A B-17 and P-63 KingCobra collided at a Dallas Air Show killing a presumed 6 people, the pilot of the P-63 and the presumed 5 crew members of the B-17.
I just saw the video on the local news and it is not easy to watch when you know everybody died.
The B-17 was owned and operated by the Commemorative Air Force and was one of only 9 remaining airworthy examples.
Most online videos freeze just before the collision. The following YouTube video shows the collision:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KDIxr3MsYJk
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Loc: Florida's East Coast
I am old enough to remember the awesome sound of those huge B-17 rotary engines. In the 1950's there would occasionally be large squadrons flying in and out of a nearby airbase. They were retired in 1959, so this must have been just prior to that. A few years ago I didn't realize that one of these beauties was going to be in a nearby airshow, and I was outside doing yardwork when I heard a rumble, and it took only a second or two to remember the sound of those engines. All of a sudden a B-17 and a B-25 came in low over my house on their approach to the nearby airport. Took my breath away. Sad about the lost crew, but equally sad to lose these two planes, few of which are left.
flip1948 wrote:
A B-17 and P-63 KingCobra collided at a Dallas Air Show killing a presumed 6 people, the pilot of the P-63 and the presumed 5 crew members of the B-17.
I just saw the video on the local news and it is not easy to watch when you know everybody died.
The B-17 was owned and operated by the Commemorative Air Force and was one of only 9 remaining airworthy examples.
Most online videos freeze just before the collision. The following YouTube video shows the collision:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KDIxr3MsYJkA B-17 and P-63 KingCobra collided at a Dallas Air... (
show quote)
Gross pilot error on the part of the Cobra , bomber didn't know what hit it. Sad event.
I've flown in and around Houston, all the airports are controlled fields. Controllers in the tower were not watching the traffic entering the pattern. Clearly the P-39 a much faster aircraft did not clear with the tower controller for traffic update.
One Rude Dawg wrote:
Gross pilot error on the part of the Cobra , bomber didn't know what hit it. Sad event.
It does look like pilot error on the P63.
Executive Airport is not a major airport. It covers just over a 1000 acres. It IS, however, owned by the City of Dallas. It will be interesting to find out who was in the tower controlling the aircraft.
I assume the the B-17 was supposed to keep its course and speed. I wonder what the P-63 was supposed to do? To join the B-17 and fly a by its side? It seems that it approached the B-17 at too high a speed to do that. Was it supposed to pass the B-17 by flying above it?
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