone 5 months ago
omg, that was scary..
RIP to all the victims <3
Krysta1Rose 5 months ago
americans can fly!
ZackChannel 5 months ago
The guy altered his plane way past design limitations to win a race. He was too old to be flying at that level that close to a crowd. If the guy had said to himself you know it is better that at my age I stop trying to be like so many and do things I may not be capable of doing he'd be alive and those people would be alive and the others wouldn't be injured. All too often man's need to show he still has the "stuff" causes or at least contributes to situations like this.
BadazzShovelhead 5 months ago
They who asked what happened must be blind, or retarded as fuck
TheHbadawi 5 months ago
good video angle, thanx for posting !! God Bless the victims
lpgft 5 months ago
THAT SHIT IS HOLY!!!
SpadeAce90 5 months ago
I live in Reno, and let me tell you, if the Air Races shut down for good, then we lose a lot of tourism. The crash was the plane, not the pilot, and the pilot's family even said not to close the Air Races forever.
TheCaptainAlmight131 5 months ago
this is messed up But I don't get Air racing. Why are you there anyway?
bigwilly711 5 months ago
wow!!!
WhitikerForest 5 months ago