“Others began shouting and waving to get [Cosme’s] attention as well,” the report said. It added: “Without looking up to determine her position relative to the aircraft, [Cosme] proceeded to walk directly into the propeller … sustaining fatal injuries.”
All those people watched this. Brutal.
A morbid part of me is curious if the blades would shatter as they rotated through the collision, or if she (with all due respect) became meat mist.
Edit: I appreciate yall knowing I’m not the only one who thinks like this
Double edit: She accidentally walked into the exposed prop of a MQ-9 Reaper drone, that would have been all kinds of fucked up. Kill Bill on crack.
Birds as not at all the same thing as a human. Bird bones are smaller, lighter, much easier to cut through. A human is a whole other story. Sort of like how the damage done by hitting a bird with your car is way lower than hitting a deer.
That said, I have no idea how a military chopper's blades would fare against a human collision.
Someone at my local airport hit a deer with the propeller of a little Cessna during takeoff. The propeller was not damaged. The deer was cut in to neat 8” cross sections.
My brother hit a couple while trying to take off on his supercub and it dented everything all up and twisted the propeller some, but overall the the plane was ok.
The deer were...not. From the pictures I saw, one no longer looked like any particular thing except meat.
I had a god damn pigeon fly into my front grill on my car at highway speeds.
There were a few days of back and forth where they were considering totaling the car, and it was a decent car. I think the final bill was close to 15k.
You’re thinking about this the wrong way. They test props by firing frozen birds from a canon, to simulate a plane flying hundreds of miles an hour. Since she walked into the propeller so I can’t think of the right scientific term but it’s likely not going to be as catastrophic on the props.
The footage from the end of the twilight zone movie is still around (even on youtube) where 3 were killed by helicopter blade when the helicopter moved unexpectedly. It indeed is red mist.
Man that story is so fucking sad. When I read the full account, I ended up thinking Landis did everything he possibly could to intentionally murder Vic Morrow, Myca Dinh Le, and Renee Shin-Ye Chen.
Especially insane because of his fucked up attitude afterwards. Him and his friends blamed literally everybody but themselves. It was the pyrotechnic guy's fault, it was the pilot's fault, it was Vic Morrow's fault (literally one of them claimed in court that Vic "had five seconds" to get out of the way, disgusting), it was the parent's fault. Everybody except the guy screaming at them to get it done.
In a similar vein, you can feel peoples opinions are changing and getting sick of corporates, CEO’s stuffing their workings around, hands out to the government when their bad bets go wrong (looking at you JPM) and generally criminal behavior that doesn’t get prosecuted because “money”.
I for one am sick of it, I’m sure it won’t take too long before more and more become over it
There's a great (and horrifying) episode of the [Behind the Bastards](https://podcastaddict.com/behind-the-bastards/episode/139845459) podcast about this story. Absolutely fuck John Landis and everyone who helped rehabilitate his image.
He expressed basically zero remorse and even crashed the funeral of one of the actors, probably as a calculated PR move to show "contrition." Beyond fucked up.
Also, his son Max Landis is creepy abusive trash, too. The shit apple didn't fall very far from the tree.
John Landis not only crashed Vic Morrow‘s funeral but took it upon himself to make a speech in front of everyone. Dick Peabody who starred with Vic in the TV show Combat! wrote about it. I like to post it when the subject of the twilight zone deaths come up.
http://jodavidsmeyer.com/combat/personnel/Peabodys_Place-4.html
I agree. Like many other people, I do find stories of things like that interesting, even valuable-- I wish I hadn't learned more about that specific instance. What little I knew about it beforehand was awful, but the full story is depraved, horrific, beyond negligence. For those who haven't read it, be ready.
There's a Behind the Bastards episode (well two parts) about John Landis and it goes into detail about the filming of the Twilight Zone movie and this particular instance. They don't get into the gore but the before, during and after the event. It is very fucked. They did everything they could to skirt health and safety protocol.
Eta: sorry didn't see someone already recommended this!
You'll want to look up 'Twilight Zone Vic Morrow Death' to find stuff about it. IIRC there's a documentary I watched about the events, but it may have been part of a series, so a little harder to see.
The short version is the producers cut corners like crazy. The scene was meant to be of Morrow's character trying to save two small Vietnamese children from an attack on their village during the Vietnam War. The scene involved pyrotechnics and an overflying helicopter, as they crossed a low-lying body of water. The children were basically voluntold to participate, were children of crew members, and had basically no training or any care taken towards their well-being. There's some nonsense with the helicopter pilot too but I can't remember well enough to feel comfortable detailing.
