Indian Air Force Jets Collide During Air Show Practice

"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn) 02/20/2019 at 13:13 • Filed to: wingspan, Planelopnik

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While practicing for the Aero India 2019 air show, two !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! of the Indian Air Force demonstration team !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! (Rays of the Sun) collided and crashed. Two crew members ejected from one aircraft, while the pilot of the other aircraft, Wing Cdr Sahil Gandhi, was killed. The aircraft were performing a maneuver in which one flew inverted above the other when the lower craft suddenly pitched upward. The cause of the accident is under investigation.

This video shows the collision in which one pilot was killed.

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

KingT- 60% of the time, it works every time > ttyymmnn 02/20/2019 at 13:17

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Sad. It’s exciting stuff bu t hese air show demonstrations are so dangerous, have seen a few and I keep thinking how a few feet one way or another means you’re dead . Seems like every year there’s some accident or the other .

The Ghost of Oppo > KingT- 60% of the time, it works every time 02/20/2019 at 13:20

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It seems to happen even more often than that

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_air_show_accidents_and_incidents_in_the_21st_century

ttyymmnn > KingT- 60% of the time, it works every time 02/20/2019 at 13:29

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I have been to many, many airshows, and I would say that, at least in the US and Europe, these shows are as safe as they can be. Following Ramstein in 1988, significant changes were made to protect the crowds, most notably limiting maneuvers to ones that keep the energy of the maneuver directed away from the crowd. The Thunderbirds perform a maneuver like this, but the aircraft are offset to avoid such an occurrence.

user314 > ttyymmnn 02/20/2019 at 13:31

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davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > ttyymmnn 02/20/2019 at 13:42

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Sad to learn this.

TIL the band was named after the disaster...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rammstein

ttyymmnn > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 02/20/2019 at 13:44

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I remember that vividly. My brother was stationed in Germany at the time, and we feared he might have been at the show (he was not). It’s a shame that some lessons are only learned through tragedy, but that was a watershed moment for air shows the world over.

ttyymmnn > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 02/20/2019 at 13:46

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It goes on to say that the band later denied it was  associated with the tragedy. Hard to say for sure.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > ttyymmnn 02/20/2019 at 13:56

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From the article referenced (w Google translate):

Rammstein are the children of opera directors, writers and philosophers. Her life in the GDR was the life of others. They had their little punk bands, they occupied houses in Prenzlauer Berg, pestered the Stasi, plagued themselves with neo-Nazis, did not feel insecure behind the wall and traveled in a minibus on which stood the “Rammstein air show” .

In this usage, “s tood” is better translated to “was written”.  

https://www.welt.de/kultur/pop/article115889518/Rammstein-oder-der-Triumph-des-Bruellens.html

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > ttyymmnn 02/20/2019 at 14:00

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Many things are often only considered not safe enough when clearly proven to be so.

Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 02/20/2019 at 14:01

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Double your child count with one bad collision!

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Dr. Zoidberg - RIP Oppo 02/20/2019 at 14:05

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I like how they’re advertising their engine drone as a positive - it puts your kids right to sleep! 

Ash78, voting early and often > ttyymmnn 02/20/2019 at 14:56

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Yep, I was a kid and remember that being the most graphic thing I had ever seen shown on the news (way before the beheadings or mass shootings made the news). It changed the rules for airshows forever -- for the better.

Ash78, voting early and often > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 02/20/2019 at 14:57

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My dad (old-school VW guy) has an original copy of that brochure/article ! He showed us just a couple months ago.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Ash78, voting early and often 02/20/2019 at 15:00

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Cool! 

Cé hé sin > ttyymmnn 02/20/2019 at 17:15

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Sadly though not all observe the rules .

ttyymmnn > Cé hé sin 02/20/2019 at 17:22

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Indeed.

The second video has cockpit audio.

facw > ttyymmnn 02/21/2019 at 02:39

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In happier Indian Air Force news, Lockheed has unveiled their new F-21 fighter, which they hope India will purchase:

Now you might be saying “that’s just an F-16" but Lockheed would like to assure you that that’s a fully modern fighter for the 21st century, and not just a stupid marketing exercise to make a 45 year old fighter feel less ancient.

ttyymmnn > facw 02/21/2019 at 07:30

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Tyler has a pretty comprehensive write up about it over at The War Zone.