Skytyper Accident Options

[Deb Mitchell]

From ICAS:

At app. 12:30 p.m. EDT, a member of the Skytypers T-6 team crashed while preparing to land following a performance during the practice/media show at NAS Oceana in Virginia Beach, VA.


BREAKING NEWS - http://www.wavy.com/global/story.asp?s=7041492

Reason for edit: UPDATE

[helioguy]

This really sad.......... very sad!!!

[Steven King]

oh no... please keep us up to date...

[RCoulter]

Oh man not another one....

[JeffreyVB]

Update from local newspaper....

Stunt plane crashes at Oceana Naval Air Station
The Virginian-Pilot
© Sept. 7, 2007 | Last updated 1:15 PM Sept. 7

VIRGINIA BEACH

City police dispatchers have confirmed that a plane has crashed at Oceana Naval Air Station.

Navy authorities were responding to the crash, they said.

Ralph Roberts with GEICO Skytypers told WAVY news the Skytypers' No. 6 plane went down during an air show rehearsal. The crash occurred "at the very end of their last maneuver," Roberts said.

"We're just hoping for the best," said Troy Snead, a spokesman for Oceana Naval Air Station. "We have an aircraft that went down at the end of the runway, and the emergency crews are on scene."

According to GEICO's Web site, the Skytypers Air Show Team is a squadron of six World War II SNJ-2 airplanes that performs at air shows across the country. The pilots perform low-level flying maneuvers and deliver aerial smoke messages, also called Skytyping.

The site claims that the group is the "only World War II civilian squadron flying today."

The Skytypers release their messages five planes abreat, 250 feet apart and "type" short messages in the sky, according to the company's site.

During exhibitions, the pilots fly in formation and a computer in the lead plane sends radio signals to the smoke systems in each plane, the site says.

[Andy]

OK I was on base for the practice show and saw what happened. The plane seemed to lose altitude when the other planes were turning right and went down just off 5L near London Bridge Rd. its too bad

[Steven King]

cnn had video and wavy has a picture from above.. does not look like there is much left of the plane unless they removed the plane already..

[draven]

A Geico spokesperson confirmed that the pilot went down with the plane, possibly in an attempt to save it. More trickling in ...

[NavyFan]

This is just awful...please keep us posted...thoughts and prayers are with the pilot in hopes that he is ok.

Sherri

[Jane]

Not Again!!!!!

Please keep us informed!

What an absolutely horrible year.

[GrummanFan]

These are my hometown guys. There is no mistaking the drone of their engines above my house when they are off to an air show somewhere, or writing me a message about Verizon's low rates in the sky. I hope the pilot (and the gecko) are ok!

[Andy]

saw the whole thing happened and talk to a close friend of mine who worsk at teh Fire Dept on Base my prayers go out to all the skytypers and there famlies today

[ChrisE]

I so hope that the pilot survived, I just left the practice show when I was at my hotel and only saw three aircraft then two whitch is unusual. My businiss is in the airport plaza where the sky typers come from and I see them every day so I can just hope for the best.

[bradV]

Man, I had just left 15 min before it happened. I left to go pack away my work equipment out of my truck and was planning on returning to the fence line to watch some more of the show.

This is Sad news indeed.

God Speed.

[Airshow4444]

There are in my prayers

[tenover]

My prayers are with them.

[helioguy]

Ours as well.......

[Darren]

My prayers are with him/her/them.

Darren

[Deb Mitchell]

From ICAS:

WILDBERGH KILLED IN VIRGINIA ACCIDENT

Jan Wildbergh, a pilot with the Geico Skytypers, was killed when his North American SNJ-2 crashed while landing after a media show performance at NAS Oceana in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Other details on the accident are not yet available.

[RCoulter]

Man, this has been a really crappy rear RIP