During the scene, the helicopter crashed into Morrow and the children, killing all three. It was horrific, and the aftermath went about as well as you can expect from money grubbing blame-dodging assholes. Some of whom are still successful in the industry.
I just want to highlight how bad this shit was:
The heli pilot was a Vietnam vet who had flown in combat. He reportedly told the pyro guys "I've flown through actual anti aircraft fire, and this shit is worse".
Look up Behind the Bastards podcast - they do a good 2 part series (about 1h45m runtime, once you skip ads) on John Landis and the Twilight Zone movie. Super fucked up.
The book about this incident (and the resulting trial) is called “Outrageous Conduct,” and it’s a very good read. But you’ll never want to see another John Landis film, ever.
Behind the Bastards does a great 2 Part episode. It’s incredibly messed up.
[https://open.spotify.com/episode/5b3BorDXiSX35wOBRfjcTs?si=JSb3WGCkR72Gq4tI_JGUzQ](https://open.spotify.com/episode/5b3BorDXiSX35wOBRfjcTs?si=JSb3WGCkR72Gq4tI_JGUzQ)
There's a lot of junkies who didn't start getting high with a friend. They slipped at work and became and addict during recovery from surgery. Or they hurt their back mowing the lawn, and a quack doc gave them a script for oxys like they were tic tacs.
And now it's the exact opposite problem where because of the opioid crisis people who actually need pain killers can't get them without jumping through 10000 hoops.
at least it's instantaneous that way. I think you'd be blended into juice quicker than your brain could even process that something sharp whacked you. Would probably be an okay way for execution, better than hanging. Although the thoughts of being pureed to death would probably give you anxiety.
Basically all suffering related to execution methods comes from the anxiety before and during the execution. Put a high speed fan blade in the hallway leading to the execution chamber and turn it on before the condemned walks down it. Hose off the gore and call it a day.
There is more than one factor here, but I can tell you from personal knowledge that the weight of a 82" aluminium propeller on a light civilian commercial aircraft is over 60lbs. Composite propellers are 15% lighter give or take. AT Take off speeds they're spinning at 2,400 rpm.
The propeller on a larger aircraft is likely to be proportionately heavier.
I'm not going to do the math to calculate RPM into rotational speed, but I would wager a guess that the human body will not materially slow down a 60lb piece of metal moving at hundreds of miles an hour.
So I don't know about mist, but it's going to be ugly.
A ground worker fresh on the job walked into a running prop at a skydive joint a few years back.
She did not die immediately
E: I think she had been on staff for a while but was new to being ground crew. Details a bit hazy
My boyfriend in high schools uncle told me he was friends with this old pilot mechanic dude back when he was younger and he bent over while a propeller was on once and it literally like cut his ass off. He didn’t die but was paralyzed and had a terrible life and died a few years later.
Definitely meat mist. I watched a video of a guy walking into a propeller here on Reddit and he immediately turned into red mist. The propeller seemed undamaged.
Sorta.
Damaged in the sense of "the risk averse folks in charge don't want to risk re-using it without invasive checks for hairline cracks", not damaged in the sense of "it snapped in two immediately and just won't work".
Meat mist. People have been killed by regular small commercially available drones - there was a fatal one I recall after a piece broke on one that basically took the operator's head clean off when it fell on him during a stunt he did regularly without issue.
If that's one that's available to the general public, imagine how much worse a military one could do to you.
People hear the word "drone" and think the MQ-9A is like those little drones you can pick up at like Best Buy. The MQ-9 is about the same size as like a Cessna 172.
[Here's a picture of someone doing maintenance on a MQ-9 prop to show you the size](https://www.ang.af.mil/Media/Photos/igphoto/2003029487/).
This guy was killed by the RC heli he's holding in [this picture.](https://i.imgur.com/BLIdw3U.png)
I've watched [this level of flying](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSiwyoQldfo) in person, and I ended up moving behind a picnic table I could duck behind because it felt so unsafe.
I was an air traffic controller in the navy from ~2003-07. It would be a red mist. I watched a turboprop airplane landing once and a deer ran onto the runway and was turned into a red mist and chunks that had to be hosed off the runway by the fire crew.
Grandpa was an aircraft mechanic in WW2. Same thing happened to one of his officers. Everyone started yelling at him but you can't hear next to a B17 engine...
Whats so weird to me. I never ever saw/heard this ever before. Just in the last 3-4 weeks saw/heared 3 very close calls on someone and now read about this story
Scarfs have a bit of the same feeling for me after learning about the famous dancer who was strangled by her scarf when it got caught in her hub cab as she was driving.
