I guess anyone can run out of fuel.

Too bad---very embarrassed I'm sure. **** happens.
 
Dang, that hurts. If it wasn't mechanical, I foresee a 709 ride in his future! As Jesse says, **** happens, but we're supposed to be able to prevent at least some of it with good planning.

Now, compare and contrast Sean's mishaps with those of a famous female aviator with a wide smile who got in trouble while not even in an aircraft!
 
Bummer, I guess it can happen to anyone, my glider never seems to run out of gas!
 
I'm guessing that when doing acro, they carry a lot less fuel than the rest of us normally do.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
I'm guessing that when doing acro, they carry a lot less fuel than the rest of us normally do.
Click to expand...
Probably, but aren't they still subject to the same regulations? Or does their waiver cover fuel minimums as well? :dunno: Even if it does, it's bad form to land dead sick on a highway sans go-juice!:nono:
 
flyingcheesehead said:
I'm guessing that when doing acro, they carry a lot less fuel than the rest of us normally do.
Click to expand...
That is often true when they're performing. The fuel tanks on acro aircraft are sized for ferry, but performance improves for the show if weight is reduced, and in some cases, maneuvers are limited above a certain weight or fuel load due to increased structural stresses. However, when going from Pt A to Pt B, they should be carrying just as much fuel as the rest of us would. The AvWeb report says only he was returning to his home airport, not whether he was out practicing locally or returning from a show.
 
This could also be the case of a mechanical problem with the fuel system and what started out as enough fuel got depleted before the flight ended.
 
Rotor&Wing said:
This could also be the case of a mechanical problem with the fuel system and what started out as enough fuel got depleted before the flight ended.
Click to expand...
The report says he simply put fuel in and took off, which hints there was no mechanical problem. Of course, media reports are notoriously inaccurate, and perhaps he put on a new fuel cap after putting in fuel or made some other simple remedy. Still, like you I'll wait for more details to emerge before rushing to any judgment.
 
If it were anyone else we'd be screaming about what a doofus the guy was. Ahh, the benefits of being an alpha human. Of course, the FAA is likely to take a darker view.
 
steingar said:
If it were anyone else we'd be screaming about what a doofus the guy was. Ahh, the benefits of being an alpha human. Of course, the FAA is likely to take a darker view.
Click to expand...
I guess you forgot about those ready to shanghai another aerobatic performer through much of the last year?
 
Ken Ibold said:
The report says he simply put fuel in and took off, which hints there was no mechanical problem. Of course, media reports are notoriously inaccurate, and perhaps he put on a new fuel cap after putting in fuel or made some other simple remedy. Still, like you I'll wait for more details to emerge before rushing to any judgment.
Click to expand...

Cap not secured properly, clogged vent line, leak in fuel line, leak in the carb, leak in the injection system, leak in the gascolator, leak in the tank quick drain, leak in the boost pump..................like I said it could be a mechanical problem, I'll wait for the final report before I pass judgment.
 
KennyFlys said:
I guess you forgot about those ready to shanghai another aerobatic performer through much of the last year?
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You are correct. I forgot, or perhaps never saw it in the first place (might have been one of those rare occasions when I actually indulged in life).
 
There is probably no data for fuel consumption and range when flying in the Harrier pass configuration.
 
Really? We're going to draw a similarity between a worthless drunk that drove a car on a runway and then abused the arresting officers and a pilot that made a mistake and exhausted his fuel supply and safely landed his plane on a road?

Lets grasp at more straws! Charlie Manson and That Guy that Jaywalked yesterday both got a bad rap....I mean, jaywalking's a minor offense!
 
SkyHog said:
Really? We're going to draw a similarity between a worthless drunk that drove a car on a runway and then abused the arresting officers and a pilot that made a mistake and exhausted his fuel supply and safely landed his plane on a road?

Lets grasp at more straws! Charlie Manson and That Guy that Jaywalked yesterday both got a bad rap....I mean, jaywalking's a minor offense!
Click to expand...
I didn't see that happening. I think you may have made the stretch. I simply spoke up to someone's statement to the point of giving the "upper crust" in GA a pass.
 
