Sad news!
https://theaviationist.com/2021/04/1...beach-airshow/
Priller
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Sad news!
https://theaviationist.com/2021/04/1...beach-airshow/
Priller
No one killed and the pilot made a very good water landing.
A crane has been used to drag the Avenger onto the beach. It looks like it can be restored, but I'm sure it will take quite a bit of time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77b0_JQRqF8
At first I was wondering why they didn't use the tailhook to pull the plane out instead of wrapping the straps around the tail, then I remembered how the Grumman tailhooks of this era operated. It's pretty much flush with the rear of the plane with no power to extend it.
Navy tail hooks are pretty much foolproof, designed to be available in the DOWN position anytime, by gravity. In the TBF, it was held up with a latch operated by a cable to the cockpit. A simple idea, been around for a LONG time. They probably did not want to fumble around in the semi - submerged cockpit trying to get to it.
I wondered why he went in the water rather than try the hard packed sand but figured he couldn't get the gear down. Possible it might have flipped if he had tried it.
The thing I was struck by when I first watched the video was how most people held up their phones to record the incident - before anyone moved to check on or assist the aviator.
The beach was packed with people, so a beach landing was a no-go.
With the advent of cell phone cameras and social media, by-standers no longer assist or come to the aid of someone in trouble, they film it and hope to be the first to post it to their social media page.