'Videos of the Day' an ongoing thread

[Richard]

[btw on GV there is a vid clip where the F14 explodes in mid-air after such a ss pass. Terrible.]

Some more info that is probably about this incident that I found on another forum:

" 1) I am a Navy Air Traffic Controller.
2) I was stationed aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) From 1994-1999.
3) I was on Marshal Control in the Carrier Air Traffic Control Center (CATCC) when this accident happened.

I'm not certain how many specifics I can get into. I do not think I can get into where we were exactly or where we were going. However, the accident report has been declassified and as such I can relay a few pertinent facts about what happened.

I was tracking the Aircraft and he was traveling at a high rate of speed. He never requested to do a flyby on the John Paul Jones and since he was inside my airspace (out to 60 nautical miles) he should have made a request to do so. Fact is he never was in communications with me at all.

Naval investigators concluded the loss of the airplane was due to "pilot error" because Bates failed to take the required action to prevent his plane from going into an uncontrollable spin after an engine stall.

The F-14 he was flying was an F-14A and the engines on that series were prone to compressor stalls when making high angle of attack maneuvers, at high speeds, in dense atmosphere (read: Low altitude). At the time of this accident they were transitioning to the F-14B with engines that were 30% more powerful.

Because of the great distance between F-14 engines, asymmetrical thrust becomes a real problem should one engine fail.

Going outside of the official mishap investigation; it would appear to me that just prior to the explosion, LCDR (Lieutenant Commander) Bates place his aircraft in a very hard turn. If you look at the video, you will notice the aircraft flying at a 90-degree wing down attitude just prior to the explosion.

As I stated earlier; Naval investigators concluded the loss of the airplane was due to "pilot error".

Some of you may recall there was an F-14 accident in January of 1996. In this accident the pilot requested an "Unrestricted climb" and his departure took him vertical. He was observed to pass into an overcast layer of clouds at nearly a 90-degree angle of attack. Shortly after he was seen going into the clouds, his aircraft reversed direction and impacted a house. The pilot, RIO (Radar Intercept Officer) and three people on the ground were killed.

The findings on this accident were also found to be "pilot error".

Can you guess who the pilot of the later flight was? If you guessed LCDR John Stacy Bates you would be correct.

In a period of 16 months, there were 4 losses of F14's in LCDR Bates' squadron, VF-213 the Fighting Black Lions. Two of which were attributed to him."

This pilot reminds me of a B-52 pilot who did not obey rules.

 

[Royzee617]

More Lanc stuff from that doc coming up later. MW why not pop over to the Off Topic to watch a clip of a Rally car crash - roadside marshal has a miraculous escape. You get to see it at full speed then in slo mo and reverse.

 

[Royzee617]

Thanks for the gen on the F14 crash. I know fighter jocks are reputedly hotheads at times but I really thought they would not behave like Mav in Top Gun.

I like the F14 (saw it display once) and wonder how they could have fitted it with inferior engines and then put them so far apart. Sounds a bit like some WW2 designs which were a handful... the Marauder for example. But these guys are the cream and should be more careful and less prone to stunting. More so since it had happened before.

That B52 clip was a good case in point. Pilot error is all very well as a causative factor but their superiors are culpable too - they should have ousted these aircrew before. 'Accidents waiting to happen'. I feel sorry for the rest of the crew - you hear of WW2 bomber crews not wanting to fly with 'gung ho' 'press on' pilots. Gibson was a hero but a mad sod.

 

[Royzee617]

Second of the clip sequence.

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

thanks for these lanc videos they're great, any more you have will be very well recieved.........

 

[Gnomey]

Good stuff Roy, keep them coming.

 

[Royzee617]

OK, cheers, tomorrow....

 

[Royzee617]

More of the Lanc at War.

Luftwaffe Nachtjagers, Wilde Sau, Window etc.

Again a good piece but too much of general history and not about the Lanc. It is a bit like doing your homework... or exam... as they always say "ANSWER THE QUESTION!". The remit is LANCASTER not 'air war over Germany'.

After a while you get a strong feeling that there is only one documentary about each generic subject. Probably a lot to do with lazy or underpaid scriptwriters. They hack about something they have already done and re-submit it. No one notices except pedants like me.

 

[the lancaster kicks ass]

thanks again, but yeah i know what you mean about documentaries repeating themselves a lot.........

 

[R988]

You'd think it was pedants like us who would be the only ones who watch these things

 

[Gnomey]

Good stuff Roy, keep them coming.

 

[Royzee617]

Thanks chaps! I have an old-ish TV doc about the Canadians in WW2 which might have some less over-used footage in it. Wish someone would show some footage of the BBMF Lanc in its early guises. I read somewhere it was based at Cranfield close by us in its early pre-BBMF days.
MW see my thread about BC crews in the other forum.

 

[Royzee617]

Shame the doc did not get around to reporting on other uses for the Lanc... at one point they mention and show footage of Opn Manna but there is nowt about Opn Tiger and such.... but I suppose the Lanc saw the bulk of its War in the night skies over Germany.

This one has fine footage of the Lanc at low level over one of the UK dams I think... incredible sight.

As for the vid quality I think it is better than the vid card route but it looks a bit jerkier on my PC. I am doing a DVD rip at the moment and one vob file is about a gig in size. Needless, it is taking ages to convert to avi. Been on nearly 24 hours! Be warned.

 

[R988]

VERY nice footage there Roy 8)

 

[Royzee617]

Cheers!

 

[Gnomey]

Good stuff Roy, liked the colour footage.

 

[Royzee617]

Cheers for the comments.

Here is a 'blockbuster' for you... or should that be a Tallboy? LW must have been confused about these wardrobes BC was planning on dropping on the Reich. "No need Tommy, we haff many good German vardrobes already ja?" Perhaps the MoD chaps had a sense of humour after all.

 

[Gnomey]

Good video Roy, interesting stuff. It had to cut just as it was about to land though which was annoying.

 

[Royzee617]

Sorry about that. I was trying to make 5 minute clips on the DVD recorder. Clumsy of me.

 

[Gnomey]

No problem Roy, that was the only thing, otherwise it was a good video.