FLYBOYJ
"THE GREAT GAZOO"
I went to the original YouTube post and the OP stated he now believes these aircraft did not make contact.
SU-25 Frogfoot Mid-Air
- Thread starter MIflyer
- Start date
Ad: This forum contains affiliate links to products on Amazon and eBay. More information in Terms and rules
I went to the original YouTube post and the OP stated he now believes these aircraft did not make contact.
FLYBOYJ
"THE GREAT GAZOO"
There does seem to be something coming off the left wing. The Su25 does have speedbrakes at the wing tip IIRC. I'm wondering if that's the point of failure
Col Campbell
Airman
Also not a pilot, but could the pilot of the trail SU-25 gotten into the jet wash/turbulence of the lead aircraft, jinked to the right a little (engine exhaust trail indicates this) and then overcorrected back to the left, loosing lift on his wings? If he did have speedbrake failure that would exacerbate the possible loss of lift.
Jim
Jim
FLYBOYJ
"THE GREAT GAZOO"
The jet wash/ wake turbulence is very unlikely. Both aircraft operate at the same weight and are both pretty robust and heavy. Even if the trail aircraft got into jet wash or wake turbulence, he should have easily powered out of it.
Thumpalumpacus
Major
And because the planes are relatively compact, the wake turbulence is not a big swathe of air. It's a far cry from a MITO with 250-ton bombers carving flower-petals into the sky trying to avoid WT that's 200' across for one single vector.
FLYBOYJ
"THE GREAT GAZOO"
A friend of a friend was flying a C-152 into John Wayne airport about 25 years ago and got behind a B757, the worse commercial airliner for producing "dirty air." The 152 got tossed into a complete roll. The 152 driver pressed on after the un-commanded maneuver landed without incident but was asked to call the tower. Poor guy thought he was in trouble but it turned out the folks in the tower saw the whole thing and wanted to make sure he was OK.
Thumpalumpacus
Major
I've read either about that incident or one like it, again involving a -757. Those big planes move a lot of air.
On the other hand, an Su-25 is designed for low-and-slow and I'd think the pilot would be trained to be sensitive to air conditions (updrafts etc).
I bet the next inspection on that -152 happened pretty soon.
FLYBOYJ
"THE GREAT GAZOO"
Actually the plane had no damage! When it got sucked in the wake, the guy flying it kept the nose up and just followed through with the roll
Taking a look at the grainy footage magnified showing the wing break of the crashed aircraft, that's a bit further in from the wing tip, which suggests severe structural failure, enough to have ripped the spars apart. Perhaps previous combat damage that went unnoticed from a past sortie? Either way, it failed in flight with aerodynamic loading imposed on it.
As for the narrator questioning the airfield location, it could be Saki, a bit further down the Crimean Peninsula, where the Russian Navy's strike aircraft regiments are nominally based. Saki was recently subject to explosions that destroyed Su-24s and Su-30 aircraft in their bunkers, of course. Saki was also the home base of the Yak-38 Forger units and apart from those few examples that ended up in museums, the miserable lot were scrapped on site.
As for the narrator questioning the airfield location, it could be Saki, a bit further down the Crimean Peninsula, where the Russian Navy's strike aircraft regiments are nominally based. Saki was recently subject to explosions that destroyed Su-24s and Su-30 aircraft in their bunkers, of course. Saki was also the home base of the Yak-38 Forger units and apart from those few examples that ended up in museums, the miserable lot were scrapped on site.
Admiral Beez
Major
Damn, your post reminded me of this tragic crash of two Beauforts. As a firmly grounded civilian I can only think this is poorly planned or executed formation flying.
Last edited:
FLYBOYJ
"THE GREAT GAZOO"
I thought of this clip as well, seen it a few times. Yes - totally correct
Admiral Beez
Major
When I watch it I'm surprised the first Beaufort to crash wasn't able to recover. It looks like a wing tip hit. So I wonder if the pilot was caught off guard.
FLYBOYJ
"THE GREAT GAZOO"
Possibly - when you fly in formation, especially at higher speeds, things happen very quickly so coordination during the flight is important. One of the most challenging things I've done was learning to fly in formation, especially in the L29/L39.
I'm sure
BiffF15
might have a great perspective on this.
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
The 'Fort that made contact with the lead, tore apart his wingtips and airleron when it shattered the leader's empennage. It is seen in the video bent at an upward angle, which is why the 'Fort suddenly banked hard to port and augered in.
There was no way he was going to recover from that.
There was no way he was going to recover from that.
Last edited:
Thumpalumpacus
Major
He was thrown to port, into the very wing that likely suffered damage to control surfaces. Drag on the damaged wing is going decrease its lift, only making recovery harder. He was far too low to recover from both the damage and the yank on his aircraft's stability combined.
That's my non-flyer opinion.
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
Ok, I'm on my phone, so I hope this works.
Look at the port wingtip on the right aircraft.
Look at the port wingtip on the right aircraft.
Admiral Beez
Major
Some insight.
SaparotRob
Unter Gemeine Geschwader Murmeltier XIII
Great channel.
Users who are viewing this thread
Similar threads
