Another RC heli fatality

[Rotorhead]

Do you honestly believe this pilot wasn't aware of the danger he was putting himself in every time he came within feet of himself whilst performing a hurricane?

Ofcourse he must have known, what I was getting at was peoples appreciation of the danger, that is something that many do not seem to have, everyone knows that carbon fibre blades going 2k+ is dangerous, but it's understanding HOW dangerous situations are that is the issue and that is why people are doing stupid things, many from what I've seen just don't realise how little margin for error they're leaving themselves and vastly underestimate the consequences of if something does go wrong.

'Safe flying' is an oxymoron, there's no such thing, so unless people are suggesting that an outright ban should be imposed, I don't see how else can it be regulated.

No it isn't, this isn't a black and white issue, experience tells you if what you're doing is a safe thing or not, hurricanes a few feet away for example is decidedly NOT, however 70+ft away is far more sensible and therefore by comparison "safe".

The main thing for me is that people seem to be trying to emulate some "pro" flyers out there, which is a case of the somewhat skilled and foolish copying the very skilled but irresponsible.

[Md001]

I heard there was a serial killer trained to fly heli in all different angles and kill people with the heli blades and his victims used to be amazed when they saw the heli and that's when he slit the throat with precision...

[Gixxer]

Ofcourse he must have known, what I was getting at was peoples appreciation of the danger, that is something that many do not seem to have, everyone knows that carbon fibre blades going 2k+ is dangerous, but it's understanding HOW dangerous situations are that is the issue and that is why people are doing stupid things, many from what I've seen just don't realise how little margin for error they're leaving themselves.



No it isn't, this isn't a black and white issue, experience tells you if what you're doing is a safe thing or not, hurricanes a few feet away for example is decidedly NOT, however 70+ft away is far more sensible and therefore by comparison "safe".

The main thing for me is that people seem to be trying to emulate some "pro" flyers out there, which is a case of the somewhat skilled and foolish copying the very skilled but irresponsible.

We've all seen the videos and heard the tragic stories, yet 'some' people still choose to ignore the dangers, as blatantly obvious as they are.
It's human nature. Some people are thrill seekers and risk takers, and no matter how much you try to 'educate' these people, they will still take risks, and regardless of what a lot of people might say, we (in general) like to see it, and the bigger the risk, the more we seem to enjoy it, and the biggest risk takers in RC heli flying are also considered by the vast majority to be the best flyers.

[Rotorhead]

Well they'll just have to learn the hard way.... pitty they're putting the future of our hobby at risk for their edification.

[Gixxer]

Well they'll just have to learn the hard way.... pitty they're putting the future of our hobby at risk for their edification.

That's the point I'm trying to make... Why should a tragic accident be considered 'putting our hobby at risk'?

RC heli flying seems like some dirty little secret we have to keep quiet about, or the men in black will step in and take it away from us.

People die every day in other hobbies, so why should one or two isolated incidents threaten the hobby?

Ridiculous, knee-jerk reactions from clueless people are what threaten our hobby.

[Dan22]

If the government were to ban Rc Heli flying in parks and public places then that could only be a good thing IMO
I fly at a private field with permission from the land owner. There are no foot paths anywhere near so no dog walkers! The only person that could possibly get injured is me so its my risk.
I'm also a member of BMFA affiliated club that fly both Heli and fixed wing. For those of us who fly safely in the right places there shouldn't be a problem.

Dan.

[tomatwalden]

Ridiculous, knee-jerk reactions from clueless people are what threaten our hobby.

True - but flying safe and not giving them the ammunition couldn't hurt ...

[AndyThilo]

Someone died whilst doing something dangerous... shock horror! It's a dangerous hobby, ergo, partaking in it can be dangerous, and the closer you fly to yourself, the more dangerous it becomes, obviously, but it's a risk you assume when you get into the hobby.

There are loads of dangerous hobbies with no regulations. If I wanted to take up knife juggling tomorrow, I could, but I wouldn't expect a ban on knives if I killed myself doing it.

Nobody should have the right to tell a pilot how close he's allowed to fly to himself, it's ridiculous.

Imagine telling Jeb Corliss that he's not allowed to fly within 500 feet of the ground, in case he might injure himself? We wouldn't get videos like this...

The world is turning into a proper nanny state... It's ridiculous!

So it's ok just as long as we're entertained?

