Bluebonnet Belle down — No fatalities

RDoug

Well-Known Member
All 13 Passengers Survive a Fiery Texas Plane Crash
  • The World War II-era C-47 plane, nicknamed the “Bluebonnet Belle,” was taking off to fly to an airshow in Wisconsin when it crashed around 9 a.m. CT Saturday, KTXS reports. The plane burst into flames, igniting nearby grass at Burnet Municipal Airport.
  • All 13 people aboard the plane escaped alive, but one was airlifted to San Antonio Medical Center with significant burn injuries and seven others were treated for minor injuries at Seton Highland Lakes Hospital, according to the Burnet County Sheriff’s Office. Firefighters were able to put out the flames at the scene
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How unfortunate....

The real shame of it isn’t the individual loss of a historic plane, it’s the reminder that mathematically they will all sooner or later cease to exist. No amount of protective effort will save them forever particularly if we continue to do what they were meant to do with them (fly). The question will be at what point do we confine all these magnificent Warbirds to the ground for the sake of saving them longer.


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The question will be at what point do we confine all these magnificent Warbirds to the ground for the sake of saving them longer.


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I think about that every time one of these historical planes go down, but I think there are enough preserved in museums that non-flying examples will be around for a while.

When I was down in the islands circa 2008, 4 Star was still running a couple C-47's/DC-3's that had served in the war between SJU, STX, and STT on revenue service.
 
Jeez, whom are they letting fly these things!? Another irreplaceable aircraft destroyed by an incompetent pilot.
And yes, I have DC-3 time and I've seen the crash video.
 
How unfortunate....

The real shame of it isn’t the individual loss of a historic plane, it’s the reminder that mathematically they will all sooner or later cease to exist. No amount of protective effort will save them forever particularly if we continue to do what they were meant to do with them (fly). The question will be at what point do we confine all these magnificent Warbirds to the ground for the sake of saving them longer.


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Since an overwhelming number of vintage wrecks are pilot error and not due to the machine, my answer is "Never". I am not sure what caused this accident, but even if it was an engine failure on T/O - well, that is something pilots have been preparing on in DC-3's since the late 30's so...
 
Do pilots not curse? When not on the phone or radio, every third word is generally an adjective, adverb or expletive that starts with “F,” in my work experience. We respect the patient being treated in our presence and the homeowner who just lost everything to fire when in close proximity to them. Still, two of the most articulate users of the King’s English that I know personally are gals with advanced degrees who learned the language walking through hell - and most of the cops, firefighters, EMS workers and dispatchers I know are nearly as fluent, from command staff through rank-and-file.
 
Hmmm.... barring a mechanical control malfunction, that situation did not appear to have been handled in an optimal fashion.
Ya think? :)
I have to think that whoever was flying a load of 13 to Oshkosh would be a fairly competent crew. Evidence seems to point otherwise. It was obviously going egg shaped at the 17 second point, and still they persisted for another 10 seconds or so.
Sympathies to to the injured.
 
How unfortunate....

The real shame of it isn’t the individual loss of a historic plane, it’s the reminder that mathematically they will all sooner or later cease to exist. No amount of protective effort will save them forever particularly if we continue to do what they were meant to do with them (fly). The question will be at what point do we confine all these magnificent Warbirds to the ground for the sake of saving them longer.

I say never. The moment you park it in a museum, it might as well be chickenwire and plaster. It is no longer an airplane, but a symbol, an icon.

-Fox
 
I've seen a lot of warbirds up close in museums around the country, many of which were 'maintained to be airworthy', but there's nothing that quite replicates being up in one. Crouching and scurrying through a B-17 on a beautiful day in southern California gives you good respect for the guys who did it in parkas, wearing oxygen masks, going to man .50 cals over Germany in the middle of the night for the 18th time.

It sucks to lose one, but keep 'em flying, and support the organizations that do. The more exposure the public gets to these old birds, especially as the last of the brave crews that flew them slowly fade away, the better.


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Since an overwhelming number of vintage wrecks are pilot error and not due to the machine, my answer is "Never". I am not sure what caused this accident, but even if it was an engine failure on T/O - well, that is something pilots have been preparing on in DC-3's since the late 30's so...

That was my first thought, but when it comes around, both engines seem to be spinning at a normal speed.
 
I learned about this the second my feet came off the ladder from giving a B29 ride this morning. It is wonderfully fortunate that everyone is more or less, “ok” and will recover. It will be interesting to see what the organization and the NTSB have to say.
 
I learned about this the second my feet came off the ladder from giving a B29 ride this morning. It is wonderfully fortunate that everyone is more or less, “ok” and will recover. It will be interesting to see what the organization and the NTSB have to say.

(Power Required > Power Available) + lots of straightaway = IDLE. After that we can sort out who boned away the flaps setting/weight & balance/etc.

I'm pretty big on aviation safety management systems and a huge proponent of a just safety culture, but this deserves a paddlin'.
 
Looks to me like they didn’t lock the tailwheel on takeoff and tried to rotate early. Doesn’t sound like an engine crapped out...
 
Not sure about that. He was pretty calm at the start of the takeoff, but when the plane gets a few seconds down the runway, the "expletives deleted" started. I think he saw something.
 
Do pilots not curse? When not on the phone or radio, every third word is generally an adjective, adverb or expletive that starts with “F,” in my work experience. We respect the patient being treated in our presence and the homeowner who just lost everything to fire when in close proximity to them. Still, two of the most articulate users of the King’s English that I know personally are gals with advanced degrees who learned the language walking through hell - and most of the cops, firefighters, EMS workers and dispatchers I know are nearly as fluent, from command staff through rank-and-file.

Huh. I’ve been around a lot of Fire and EMS over the past 10 years (wife is a FF/medic), and they curse plenty.
 
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