| I'm a huge Reno Race Fan and the pond racer is one of the most intriguing stories for me. Talking to the pilots and crew first hand at Stead Field folks concluded the fuel lines routed through the center section caught fire in flight. The emergency landing so close to the airport indicates how desperate the situation had become in the air. The plane remained mostly intact after impact but the pilot was overcome by the resulting smoke and flame and being too far from the airport no fire trucks could get to him in time. It happened again this year to Bob Wolstenholme in a Lancair Legacy. He couldn't see the runway at all. Fortunately there was no fire and he walked away from it. The engines of the pond racer never performed to the level intended in the design. I always wondered how that clean sheet design would've competed against the mustangs sea furies, and bearcat. I guess we'll never know.
OverZealous (CT) My General posts (click)
|
