A 30-year-old flight instructor from Weymouth was struck and killed [three days ago] by an airplane propeller at Beverly Municipal Airport when the man exited his aircraft to help another pilot, officials said.Aircraft engines are dangerous. When viewed from the front, propellers have white bands on them so that you can see the blade disc as it spins.
But from behind, they are painted flat black so as to not distract the pilot.
If you want a hard rule for prop-driven airplanes, it is this: Never get out of a single-engined airplane with the engine running (other than maybe wintertime operations in Alaska.) For multi-engined airplanes with one engine running, never approach it on the side of the running engine. (The "no engine running" rule applies to Cessan Skymasters.) A prop is like having a brush-hog blade mounted vertically, it will, even at idle power, rip through you like you weren't even there.
Jets have their own dangers. Get too close to the front of them and they will cuisinart you. Get too close to the back and they will blow you about.
Complacency kills.
Yeah, that would be a bad day, for the victim and the people who have to clean up. The El Paso jet accident was horrific - there wasn't a piece bigger than a hand left, and the apron was ...well, someone clicked a picture she should not have.
ReplyDeleteAt our soaring club, we snag towropes and signal for launches in close proximity to a continuously running supercub --- and should think more about the consequence of being careless.
When I was in the navy we were sometimes stationed as pilot pick up behind aircraft carriers during flight ops. A refueler was blown off the flight deck of a carrier when he walked behind a plane, as he had been specifically told not to do.
ReplyDeleteAll that was found was a life jacket.
Seems you have bawls. Most men don't. Bravo, girl.
ReplyDelete