Live Flight Tracking

MASS CASUALTY SITUATION - 3 CONFIRMED DEAD INCL. PILOT

Just Breaking: P51 taking part in Reno National Air Race crashed near the reviewing stand. Reports of casualties Details still sketchy.

http://www.ktvn.com/story/15483678/plan ... ad-airport

Listen live to Reno EMS dispatch: http://www.radioreference.com/apps/audi ... eedId=4813

Youtube video: (caution graphic) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCNePeKn ... e=youtu.be

UPDATE 1: listening to live EMS it is obvious that there has been MULTIPLE casualties, getting reports of "yellow" patients and "red" patients.

UPDATE 2 listening to live EMS "have 3 "blacks" on the tarmac including obviously the pilot" It has been reported that the pilot was killed in the crash.

UPDATE 3 Photo of the aftermath http://twitpic.com/6lxcu3

UPDATE 4 LATEST CASUALTY COUNT FROM EMS:

TRANSPORTED BY EMS:

11 RED
11 YELLOW
21 GREEN

FOR A TOTAL OF 43 CASUALTIES NOT INCL THE 3 "BLACKS"

UPDATE 5 Local Reno TV station reporting 12 Killed and 30 seriously injured NOTE these numbers are unconfirmed at this point.
http://www.kolotv.com/

UPDATE 6 Local NBC affiliate is streaming LIVE coverage:

http://www.mynews4.com/content/asseenon ... fault.aspx

"80-100 victims"
Video shows a scene of carnage - it appears plane went in very close to or into the reviewing stands.

UPDATE 7 NEW VIDEO beginning at 39 minutes into the clip (WARNING THIS IS RAW UNEDITED VIDEO THAT IS VERY DISTURBING TO WATCH SHOWING THE IMMEDIATE AFTERMATH including severed limbs and dismemberment - viewer discretion STRONGLY advised)

http://www.livestream.com/loadedtv/vide ... m=ui-thumb

Latest media report the pilot of the P51 was 80 years old?? EDIT: Pilot age confirmed as 74 not 80 as erroneously reported earlier.

UPDATE 8 It has been confirmed the Unlimited P 51 mustang plane "Galloping Ghost" was piloted by Jimmy Leeward from Ocala, Florida has gone into the stands during Race 77
http://www.facebook.com/JimmyLeeward

UPDATE 9 NEW video from a different perspective (includes profanity) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTzX35wO ... e=youtu.be

I have a freind who was there and said it was an unbeleiveable site. They were within rows of the direct hit but were unscathed. She said MANY were injured right around her.

From ocala.com

"Friends of pilot remember a hero"

http://www.ocala.com/article/20110917/A ... ?p=1&tc=pg

"Now, people who witnessed Leeward's tragic accident at the Reno Air Race on Friday, are giving him a new title: hero."

“He lost his life doing what he loved,” said (son) Chad"

The final moment before impact is captured on camera:

http://www.cbsnews.com/2300-201_162-100 ... =page;next

The pilot is not visible in the cockpit? Did he pass-out? Is the aircraft no longer under his control as it plunges into the VIP reviewing stand?

I'm sure he did what he could but had no control, that close to the ground and going that fast really leaves no room to make corrections.
It appears that he had an issue with the elevator.

I don't know anything about the dynamics of an airplane, but elsewhere, it was posted that he was subjected to 9 G's before the crash. At 74 years of age, he may have blacked out from that, explaining his seeming absence from the cockpit.

ETA: 10th person dies from injuries. http://www.rgj.com/article/20110919/EVE ... |FRONTPAGE

Just an FYI.. KRTS and the Air Races were covered by LiveATC this year,as they were the previous years.. clips of all ATC comms are available there if you'd like to have a listen.. as others have said, it isn't for the faint of heart..

BL.

A possible explaination for the crash. I received this from a friend:

"Here's the theory of the crash from experienced racers. 
 
In 1989 this type of thing happened to another pilot but he lived to tell the story. When flying a P-51 at
450+mph you need to have full nose down trim to keep the plane level. The elevator trim tab broke off and the aircraft immediately went in to a 10G climb, confirmed by the G-meter. The pilot came to, from the sudden blackout and realized he had slipped through the shoulder harness and was looking at the floor of the airplane. He was able to reach the throttle and pull it back to slow down and was able to recover and land.

In a picture from this month's accident, you can see the P-51 upside down with a missing left elevator trim tab, and all you see is the back of the pilots head indicating he is being forced down in the cockpit. In another photo of the plane with the wings nearly level, and nose down c.80 degrees, the tail wheel has extended and there is no view of the pilot. The tail wheel is held up by hydraulics only with no mechanical uplock, thus indicating a high G-force causing it to extend. In all the pictures the pilot is bent down, head near his knees."