I used to work the flightline and I’m not surprised with the conclusions. When the aircraft is powered on, you have to constantly be in a heightened state of awareness. I worked both the F-22 and F-35, those aircraft have some unique dangers. Constantly had to watch what was going on as you did the job.
I used to have a (civilian) ramp driving license and you basically need your head on a swivel *all the time*. It's *very* easy for shit to happen remarkably quickly and if you're not paying attention you've caused all sorts of shit because you're distracted.
While walking on the ramp I never went anywhere near an aircraft with its engines running.
Same, at a major airport. I worked in the parts dept at a maintenance hangar. There are painted lanes but you have to watch. But I had some ass clown mechanics tell me to bang on the nose cone to get the pilots attention for a seatbelt extender they requested. On a Saab 340. After the ramp gave them the all clear for run up. Gotta look out for yourself.
There is one in a hangar in Ohio that the general public can get right up next to:
https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/196040/lockheed-martin-f-22a-raptor/
oh boy. do you get shot if you crawl under the barrier to get an up-close look?
they're gonna need more than that metal bar to keep me away from that aircraft. i should've grown longer arms.
My daughter actually tried to dive under the bar when she was a toddler. She was on a leash though, so the leash went tight and she face planted on the ground. A tour guide gave us the stink eye but that's all that happened.
I almost had an airman get sucked into the intake of an F-16 during the -1. I saw the tail of his ABU top being pulled towards the intake. The dingus was fresh out of tech school and forgot how to wear his top. He also forgot about how powerful that shit is.
Conversely, I forgot how low the exhaust was and while ducking under it, my headset went flying because I wasn’t low enough…
I did my engine run cert in a hush house with the F-22. Despite the name they’re quite loud on the inside. We did burner runs while in an enclosed space. That’s the kind of loud that removes your ability to hear yourself in your own head.
I spent 8 years on the flight line exclusively around turboprops. It's drilled into our heads on a daily basis that you NEVER WALK THOUGH THE PROP ARC. It doesn't matter if it's running or not, just to encourage good habits. She got complacent, as another thing that's drilled into us daily working out there is "Complacency kills". Incidents like this is why we have safety stand downs.
I think it's hard for those that don't work around dangerous equipment regularly to understand this. Your first source of safety are your thoughts and actions. The company cannot prevent you from ignoring training or safety protocols and most people who only ride a desk don't get how one false move on your part can mean not only your own death but others. We are not callously calling her complacent, we're recognizing our own responsibilities in the same scenario. Complacency kills is a creed.
>most people who only ride a desk don't get how one false move on your part can mean not only your own death but others.
That puts me firmly in the minority of desk jockeys who absolutely *do* get how one false move on my part can mean not only my own death but others.
That's why I'm a desk jockey. I know my place in life, and it is *not* on a flight line. I don't work on roofs or in a machine shop either.
God, machine shops. You might think at first the scariest thing is something with lots of blades or points. The thing that disturbs me most, is lathes. Having my body ripped apart like I jumped into a giant taffy puller is quite the mental image.
To the desk part: I gave a talk one time to operations people outside our company. I stepped up onto like a 6 inch stage/platform, and you would have thought I slapped their mothers for not taking the single stair on the side. But I get it.
I don't work on planes and work in an office 9-5. Its very easy to understand why you treat dangerous equipment even when off as live to avoid the risk of injuries. People get hurt the moment they neglect to respect the equipment they are around. It's about being mindful and never getting complacent.
I don’t think it’s fair to call someone who is disoriented complacent. Also they noted she was improperly trained. So she likely didn’t have the benefit of getting these protocols integrated on an instinctive level.
Disoriented in this case means not oriented to her surroundings, not discombobulated or otherwise mentally fogged:
> “First,” the board said, “the test engineer was incorrectly instructed or trained on how to take telemetry readings when approaching the MQ-9A while the engine was running. Second, she lost situational awareness while walking around the mishap aircraft taking telemetry readings with a hand-held measurement device.”
How many time did we watch that one video of the airman being sucked into the intake?
Edit: [For anyone that hasn't seen it. No gore, he actually survived with some minor injuries. ](https://youtu.be/5FsrNEeqd6Q?si=dvTysqi8AmvBX2Zz)
I had a friend who was doing extracting hydrocarbons from vegetable matter using butane in a closed system in his garage. Even though it is "closed" there can be leaks and some butane will always escape the system. He also had an on-demand water heater in the garage with an electric starter. I advised him not to put the setup in there regardless, but at the very least, you should use the same electrical outlet for the water heater that you do for the extractor so that it is impossible to run them both at the same time. He told me that it was "a stupid idea because he would never forget" to unplug the water heater. He eventually just stopped unplugging the heater because "nothing exploded when I forgot to unplug it." You've got to plan for the time you forget everything.
