Harrison Ford Reported Fair After Plane Crash

[+Dave]

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/harrison-ford-injured-plane-crash-n318301

[Jug]

Big kudos to Harrison Ford for a terrific recovery from a dire aviation situation, engine failure on takeoff.  It appears that he turned his PT-19(?) around and landed on a golf course with minor injuries.  Of course, minor injuries are not minor to a 70 year old man, so he may still have some other things to deal with than his apparent cuts and bruises.  However, take a look at the densely populated area from which he had to chose a place to land and the path through the trees he had to navigate to get the aircraft down on the golf course.  The dude has some skills.  The force was with him and some damn fine skills certainly minimized collateral damage to people and homes closely packed in the area.  Good on you, Harrison! 

 

To take a look at how difficult this can be, use one of our fine WWII aircraft found here and simulate a similar situation in any of the WO* sims.  Chop the throttle to 0% at or around 500 to 1000' and try to turn around and make the runway you just departed.  Big hint, most accidents occur in this situation by the pilot stalling the aircraft.  Keep you flying speed and remember, when you turn, that minimum flying airspeed goes up proportionally to the angle of bank used for the turn.  You will learn quickly that what Harrison did is no small aviation feat.

[mppd]

I met him a few years ago when he flew into BDL with his son(?) in a green and yellow DHC-2 Beaver. A real gentleman, glad to have some photos taken next to the plane - arm in arm with a couple gals from behind the counter at the FBO (who he bought lunch for). The bird is reportedly an ex-Air America plane. (Not my photo).

Edited March 6, 2015 by mppd

[Nesher]

glad to hear he made it pretty okay, hope for a speedy recovery..

[Wrench]

yeah, that's just over a mile west of me. was hearing the choppers for about an half hour before I checked the local tv news to see what was going on (was actually on the phone with fubar at the time!).

 

Good job in getting it down, and not getting too badly hurt, or smashing into houses. Pity about the plane, though

 

Pen Mar golf course is also prominentely featured in the move "2010" during the destruction of LA sequence (and my house is just east of the airport, and so falls into a vast fissure that opens up, along with the airport itself!)

[bigstone]

The "Force" protected him.

[Lexx_Luthor]

nah, alot of simple tricks and nonsense. He had a good blaster at his side here. ... blasting or flying, good skills.

[+Stary]

good it ended in such way!

[dsawan]

he was probably on his way to pay off jabba!