This is terrible news.. I wonder how bad the fallout of this weekend is going to be for GA. God Bless the lives taken.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/07/28/air....ap/index.html

 

Jim Leroy?


no way.


dude..this blows. i can't believe it.

 

What a messed up week it's been. I just saw a clip of this one on the news for tonight, so haven't really seen what happened. RIP to all again

 

Seems like pilots are dropping like flies recently. FDX, UPS, Choppers in Phoenix and now this. God bless them all. My heart goes out to the families.

 

this guy was such a joy to watch. nicest guy you'll ever meet.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=oWnaHvspGUE

 

so sad

don't know what else to say

 

Thanks for the memories Jim. What a performer.....stunning.

 

Worst weekend I can remember in a while. The rumor is that the fire/rescue people were really slow - that was the talk amongst witnesses at one of the news sites reporting the crash. The press is reporting that the fire/rescue showed up within a minute - home video and witness say that it was closer to two minutes after the crash.

RIP

 

Much like the forums on ASB and FC, let's just remember Jim for the performances he gave us and the professionalism he displayed. Let the investigation reveal shortfalls if there were any so that we as an airshow community and aviation community in general learn from it rather than placing any blame. As airshow participants we all know the dangers associated with what we do. God Bless his family, friends, and team.



I was to fly with him next weekend in Janesville, he will be sorely missed!

Also, thoughts and prayers to the crews and families of the aviators/journalists hurt and lost in the Mustang accident in Oshkosh as well as the helo crash in PHX.

Bdger

 

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- A small float plane crashed into the Willamette River in Oregon, killing two people, including an accomplished flight instructor, authorities said.

David Howard Wiley, 80, a former National Seaplane Pilot of the Year, was one of the two men who died shortly before noon Saturday when the vintage 1941 Taylorcraft float plane crashed just north of Willamette Falls.

The identity of the other man was being withheld pending notification of his family.

Witnesses said the two-passenger, single-engine plane took off from the river, rose about 75 feet, wobbled in the air and then began a steep turn to the left before the left wing broke off.

Clackamas County sheriff's spokesman Jim Strovink said people who saw the crash told him the plane took off in an "unstable fashion."

It was unclear if Wiley, a certified instructor and mechanic who runs Wiley's Seaplanes, was piloting the plane.

In 2000, Wiley, an aviation safety counselor for the Portland Flight Standards Division Office, was designated a master certified flight instructor by the National Association of Flight Instructors. He was named National Seaplane Pilot of the Year in 1999.

The Federal Aviation Administration was investigating.