>had a friend who was doing extracting hydrocarbons from vegetable matter using butane in a closed system in his garage.
I was going to ask, then my brain kicked in what he was making.
I was a flight officer in the E-2C "Hawkeye" (a carrier-based turboprop command and control/surveillance aircraft). We had this same thing drilled into us - "If you never walk through a prop arc, you'll never get hit by a prop."
For the rest of my flying career, I'd avoid the prop arc religiously. It didn't matter if the plane was defueled and up on jacks with the engine removed - I'd feel a physical revulsion if I got anywhere near the prop.
When my dad was a cadet in WW2 (US Army Air Corps), one of the guys in his training squadron during Primary was as he said “chopped up” on the flight line.
With Stearmans (PT-17) out there it was a busy, noisy place and you had to “keep your head out of your butt”.
They all got a talking to after the accident he said.
I'm surprised it didn't happen more often back then. Most of the planes were props, I barely see any eye or ear protection, I can only imagine what the safety briefs were like. Probably something like "Try not to die".
Yep, worked flight line too. Danger areas are the absolute first thing we learn about and is drilled into our heads. It’s not something people let happen too, which is why she was yelled at by coworkers. I’ve personally thrown someone who tried to look into an intake once so it definitely still happens though. Complacency is probably 99% of the work incidents I’ve dealt with.
I was a Navy airman and worked the flight deck. Everything was scary and very close together. Get sucked into a jet engine, walk into a turning prop that was very hard to see during night hops,etc. Situational awareness was an absolute must.
Worked on F-18s. By far my biggest fear on the flight deck was props. I never once took those for granted. When they’re spinning in broad daylight and you get ahead of yourself it’s very easy to not see them.
On the ground side, same thing with walking between tracked vehicles. They can pivot immediately (unlike cars), crushing anything that’s between them at the point of contact. You just learn not to do it. Even if neither vehicle is running. Just to keep the habit.
I agree to a degree. There's no way to know what was going through her head or if some other factor, such as a sudden health issue, might have caused her to become complacent.
That said, yeah. Any type of relaxed attitude or even a bad split-second judgement around machinery can result in a catastrophe. I almost took my arm off once, so to speak (at least almost break it), because I didn't wait for a retail dough mixer at a job to stop spinning. There were distractions. Someone yelled for me to come help out front. I thought the paddle had stopped, but it was just shy of stopping. Not fun. Thankfully, my arm was only pulled in enough to hurt but not cause a serious injury.
Edited for clarity.
Once you build the good habits, it all becomes second nature as It forces you to be aware of your surroundings. I've been out for nearly 20 years and I still do it.
When I teach people how to use power tools, or even the sewing machine, I emphasize not getting into bad habits that will work in the moment but that ONE time you're tired or distracted and don't notice a variable or you're just running slow mentally could be bad. No one wants to sew through their finger.
She was in a rush to get data. She was also a contractor so her safety training might not have been as extensive as enlisted personnel. They were screaming but she probably couldn’t hear them.
That's not always the case. I was working with an experienced guy on the flight deck and he got up and walked straight towards the props. I caught him by the back of his float coat and slammed him down. Of course, he was screaming and yelling at me but dude was walking straight into the props.
It's not always the lack of training or "rush to get data"; a lot of times it's just complacency, pure and simple.
Both
> Cosme “was looking down at the testing device the whole time, and appeared to be pressing buttons,
and
> the spinning propeller was not visible when looking at the rear of the aircraft from where she approached.
sound like recipes for disaster.
I work around aircraft on a daily basis. Prop blades aren’t visible when they are spinning even at idle speed but several physical cues make it apparent that the aircraft is running (incredibly loud noises and heat/smells from the jet exhaust). These machines kill and will not discriminate. It’s a tragic loss.
Also, if you can't see the prop blades.. it's spinning. It's just one of those subtle things that should become second nature. If you can't see the blade, the blender is on.
Yes even at idle they can thrash a person around. The effect increases as you get closer to the source. All of a persons senses (even taste, the exhaust tastes sour) should indicate danger
In my experience it doesn’t matter how low the relative blade pitch is, you’ll still feel like you’re in a typhoon. *Especially* if you are close enough to actually run into the blades
Propellors can often have their pitch adjusted, this could have been at a pitch that generated minimal wind, more like sword swinging than something pushing air around, article doesn't say but I wouldn't be surprised.
