Very cool. I've always been impressed with those pilots. Particularly the one below. Bet they could do carrier ops from a pontoon boat in a farm pond.
How steep a bank would you guys say that is around 1:40 on the OP video?
Just curious.
Disagree that this can be done safely as is said in the video. You're limiting yourself to where you have very little, if any, room for mistakes or for anything to go wrong. I don't think that can be called safe.
It's very cool, practice and skill make it safer, and I have no issue with people doing it, but it's not safe under any reasonable definition of the word.
No argument. But to intentionally push the edges of the envelope and then try to call it safe, isn't logical. This type of flying by nature is unsafe. That's what makes it amazing. That's what makes it unusual. No amount of skill can make up for the fact that they are pushing it to the point where skill can't resolve a problem if it occurs. As they gain more skill, they find more challenges to remove the safety factor they've built up. It's a lot of things, but safe ain't one of 'em - by design.Flying single engine piston airplanes isn't "safe" to a lot of people. There is basically no safe or unsafe absolute. It's all a matter of likelihood and consequence. You know, risk management. We all assess the mission and make the call. He decides the risk/benefit decision is acceptable and goes and does it. I know I am not qualified to do it (despite the FAA thinking so!) but that's the way it works.