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Photo Max Pfandl (CC BY 2.0)

During the afternoon of Saturday the 15th of September, the crew of an L-39 of the Breitling Jet Team ejected from its aircraft after developing mechanical trouble. The team was overflying the Netherlands on its way to a meeting in Belgium.

The two-man crew, composed of the pilot and a mechanic in the rear seat, escaped unharmed while the aircraft crashed in a field.

Source: Blog de Piloter Mag

Updated: the accident took place on Saturday, not Sunday.

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Jets racing at Reno (Photo Dylan Ashe (CC BY-SA 2.0))

Six aircraft that were intended to compete in the Reno Air Races’ Jet class have been banned from racing by the race officials after concerns about safety emerged.

This concerns mostly the Aero L-29 Delfin, five of which have been re-engined with Rolls-Royce Viper engines to compete with the more powerful L-39 Albatros. The sixth jet is a L-39 which is believed to have a substantially modified engine.

Concerns over the safety of these aircraft emerged earlier this year during the Pylon Racing Seminar held at Reno. The aircraft should be allowed to fly next year after these issues have been solved. Most of the pilots concerned have found stock replacement aircraft to race in.

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Photo (C) Chris Sandham-Bailey

More bad news for this week-end, but at least no deaths. If this goes on, I’ll have to consider renaming the blog warbird-crashes.com. A Fokker Dr.I replica nosed-over while taxiing at Duxford. Another Dr. I replica crash-landed after engine failure at the Geneseo Airshow (NY, USA) on Saturday July 9, the pilot escaping unharmed.  On the same day, a L-39C Albatros overshot the runway at Passaic County Airport (NJ, USA).

In Duxford, the mid-air collision between a Skyraider and a P-51 was not the  only incident this weekend, with a Fokker Dr.I replica nosing over during taxi. Fortunately, the pilot was unharmed and the aircraft did not suffer much damage. Many thanks to Chris Sandham-Bailey for sharing the picture.

At the Geneseo airshow, another Dr. I replica was damaged when its engine quit during a digfight representation. The pilot, 67 year-old Canadian resident Joseph Auger, tried to land the airplane in a corn field but flipped over. He was briefly trapped in the aircraft by his restraints but emerged and was treated on the spot by emergency services before being released.

A 1961 Beechcraft with four people on board stalled at 20 ft while landing at Geneseo. Emergency services sent two to the hospital for back and neck injuries. More info on the Geneseo Airshow incidents here (with a picture of the Dr. I).

Finally, an 1989 Aero L-39C Albatros overshot the runway at Passaic County Airport, NJ, and rolled over. The pilot received light injuries. Sources: (1) and (2).

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(Photo by Fabio)

A French Aero L-39 Albatros operated by “Les Ailes de Pégase” crash-landed in a forest Gironde, France, on Saturday April 30th. Both the pilot and passenger survived the crash landing and were evacuated to a nearby hospital. The reasons for the crash are yet unknown. The pilot is an experienced former French AF fighter pilot and the aircraft had just undergone major maintenance. The extense of the damage to the aircraft is unknown.

Sources:

• France 3

Update (May 13, 2011): the crash was due to engine seizure following an oil pump failure. The aircraft is a total loss but the association will continue its activites with a new L-39, scheduled to arrive soon.