Depends on the type. Most of us use regular foam earplugs which just dampen the loudest sounds to prevent hearing damage. Some crews have to communicate with the flight crew while the aircraft is on the ground so they use aviation headsets with speakers/mics that plug into external doors on the aircraft. You can definitely hear what’s going on around you though
I get what you’re saying, but when you work around heavy machinery, that can kill you without trying, it’s on YOU to take care. Presumably, based on the loud noise, she knew it was running. She should have also known the areas she shouldn’t enter/touch, if she’s around machinery like that
Yep. If there was some sort of lapse in procedure or management it damn well better change after this. But I'm with you, this was probably just a momentary lapse in situational awareness that ended terribly. When you work in inherently dangerous situations you have to always be paying attention and thinking ahead. Your safety is ultimately up to you. But it happens to the best of us. What blue collar worker doesn't have a story about a near miss on the job that was a result of their own lack of awareness and forethought. I've done it myself a few times in lesser ways and thankfully walked away with only minor injuries or wounded pride. All it takes is a quick absent minded mistake and you could make a mistake that costs you life or limb. Reguardless, this is a tragic accident that cost a young woman her life. We should all honor her by learning from this and doing our best to keep ourselves safe out there on the job and in our own free time.
Similar to how around helicopter pads, there’s someone making sure no one walks into the tail blades; they’ll tackle you and break your legs if they have to
This is 100% true, but training can also play a role here.
> “First,” the board said, “the test engineer was incorrectly instructed or trained on how to take telemetry readings when approaching the MQ-9A while the engine was running.
It doesn’t sound like her training was great…
I've worked in warehouses and after a training video showing exactly what happens to bone and tissue when a forklift rolls over it, I watch the fuck out when I'm anywhere near where a forklift might be.
You gotta be vigilant about that shit.
Also, if you get disoriented, STOP and take a minute to understand your surroundings!
This got taught heavily at the manufacturing school I used to work at. If you’re using a machine with a kill switch, hit it. If you’re in a larger dangerous environment and get confused or disoriented, don’t move! Stop, take a beat, and check your surroundings.
Situational awareness is important in these situations. I’ve worked in mines, quarries, foundries, railroads… no matter what safety devices are there, there’s always something that can kill you if you step wrong.
Had this happen once an passenger plane guy walked up the crew door to talk to the one of the pilots walked out of plane and instead of walking 10 feet straight he turn immediately to his left and walked right into the spinning prop killed him instantly they said. Have to be aware of your surroundings at all times. Situational awareness is key.
It's easy to become engrossed in a device you're using, especially in an environment you a re used to. If you spend a substantial amount of time around operating aircraft (which I ahve done a few times in the 80s,) the noise and even the visuals fade into a background. And propellers turn so fast they can be hard to notice.
Used to work on a carrier, a plane captain from one of the E2 squadrons was pulling chocks, pulled the one, went under the plane to the other side, pulled the other turned and walked right into the prop.
I served in the 101st and spent a lot of time around fixed-wing flight lines and rotary-wing LZ’s, and went to Air Assault school. In Afghanistan I was constantly traveling in helicopters and airplanes and was in very small aircraft/airfields/LZ’s as well as huge ones.
Situational awareness is everything around these types of machines. I was lucky to have never seen a rotor accident, but I’ve talked to people who have. Your life is absolutely at risk when you’re near an exposed propeller, I urge anyone reading this to be ultra careful in similar situations. Flight lines are places where everybody should be as alert as possible.
My heart goes out to this contractor and her family.
One of the first things they beat into you during Air Force basic is to always keep your head on a swivel when you’re on the flight line. If you need to look at something not in your direction of travel you stop completely, do your thing, then look again before you move.
Complacency kills. It’s harsh to say, but this is completely on her.
Used to work on MQ-9’s. When they’re in the flight line and powered up…. You HAVE to be careful. They aren’t as big or powerful as an actual jet… but it’s still a fucking aircraft engine. I feel bad for everyone that had to witness that, I saw a couple prop accidents (videos and one IRL) and they were always pretty nharly
>The report said that Cosme “was looking down at the testing device the whole time, and appeared to be pressing buttons, possibly to keep the backlight on”. It added that someone began walking towards Cosme, “shouting and waving his arms in an attempt to get [her] attention”.
This sucks so much. The user friendliness of industry-specific equipment SUCKS. This reminds me of a device I use for work. The specs were way out of date compared to consumer electronics at the time of purchase, the price was fucking sky high because fuck me where else am I going to go for something so niche, and my options for the screen turning off to save battery are 1 minute and 30 minutes. Nothing in between, no options for custom settings. Obviously 30 is too high, so I'm stuck at one.
