Thoughts on Reno

It’s hard to put into words my
feelings as I prepare to go to the
airport to fly home. I sure
appreciate my family and friends
more, and I feel deep sympathy
for the victims of the horrific crash
on Friday.

I feel so bad for the great people
that work so hard to make Reno
a success, and are victims of
this tragedy. I feel the pain for
the crew members and pilots
that knew our lost friend in
this crash. Every pilot knows
when he or she goes into the air
that things can go wrong, and
that this could be the result.

I feel many of the television
media stumbled all over the
story, asking the wrong, or
inane questions. I feel sorry for
all the people that rushed out
to Reno to get face time during
this tragic event, when they had
little or nothing to do with the
event or the crash, and could
offer nothing that helped the situation. I feel anger at those that made all the wrong assumptions about the accident. The questions of the pilots age, his skill, or his ability, all made me sick. Jimmy Leeward was an exceptional pilot with the skills and sharpness of top gun pilot in his forties. The cause of the accident was a mechanical failure, pure and simple. Sadly, I burned the images and video of the crash from several photographers for the Reno Air Racing Association and the NTSB. I wish I could forget them. I saw clearly the broken trim tab that caused the plane to climb out of control. No pilot of any age or skill level could have done any more than Jimmy did. His immediate attempt to recover is probably why the plane did not fall straight into the grandstands holding thousands of race fans, making the tragedy even worse.

The suggestions being made to make the sport safer, are for the most part, non-sensical. Like moving the grandstand further back. When and airplane goes out of control at almost 500 mph, a few hundred feet or yards would be meaningless. The other ideas thrown out by people that know little or nothing about flying or racing, were equally silly.

Air Racing is a dangerous sport. Those that watch it and participate in it know that. The pilots, crews, and officials that run the race take every possible precaution to avoid this kind of tragedy.
The Reno Air Races were first run in 1964 and this is the first time anything of this magnitude has ever happened. Through the years their have been pilots and planes lost, but not anything like what occurred this year. I’m an aviator and a race fan, and I hope that this is not the end of
the Reno Air Races, however that is a decision that will be made by the media, the insurance companies, and the lawyers.

I can say one thing for certain, the Reno Air Races are run by some of the finest people I know and know one is more grieved about this tragedy than they are. Of they could have prevented this
crash, it would have never happened.

Please pray for the victims families and my family at the Reno Air Racing Association.

the pilgrim