[buzzbird]

I think the point people are missing is that the "nanny state" isn't rushing in to regulate things, but will do when you have concerned people saying "That could've been my kid killed by someone else's disregard for safety."
What if that heli hadn't killed Roman, but had killed one of his clubmates instead? What if that had been at a club here in the UK?

I have no problem with people doing hurricanes with a 700 two feet from their own heads - provided they do it with no one else within half a mile of them.
If they want to risk their own lives, that's their choice. But don't make the choice for anyone else - like bystanders or spectators.

Where the nanny state WILL step in is when people fly anything in a park - including tiny 130s - because park users have the right to walk the dog and their kids without fearing for their safety, and Roman's incident will now serve to make people think all helis are evil - even a 130.

I just hope Roman's legacy is a sea-change of attitude towards safety in our hobby, because right now its non-existent. I can think of a few pro's that everyone thinks are the bees-knees, but no one's got the balls to tell them their flying's good, but their safety attitude sucks.


PS The issue with Jeb Corliss is he's not putting anyone else in danger - only himself - so if he wants to leap out of a plane for kicks, that's his problem.

[ChrisB]

I agree with that and thats why i shunned that idiot kammerers continued flying after he struck the ground quite hard with a Goblin 700 recently at a flyin somewhere,his attitiude to safety of others and the complete lack of respect for them sucked.

He is a Pro people said,blah blah blah,so was the Guy with the X7,so was Roman,,,where did that get them?

[jwatts007]

Sad to see a young man loose his life to the hobby...after so much media attention no doubt there will be many more young fellas giving RC helis a go now it has been given a dangerous sport title.....

[buzzbird]

Sad to see a young man loose his life to the hobby...after so much media attention no doubt there will be many more young fellas giving RC helis a go now it has been given a dangerous sport title.....

The irony is it willl happen (in the US, where they are allowed to fly large helis in many public parks).
At least over here you wouldn't last long if you tried to fire up anything bigger than a 450 down your local park, and now this has gone mainstream news, even taking a 450 out is going to be welcomed about as much as taking a dump in the local swimming pool.

I'm a bit more concerned that, as you say, some (with money) will take up the hobby now it's a dangerous sport. Find they can't join a club due to waiting list/not heli-supported, and head off down the park with their 700. I foresee a lot of flak for us responsible ones if that happens.

I'm also minded of one individual I've had dealings with who wants a 50 and to fly it in the park, in the absence of a local club. I said no, you can't even think of going there with that, but he wouldn't listen.
That's what really worries me about this hobby.

[Mark_T]

Just as a point of interest, although the area he was flying in is part of a public park, it is not actually open for general public use, it is dedicated to model flying activities so this wasn't taking place in the middle of a 'public' area.

The park provides a number of different areas allocated to various recreational activities, each separate from the other. I only wish we had more facilities like that over here ...

[Gixxer]

So it's ok just as long as we're entertained?

PS The issue with Jeb Corliss is he's not putting anyone else in danger - only himself - so if he wants to leap out of a plane for kicks, that's his problem.

Allow me to use rally driving as an example.

When you enter a live stage of a rally, you have cars hurtling towards you at over 100mph on loose gravel.

I consider this dangerous but I still go to rallies. I just make sure I spectate from as safe a place as I can.

Unfortunately, rally driving is dangerous and occasionally spectators are killed, but it's a risk they take when they enter a live stage, just as the drivers take a risk when they get in their car... and heli pilots take when they do a hurricane a few feet from their face.

The possibility of a failure, combined with a set of blades spinning at 2000+rpm, dictates that what we do is inherently dangerous, and as such all heli events should carry a warning to this effect, then let people decide for themselves if they want to subject themselves to the possibility of injury/death.

I also believe that nobody should be allowed to fly anything bigger than a Blade 130 in any place accessible by the general public (parks, etc)... but that's another story.

[AndyThilo]

PS The issue with Jeb Corliss is he's not putting anyone else in danger - only himself - so if he wants to leap out of a plane for kicks, that's his problem.

What about the medics who have to scrape his body of the rocks, or the family who will never see him again, or his friends who witness a horrific accident? What if he'd smacked that guy holding the balloons. And lets not forget the skydiver who hit the bridge at over 100mph, he could have taken out a spectator. I understand risks and I understand thrillseekers but come on, lets not endanger others just to show off and get a buzz.

There will come a time, when an accident like this happens to a spectator at a show in the UK, and then the shit will hit the fan. It's time to sit up and be proactive. We ALL have a responsibility for the safety of others.