SkyHog said:
Really? We're going to draw a similarity between a worthless drunk that drove a car on a runway and then abused the arresting officers and a pilot that made a mistake and exhausted his fuel supply and safely landed his plane on a road?

Lets grasp at more straws! Charlie Manson and That Guy that Jaywalked yesterday both got a bad rap....I mean, jaywalking's a minor offense!
Click to expand...
+1...
 
SkyHog said:
Really? We're going to draw a similarity between a worthless drunk that drove a car on a runway and then abused the arresting officers and a pilot that made a mistake and exhausted his fuel supply and safely landed his plane on a road?

Lets grasp at more straws! Charlie Manson and That Guy that Jaywalked yesterday both got a bad rap....I mean, jaywalking's a minor offense!
Click to expand...


"Worthless drunk?"

She's in every aviation hall of Fame, for pete's sake.
 
dmccormack said:
She's in every aviation hall of Fame, for pete's sake.
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...and OJ's in the NFL Hall of Fame. Just goes to show that being in the Hall of Fame doesn't mean you can't make a really bad decision or won't break the law. In any event, we don't know why Tucker ran out, so we'll just have to wait and see about whether it was a bad decision or something beyond his immediate control.
 
Ron Levy said:
...and OJ's in the NFL Hall of Fame. Just goes to show that being in the Hall of Fame doesn't mean you can't make a really bad decision or won't break the law.
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Pu-leeze.

I'm no Patty Wagstaff apologist, but if you're equating Wagstaff's momentary lapse with OJ, you're reaching.
 
dmccormack said:
Pu-leeze.

I'm no Patty Wagstaff apologist, but if you're equating Wagstaff's momentary lapse with OJ, you're reaching.
Click to expand...

If OJ had missed with the knife, or if Patty had hit a child running across the street, you'd be thinking differently.

Drunk drivers are about as much scum as murderers....they're murderers that just barely missed their shot.

But anyway, back to the OT, which did not involve excuses made for how awesome drunk drivers are...

Sean Tucker screwed up good. His 709 ride will probably be rough, right? Doesn't the FAA despise fuel exhaustion accidents?
 
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SkyHog said:
If OJ had missed with the knife, or if Patty had hit a child running across the street, you'd be thinking differently.

Drunk drivers are about as much scum as murderers....they're murderers that just barely missed their shot.

But anyway, back to the OT, which did not involve excuses made for how awesome drunk drivers are...

Sean Tucker screwed up good. His 709 ride will probably be rough, right? Doesn't the FAA despise fuel exhaustion accidents?
Click to expand...

My father and his wife were killed when the car he was driving struck a pole and burst into flames. I was 19.

Don't lecture me about drunk driving -- but don't equate premeditated murder with drunk driving, either.

Drunk Driving is potentially murderous -- as is speeding, running stop signs, failure to signal, passing in a no passing lane -- the rest.

Each is a scourge, each is destructive -- but Wagstaff is in no way equal to Simpson, period.

You called her a "worthless drunk."

She was stupid, and is paying the price. Fortunately for her and any victim there was no collision.

Wagstaff made huge contributions to aviation by performing at the highest levels and winning -- often -- in a game that was largely male.

Many, many people have ruined years of achievement in one alcohol-soaked night. That indiscretion does not make them "worthless."
 
Man- I can almost hear the flushing sound as this thread goes down the toilet. Where's the popcorn smilie?
 
It depends. I had a fuel exhaustion incident with a ensuing 709 ride. I brought flight plans, weather reports, fuel receipts that all showed I took off with 5 hours of fuel, ran at 75% power and still ran out at 4 hours 3 min 8 miles from my destination which had a flight planned time of 4 hours. I did not have a ride, it was a meeting in the FSDO office. We discussed how and why this might have happened and what to do to aviod similar incidents in the future. All in all it was a very pleasent and learning experiance. If I had taken off on a 5 hours flight with 4 hours of fuel I'm going to guess it would have been a much differnt experience.
 
dmccormack said:
Don't lecture me about drunk driving -- but don't equate premeditated murder with drunk driving, either.