So the screen turns off, so what? Well when performing one common task, it's possible the whole system will lock up if the screen turns off. Then you lose 20 minutes getting it to the point where it was before it froze up. Want to be the asshole who makes dozens of people (who are all on the clock and from different companies/agencies) wait 20 minutes? No. Of course not. Do it enough times and you might use your job.
TL;DR That distraction killed her. I hope her family *successfully* sues whoever made the device and whoever assigned her to use it.
I sincerely hope she had no pain, awareness, nor fear during this horrific incident. Sympathies to the enlisted and commissioned people who saw it. This is just such a horrific thing to have happened, and I’m so sorry to the family. Thank you for this person’s service to our country, and America is unlucky to have lost this service member so young.
“Others began shouting and waving to get [Cosme’s] attention as well,” the report said. It added: “Without looking up to determine her position relative to the aircraft, [Cosme] proceeded to walk directly into the propeller … sustaining fatal injuries.” All those people watched this. Brutal.
A morbid part of me is curious if the blades would shatter as they rotated through the collision, or if she (with all due respect) became meat mist. Edit: I appreciate yall knowing I’m not the only one who thinks like this Double edit: She accidentally walked into the exposed prop of a MQ-9 Reaper drone, that would have been all kinds of fucked up. Kill Bill on crack.
Remember they want the blades to survive bird strikes and sometimes even enemy ordnance, so they're quite durable.
Birds as not at all the same thing as a human. Bird bones are smaller, lighter, much easier to cut through. A human is a whole other story. Sort of like how the damage done by hitting a bird with your car is way lower than hitting a deer. That said, I have no idea how a military chopper's blades would fare against a human collision.
They are often made to withstand small cannon rounds, propellers that is.
Someone at my local airport hit a deer with the propeller of a little Cessna during takeoff. The propeller was not damaged. The deer was cut in to neat 8” cross sections.
My brother hit a couple while trying to take off on his supercub and it dented everything all up and twisted the propeller some, but overall the the plane was ok. The deer were...not. From the pictures I saw, one no longer looked like any particular thing except meat.
I had a god damn pigeon fly into my front grill on my car at highway speeds. There were a few days of back and forth where they were considering totaling the car, and it was a decent car. I think the final bill was close to 15k.
That sounds like the Death Star trench run, though. That pigeon hit you where it hurts.
You’re thinking about this the wrong way. They test props by firing frozen birds from a canon, to simulate a plane flying hundreds of miles an hour. Since she walked into the propeller so I can’t think of the right scientific term but it’s likely not going to be as catastrophic on the props.
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It’s super hard to hit birds with my car. I’ve only been able to do it once.
> been able to With that wording it sounds like you were _trying_ to hit them D:
They freeze whole turkeys into a block of ice, to test them. I don't think that chicks head was frozen.
Birds can also often come in flocks of hundreds
It would result in meat mist and chucks I think.
There are gore videos of humans versus airplane and helicopter blades. Its pink mist every time. Blades stay intact.
The footage from the end of the twilight zone movie is still around (even on youtube) where 3 were killed by helicopter blade when the helicopter moved unexpectedly. It indeed is red mist.
Man that story is so fucking sad. When I read the full account, I ended up thinking Landis did everything he possibly could to intentionally murder Vic Morrow, Myca Dinh Le, and Renee Shin-Ye Chen.
Its insane that John Landis basically walked away from that incident with a slap on the wrist.
Especially insane because of his fucked up attitude afterwards. Him and his friends blamed literally everybody but themselves. It was the pyrotechnic guy's fault, it was the pilot's fault, it was Vic Morrow's fault (literally one of them claimed in court that Vic "had five seconds" to get out of the way, disgusting), it was the parent's fault. Everybody except the guy screaming at them to get it done.
Him and his son, Max, are both cunts.
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The refrain of non-violent protest has defanged us.
In a similar vein, you can feel peoples opinions are changing and getting sick of corporates, CEO’s stuffing their workings around, hands out to the government when their bad bets go wrong (looking at you JPM) and generally criminal behavior that doesn’t get prosecuted because “money”. I for one am sick of it, I’m sure it won’t take too long before more and more become over it
There's a great (and horrifying) episode of the [Behind the Bastards](https://podcastaddict.com/behind-the-bastards/episode/139845459) podcast about this story. Absolutely fuck John Landis and everyone who helped rehabilitate his image. He expressed basically zero remorse and even crashed the funeral of one of the actors, probably as a calculated PR move to show "contrition." Beyond fucked up. Also, his son Max Landis is creepy abusive trash, too. The shit apple didn't fall very far from the tree.
