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  TeChNoWC
  October 11, 2006
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  any casualties?
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  GaryCGibson
  October 11, 2006
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  Some

  Initially, when I heard it was a Yankee's pilot, I wondered if he survived somehow being tossed into the building. The pilot was killed and at least one other. http://news.yahoo.com/fc/Business/Aviation_and_Aerospace/
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  Weydon
  October 11, 2006
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  He was with his flying instructor at the time. I doubt he was drunk. Unless that was a joke. In that case, that's very funny. Nice guy dies in tragic accident. Woo.
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  GaryCGibson
  October 12, 2006
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  Actually, its tragic

  Not funny at all, and I am suprised you would attempt to slime in such a callous way. At the time I wrote it wasn't known that he was flying with his instructor, and I did not write that he was drunk. Your comment is rather loosely put together. Drinking alcohol before operating a motor vehicle isn't too uncommon in the United States, and one may imbibe without being drunk...sometimes the line is fine. Even airline pilots occasionally cross the line. Mr. Lidle's instructor may have had one with him before flying, socially...who knows. At any rate it was only an initial conjecture to explain why a competent pilot would have bad enough judgement to crash into a 40 story apartment building. The question deepens with the fact now known that his instructor was aboard. Double pilot error should be more uncommon. Maybe it was mechanical malfunction, yet so far as is publicly known there wasn't a radio report of such. *** http://www.baseballmusings.com/archives/cat_deaths.php More reports indicated that Lidle had been a pilot for more than seven months at the time of the crash, and that Lidle said that the entire plane had a parachute on it. Reports also exist such that the airplane was trailing smoke and flying erraticly. At least it probably wasn't someone with a laser momentarily blinding the pilot. The last famous Yankee to die in a plane crash was the excellant catcher Thurmon Munson, who was reported to enjoy drinking. A talk radio guy who had been Wayne Newton's company President long ago said that when Munson was taking the black bag over the head instrument flight exam, he was the only one that had ever crashed the citation jet test...he'd been up drinking the night before. One would think Corrie Lidle could have afforded good enough air mechanics to avoid serious troubles aloft.
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  Weydon
  October 12, 2006
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  *Not funny at all, and I am suprised you would attempt to slime in such a callous way.* "In that case" operates under the impression you WERE doing what I suggested possible. If you weren't, it is not "in that case", and the what was said is irrelevent. Nothing sliming about that. *At the time I wrote it wasn’t known that he was flying with his instructor, and I did not write that he was drunk. Your comment is rather loosely put together.* "Perhaps the pilot had a drink or two before taking off?..."-You. Thanks for the heads up about alcohol causing vehicular accidents. You should alert the media. *More reports indicated that Lidle had been a pilot for more than seven months at the time of the crash, and that Lidle said that the entire plane had a parachute on it. Reports also exist such that the airplane was trailing smoke and flying erraticly.* That model of plane does have a parachute on it. He was attempting to leave airspace he wasn't supposed to be in and apparently had/caused mechanical issues during the attempt. Activating the parachute would have done nothing, even if it was still working. There's not a lot of room so if it was activated it would have maybe slowed him down a couple mph before crashing anyway. The parachute is for slowing descents in open areas--not for being breaks that stop on a dime and then glide you vertically to the ground. *One would think Corrie Lidle could have afforded good enough air mechanics to avoid serious troubles aloft* One would think major airlines have enough money to avoid serious troubles aloft, but there are occasional major accidents--and there's constantly minor ones.
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  GaryCGibson
  October 13, 2006
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  Below 1100 feet freedom to fly Manhattan

  Uncharted aircraft may buzz around Manhattan below this altitude...and that may account for why the crash could happen paradigmaticly. http://nymag.com/daily/politics/2006/10/lidle_tragedy_wakes_pataki_fro_1.html The privelaged often use helicopters to buzz from tower to tower without flight plan, and perhaps light aircraft for joyriding. This may change now as some seek to prevent terrorists from having the chance to load an anthrax bomb and buzz into broadway in a light aircraft. The article cited above wrote that Corrie Lidel may have made his biggest save though his personal loss.

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