Category: Crazy – Page 2
The Spy in the Sky: The Military’s Interest in Unidentified Floating Objects
The past week has been dominated by the news that our skies are seemingly teaming with unidentified flying objects, most of which should not be referred to as balloons, even though even the US spokesman accidentally called them balloons during an interview, directly before correcting the journalist that they should be referred to as objects.…
Read more… 17 Feb 23
Airshow Stunt from 2009
Kyle Franklin gave me permission to post this video in 2009 and it to this day remains one of the favourite clips I’ve ever hosted. (For those reading in the email list, you probably need to click through to the site to view this.) Kyle Franklin is still amazing airshows all over the US, most…
Read more… 30 Sep 22
Verdict: Crocodile Still Not Guilty
A few days ago, my friend Beth sent me a link to what seemed an unbelievable aviation story: Plane crash caused by escaped crocodile https://t.co/p7nVvg12dw — Boing Boing (@BoingBoing) August 31, 2022 Long-time readers of Fear of Landing will recognise the story immediately: I wrote about it in 2014. At the time, I concluded that there…
Read more… 2 Sep 22
Upside Down SR22 Goes Viral On Tiktok
This might destroy my street cred, but I’m not going to lie: I loved Top Gun: Maverick. Yes, it is effectively military fan fiction. Yes, it was odd that they kept talking about “there’s a 5th generation fighter out there” to avoid naming a plane to keep the enemy anonymous. Yes, it was silly and…
Read more… 24 Jun 22
Pilots Parachuting out of their Planes
A few weeks ago, I wrote about the supposed engine failure in a Taylorcraft B vintage aircraft over Los Padres National Forest in California: Vintage Plane Crash Possibly Done For Video Views. Last week, the New York Times published the basics from a leaked document detailing the enforcement action against the pilot. Since then, a…
Read more… 29 Apr 22
Unruly Passengers Taken To Task
We’ve all heard the stories of passengers acting out on commercial flights, leading to the coining of the term “air rage“. This is generally described as a new phenomenon, related to entitlement issues of a newer generation, although the earliest case that I found referenced was in 1950, when a “barrel-chested” passenger attacked a cabin…
Read more… 16 Jul 21
Accident Reports
Ferry Tank Failure: Successful SR22 Ditching in the Pacific
In 2015, I shared a video of an SR22 whose pilot successfully deployed his Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS) off of the coast of Maui, Hawai’i. I wrote at the time…
The Man in the Right Seat at Prestwick
On the 23rd of April 2024, a Piper Archer II crashed in South Ayrshire, Scotland, after losing power. There were two on board. Both suffered serious injuries and the light…
Demystifying
Meowing on Guard (an attempt at an explanation)
Last week a video went viral and it’s been fun to see the mainstream media coverage try to cover two pilots who were heard making animal noises on the radio. …
Trump Threatens to Ground Canadian Aircraft Over Gulfstream Certification
The US President, Donald Trump, posted the following to Truth Social last night. Based on the fact that Canada has wrongfully, illegally, and steadfastly refused to certify the Gulfstream 500,…
History
Four Point Two Stars Where You Only Stop If You Have To
I always look up airports when I’m writing about them, partly out of habit and partly because I’m afraid I’ll miss an important detail. When I was writing Any Landing…
Gladys Ingle Inflight Wheel Change: Emergency Action or Stunt?
This video of a mid-air wheel exchange goes viral once a year or so, but I never get tired of watching it. Last week, it showed up on Reddit and…
Fun Stuff
Aviation Stories You Might Have Missed
I hope you all are having a wonderful holiday season. This week, I’ve put together a compilation of interesting items in the press that you might have missed while enjoying…
Nathan Pyle Strange Worlds
Thank you so much for all the kind words. I don’t quite have the wherewithal to respond to each of you individually but I very much appreciate all of you…