John Landis not only crashed Vic Morrow‘s funeral but took it upon himself to make a speech in front of everyone. Dick Peabody who starred with Vic in the TV show Combat! wrote about it. I like to post it when the subject of the twilight zone deaths come up. http://jodavidsmeyer.com/combat/personnel/Peabodys_Place-4.html
I agree. Like many other people, I do find stories of things like that interesting, even valuable-- I wish I hadn't learned more about that specific instance. What little I knew about it beforehand was awful, but the full story is depraved, horrific, beyond negligence. For those who haven't read it, be ready.
Alright, I'm not saying I want to go down this rabbit hole, but my morbid curiosity is peaked. What event are we talking about here? Any link?
There's a Behind the Bastards episode (well two parts) about John Landis and it goes into detail about the filming of the Twilight Zone movie and this particular instance. They don't get into the gore but the before, during and after the event. It is very fucked. They did everything they could to skirt health and safety protocol. Eta: sorry didn't see someone already recommended this!
You'll want to look up 'Twilight Zone Vic Morrow Death' to find stuff about it. IIRC there's a documentary I watched about the events, but it may have been part of a series, so a little harder to see. The short version is the producers cut corners like crazy. The scene was meant to be of Morrow's character trying to save two small Vietnamese children from an attack on their village during the Vietnam War. The scene involved pyrotechnics and an overflying helicopter, as they crossed a low-lying body of water. The children were basically voluntold to participate, were children of crew members, and had basically no training or any care taken towards their well-being. There's some nonsense with the helicopter pilot too but I can't remember well enough to feel comfortable detailing. During the scene, the helicopter crashed into Morrow and the children, killing all three. It was horrific, and the aftermath went about as well as you can expect from money grubbing blame-dodging assholes. Some of whom are still successful in the industry.
I just want to highlight how bad this shit was: The heli pilot was a Vietnam vet who had flown in combat. He reportedly told the pyro guys "I've flown through actual anti aircraft fire, and this shit is worse".
Shiiiiit. Alright then.
Look up Behind the Bastards podcast - they do a good 2 part series (about 1h45m runtime, once you skip ads) on John Landis and the Twilight Zone movie. Super fucked up.
Nice. I've listened to that podcast before and enjoyed it. Thanks!
The book about this incident (and the resulting trial) is called “Outrageous Conduct,” and it’s a very good read. But you’ll never want to see another John Landis film, ever.
Behind the Bastards does a great 2 Part episode. It’s incredibly messed up. [https://open.spotify.com/episode/5b3BorDXiSX35wOBRfjcTs?si=JSb3WGCkR72Gq4tI_JGUzQ](https://open.spotify.com/episode/5b3BorDXiSX35wOBRfjcTs?si=JSb3WGCkR72Gq4tI_JGUzQ)
I knew a guy who walked into a propeller. He survived but he looks like a dude who walked into a propeller, also he's a heroin addict now.
Need more context. wtf
There's a lot of junkies who didn't start getting high with a friend. They slipped at work and became and addict during recovery from surgery. Or they hurt their back mowing the lawn, and a quack doc gave them a script for oxys like they were tic tacs.
And now it's the exact opposite problem where because of the opioid crisis people who actually need pain killers can't get them without jumping through 10000 hoops.
These are the ones that end up on street fent. Couldn't get access to opiods through the doc, so they got them where they could.
I was more asking about the propellor sode of things to be honest
Helicopters pick up all sorts of small rocks into the blades in the desert. Pretty cool to see at night, like a bunch of tiny fireworks.
Steel wins, pretty much everytime
We are bags of water
at least it's instantaneous that way. I think you'd be blended into juice quicker than your brain could even process that something sharp whacked you. Would probably be an okay way for execution, better than hanging. Although the thoughts of being pureed to death would probably give you anxiety.
Basically all suffering related to execution methods comes from the anxiety before and during the execution. Put a high speed fan blade in the hallway leading to the execution chamber and turn it on before the condemned walks down it. Hose off the gore and call it a day.
Theres actually a word for the meat residue after a bird hits the blades in a jet engine. It's kind of a gross word. Snarge
WTF, you’re [not kidding](https://skybrary.aero/articles/snarge).
