Storm rips through airshow - video

[David Ashby - Moderator]

Edited By David Ashby - RCME Administrator on 01/04/2011 09:36:58

[ken anderson.]

bad crack--loads of dosh down the drain...

 

kenanderson ne..1

Edited By ken anderson. on 01/04/2011 09:49:08

[David Ashby - Moderator]

Quite a terrible thing yes Ken, your heart goes out to them. Reminded me of the 1987 Hurricane down here - our local aerodrome looked like that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited By David Ashby - RCME Administrator on 01/04/2011 09:47:33

[Tim Mackey]

That is bad

[Chris Bott - Moderator]

That looks like a nightmare, and for the insurance companies too.

 

It reminds me that we had a scaled down model version at a Greenacres electric fun fly in 2005. Many models were picked up as a mini tornado swept accross the line of parked models. Some went up to 100ft in the air. Oddly most of the models damages belonged to a single member. It really wasn't his day.

Have a look at the article Page 1 and Page 2

[Alan Cantwell]

thats awfull, but when the weather cuts loose in Florida, it cuts loose, more than once in that area, i have had to pull over with many others, you just could not drive, for those who dont know, Lakeland airport is about 20 minutes from disneyworld, and is the setting for this years Top Gun, its also opposite the Polk county home of the Kermit Weeks collection, and you can bet he took some damage too, because of the hurricane season, Tom Reillys warbird museum moved away, after suffering devastating damage, it doent do it often, but when it does, its ORRIBLE, my comiserations to the aircrafts owners,

[Alan Cantwell]

CRUMBS i didnt know it was as recent as 31st march seems they had had bad weather all week, seems the show is open again after a big clear up, feel so sorry for them, but at least only 7 folk injured, worts was a broken hip, some valubale barely insured vintage aircraft bady damaged, damned shame, i have relatives in cape coral, i will be emailing to see if they are ok,

 

 

[Erfolg]

As one who was caught up in Hurricane Andrew in St Augustine and more latterly in Wilma, whilst driving from Memphis, where we had what we thought was the Hurricane to St Louis. We had to stop as a previous contributor had to, under a underpass on the Interstate, whilst the small truck in front edged forward, if we did, later realised this was to protect him if we were rear-ended. We eventually moved to a petrol station to get some petrol, the water was at least a foot deep, pumps not working. Inside a hysterical New York Bronx caricature was wailing, "we are going to die", whilst the pump attendant kept tell everyone to stand back from the window, as a portable radio warned of alligators and poisonous snakes were invading buildings for shelter.

We never made St Louis as it was now shut, and then drove hundreds of miles to Jekyll Island in South Carolina for accommodation, whilst the tail end of Wilma, kept lashing the region.

I never got to Pensacola to see the USA air museum.

We went late season, as I assured my wife it would be after the hurricanes finished. I now know Autumn is the worst time.

[Martin Harris - Moderator]

I was at the London Giding Club at Dunstable in the late 70s when a violent thunderstorm hit - a K13 was picked up and ended up on some grass at the centre of the dual carriageway running past the club, A K6 was broken clean in two, a Tutor was written off and I think a Kranich was damaged badly as well.

 

The storm hit while I was in the restaurant and we all went out to pick up the pieces - luckily no-one on the field was hurt - and just as we were settling back down again another one hit with bolts of lightning hitting the hill that runs alongside the airfield. We ran out to secure the gliders that were still out (the K21s and other glass gliders had survived unscathed) and one the tug pilots swore that he saw the propeller of a Chipmunk turning over!

 

Looking back it was scary stuff but the video above looked horrendous with lightning strikes yards away and people hardly protected at all.

 

At least all the gliders flew again - the written off Tutor was rebuilt by a young lad who got his Inspector's ticket as a result and, IIRC, went on to fly commercially.

[Erfolg]

It is difficult to put into context, what many Americans see as unremarkable, from a UK perspective.

 

Experience just one Mexican, Caribbean or USA storm, and you come to realise we cannot comprehend the shear magnitude. The storms go on for days, doing more damage in a few minutes than the damage we think is massive damage, they come as in pulses. The amount of water unbelievable, the strength of wind is difficult to convey, the damage not localised, but affecting regions. They are terrifying, when I look back, I relies we in the UK are in this respect are very lucky.

[James40]

Not much Sun or Fun involved there !!

 

Surely in a country as obsessed with weather as America is, this must have been forecast?

[Alan Cantwell]

With the humidity, it just forms and drops, the forecast would have been wind, but thise clouds are alive, i remember my very first suprise in florida in 1989, when the windows of the rental car misted up--on the outside, our relatives in cape coral had a lucky escape too, they live on a feeder to the gulf canal, on the house over the canal, a tornado stripped every tile off the roof, and depsoitied them all over franks house, it also stripped every piece of turf off the floor, when we last visisted florida, they had just been blitzed blue tarp roof everywhere, and HUGE street lamps, tied in knotts, scary!!! but when we get there on the 27th april, all will be warmth and sunshine, fingers crossed!!!!

[Hugo Fasster]

"Were going to need bigger bin liners"

[leccyflyer]

Posted by Chris Bott on 01/04/2011 14:27:36:

That looks like a nightmare, and for the insurance companies too.

 

It reminds me that we had a scaled down model version at a Greenacres electric fun fly in 2005. Many models were picked up as a mini tornado swept accross the line of parked models. Some went up to 100ft in the air. Oddly most of the models damages belonged to a single member. It really wasn't his day.

Have a look at the article Page 1 and Page 2

Yeah, I remember that Chris - lots of models shredded by that mad couple of minutes and, as you said mostly foamies that were owned by one member. A real shame.

[Chris Bott - Moderator]

And everyone was so gobsmacked that no one even thought to take a photo!