Drunk Driving is potentially murderous -- as is speeding, running stop signs, failure to signal, passing in a no passing lane -- the rest.

Each is a scourge, each is destructive -- but Wagstaff is in no way equal to Simpson, period.

You called her a "worthless drunk."

She was stupid, and is paying the price. Fortunately for her and any victim there was no collision.

Wagstaff made huge contributions to aviation by performing at the highest levels and winning -- often -- in a game that was largely male.

Many, many people have ruined years of achievement in one alcohol-soaked night. That indiscretion does not make them "worthless."
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+1

(Sorry about your dad & his wife. :()
 
dmccormack said:
Pu-leeze.

I'm no Patty Wagstaff apologist, but if you're equating Wagstaff's momentary lapse with OJ, you're reaching.
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Likewise, equating running out of fuel for reasons yet unknown with drunk driving and resisting arrest is also reaching. Let's try to stay focused on the aviation issue.
 
dmccormack said:
My father and his wife were killed when the car he was driving struck a pole and burst into flames. I was 19.

Don't lecture me about drunk driving -- but don't equate premeditated murder with drunk driving, either.

Drunk Driving is potentially murderous -- as is speeding, running stop signs, failure to signal, passing in a no passing lane -- the rest.

Each is a scourge, each is destructive -- but Wagstaff is in no way equal to Simpson, period.

You called her a "worthless drunk."

She was stupid, and is paying the price. Fortunately for her and any victim there was no collision.

Wagstaff made huge contributions to aviation by performing at the highest levels and winning -- often -- in a game that was largely male.

Many, many people have ruined years of achievement in one alcohol-soaked night. That indiscretion does not make them "worthless."
Click to expand...

gprellwitz said:
+1

(Sorry about your dad & his wife. :()
Click to expand...

+2

Don't argue with Nick on this, no matter how many facts you give him, he's right. End of story.
 
One thing I wondered about Nick. If the driver ran off, who does anyone know he or she was inebriated?
 
flyingcheesehead said:
Y'know, if a drunk driver had hit YOU, you might have a different perspective. :mad3:
Click to expand...

In April, 1982 my wife and I were hit head on by a drunk driver (exactly 3 weeks before more father was killed).

The car was totaled, I was extracted from under the engine and spent three days in ICU.

My wife suffered a concussion, deep bruises, and some glass cuts.

The local sheriff wrote the accident up as "icy conditions," even though the temperature was 38 degrees and there was no ice. His nephew was the drunk driver (I was unconscious. A local voluneter firefigher stopped by weeks later and told us -- his conscience was bothering him).

We were both wearing seat belts (unusual back then, by NY State was about to make it mandatory, so we started using them). We each had black and purple marks exactly where the seatbelts were. It took weeks to recover (I was still bruised and bandaged at my dad's funeral).

Some can maintain perspective in spite of past experience.
 
steingar said:
One thing I wondered about Nick. If the driver ran off, who does anyone know he or she was inebriated?
Click to expand...

Without delving back into it again (I kind of like to forget about that part of my life), the driver was either ****faced or intentionally trying to hit the person I was with..

If I've been wrong, I'd rather remain wrong, so that I don't spend the rest of my life wondering how close I came to seeing a vehicular homicide.
 
Didn't mean any offense whatsoever. It is just my nature to explore apparent inconsistencies. Call it a character flaw. Just glad you're all better.
 
steingar said:
Didn't mean any offense whatsoever. It is just my nature to explore apparent inconsistencies. Call it a character flaw. Just glad you're all better.
Click to expand...

Its ok. No offense taken. There are some portions of that night that I've never publicly revealed (for good reason), and never will. Those things are also what guided some of my stupid decisions afterwards as well, but I've come to grips with them, and I still think everything worked out as good as it could have.

Please, though, lets go back to the original topic.
 
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