catdat
04-30-2004, 10:04 PM
BTW: My son was there with his JAFROTC Wing and watched the crash and rescue from the beach. - catdat
Small plane crashes in ocean off Fort Lauderdale
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A small plane whose pilot was practicing stunts for an air and sea show crashed Friday in the Atlantic within view of a beach crowded with spectators, killing the experienced aviator, officials said.
Pilot Ian Groom was recovered from the water but was ****ounced dead at Broward County Medical Center, Fort Lauderdale fire-rescue told The Miami Herald. No one else was on the plane.
The Sukhoi 31, a Russian-built, single seat plane, was practicing stunts at about 2:15 p.m. when he entered a flat spin and failed to recover, said Kathleen Bergen, spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration.
The plane was practicing for the McDonald's Air & Sea Show, officials said. The air show will begin Saturday as planned.
The plane struck water about 2,000 feet off shore, Bergen said. The Coast Guard and divers responded immediately and recovered the pilot's body, she said.
Witnesses said the plane dove into the water and its wings were sheared off by the force. Hundreds of beachgoers witnessed the crash.
Air show practices were briefly stopped but resumed after the pilot's body was recovered, Bergen said.
The air and sea show features performances by the Navy's Blue Angels and the Canadian Forces Snowbirds. Organizers say the show draws millions of spectators each year.
Groom, a South African native who became a U.S. citizen in 1995, trained pilots for the Department of Homeland Security's Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to the Herald. Since October 2001, he trained nearly 100 pilots how to recover when an aircraft is out of control.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/content/gen/ap/FL_Air_Show_Crash.html
rescue video (poor quality)
http://alt.cimedia.com/palmbeachpost/realmedia/AIRANDSEACRASH.ram
http://diamond-back.com/photos/airsea/images2/iangroom.jpg
Ian Groom's FedEx Sukhoi SU-31 is capable of a roll rate of 400 degrees per second. Here he performs his signature corkscrew maneuver, trying to break his 2001 world record (set at last year's show) of 40 consecutive snap rolls. (Picture from 2002 show)
Small plane crashes in ocean off Fort Lauderdale
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A small plane whose pilot was practicing stunts for an air and sea show crashed Friday in the Atlantic within view of a beach crowded with spectators, killing the experienced aviator, officials said.
Pilot Ian Groom was recovered from the water but was ****ounced dead at Broward County Medical Center, Fort Lauderdale fire-rescue told The Miami Herald. No one else was on the plane.
The Sukhoi 31, a Russian-built, single seat plane, was practicing stunts at about 2:15 p.m. when he entered a flat spin and failed to recover, said Kathleen Bergen, spokeswoman for the Federal Aviation Administration.
The plane was practicing for the McDonald's Air & Sea Show, officials said. The air show will begin Saturday as planned.
The plane struck water about 2,000 feet off shore, Bergen said. The Coast Guard and divers responded immediately and recovered the pilot's body, she said.
Witnesses said the plane dove into the water and its wings were sheared off by the force. Hundreds of beachgoers witnessed the crash.
Air show practices were briefly stopped but resumed after the pilot's body was recovered, Bergen said.
The air and sea show features performances by the Navy's Blue Angels and the Canadian Forces Snowbirds. Organizers say the show draws millions of spectators each year.
Groom, a South African native who became a U.S. citizen in 1995, trained pilots for the Department of Homeland Security's Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to the Herald. Since October 2001, he trained nearly 100 pilots how to recover when an aircraft is out of control.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/content/gen/ap/FL_Air_Show_Crash.html
rescue video (poor quality)
http://alt.cimedia.com/palmbeachpost/realmedia/AIRANDSEACRASH.ram
http://diamond-back.com/photos/airsea/images2/iangroom.jpg
Ian Groom's FedEx Sukhoi SU-31 is capable of a roll rate of 400 degrees per second. Here he performs his signature corkscrew maneuver, trying to break his 2001 world record (set at last year's show) of 40 consecutive snap rolls. (Picture from 2002 show)