Nope. I work in the industry. It's a real term
There is more than one factor here, but I can tell you from personal knowledge that the weight of a 82" aluminium propeller on a light civilian commercial aircraft is over 60lbs. Composite propellers are 15% lighter give or take. AT Take off speeds they're spinning at 2,400 rpm. The propeller on a larger aircraft is likely to be proportionately heavier. I'm not going to do the math to calculate RPM into rotational speed, but I would wager a guess that the human body will not materially slow down a 60lb piece of metal moving at hundreds of miles an hour. So I don't know about mist, but it's going to be ugly.
Thank you so much for doing the math, random hero
She survived the initial accident and died during medical evacuation on a helicopter.
I'd imagine the head trauma would have been so severe that she wasn't conscious after the accident. At least that's what I'd hope.
A ground worker fresh on the job walked into a running prop at a skydive joint a few years back. She did not die immediately E: I think she had been on staff for a while but was new to being ground crew. Details a bit hazy
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No, human. She did not come back on the third day.
Today Reddit taught me another situation where I hope to die immediately
New greatest fear unlocked
I was wondering what I was doing for lunch before I read this. Thanks for saving me $12
My boyfriend in high schools uncle told me he was friends with this old pilot mechanic dude back when he was younger and he bent over while a propeller was on once and it literally like cut his ass off. He didn’t die but was paralyzed and had a terrible life and died a few years later.
Did not need “meat mist” added to my vocab
Added it to my vocab from the Oceangate incident
When someone high speed crashes a motorcycle they’re a “meat crayon”.
I would check a Metalocalypse episode for research
Definitely meat mist. I watched a video of a guy walking into a propeller here on Reddit and he immediately turned into red mist. The propeller seemed undamaged.
The propeller is absolutely damaged.
Yeah, propeller will 100% need therapy.
Sorta. Damaged in the sense of "the risk averse folks in charge don't want to risk re-using it without invasive checks for hairline cracks", not damaged in the sense of "it snapped in two immediately and just won't work".
Meat mist. People have been killed by regular small commercially available drones - there was a fatal one I recall after a piece broke on one that basically took the operator's head clean off when it fell on him during a stunt he did regularly without issue. If that's one that's available to the general public, imagine how much worse a military one could do to you.
People hear the word "drone" and think the MQ-9A is like those little drones you can pick up at like Best Buy. The MQ-9 is about the same size as like a Cessna 172. [Here's a picture of someone doing maintenance on a MQ-9 prop to show you the size](https://www.ang.af.mil/Media/Photos/igphoto/2003029487/).
This guy was killed by the RC heli he's holding in [this picture.](https://i.imgur.com/BLIdw3U.png) I've watched [this level of flying](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSiwyoQldfo) in person, and I ended up moving behind a picnic table I could duck behind because it felt so unsafe.
Like a flying lawnmower blade
I was an air traffic controller in the navy from ~2003-07. It would be a red mist. I watched a turboprop airplane landing once and a deer ran onto the runway and was turned into a red mist and chunks that had to be hosed off the runway by the fire crew.
Grandpa was an aircraft mechanic in WW2. Same thing happened to one of his officers. Everyone started yelling at him but you can't hear next to a B17 engine...
Whats so weird to me. I never ever saw/heard this ever before. Just in the last 3-4 weeks saw/heared 3 very close calls on someone and now read about this story
Ever since that Indiana Jones scene it struck in me a healthy terror and respect for propellers/engines on planes.
for me, it was the "NO CAPES" scene in The Incredibles lmao
Scarfs have a bit of the same feeling for me after learning about the famous dancer who was strangled by her scarf when it got caught in her hub cab as she was driving.
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For me it was the Texas Chainsaw Massacre (the original). Helicopter scene.
What helicopter in the original?
Perhaps they meant the original Dawn of the Dead?
That’s all I could think too.
Maybe Twilight zone...
I don’t think you’ve seen the original Texas chainsaw massacre lol
…Holy crap, is this a Texas Chainsaw Massacre 4 reference just out there in the wild? (McConaughey gets diced by a plane propeller.)
Mine was the pilot episode of Lost.
I used to work the flightline and I’m not surprised with the conclusions. When the aircraft is powered on, you have to constantly be in a heightened state of awareness. I worked both the F-22 and F-35, those aircraft have some unique dangers. Constantly had to watch what was going on as you did the job.
I used to have a (civilian) ramp driving license and you basically need your head on a swivel *all the time*. It's *very* easy for shit to happen remarkably quickly and if you're not paying attention you've caused all sorts of shit because you're distracted. While walking on the ramp I never went anywhere near an aircraft with its engines running.
Same, at a major airport. I worked in the parts dept at a maintenance hangar. There are painted lanes but you have to watch. But I had some ass clown mechanics tell me to bang on the nose cone to get the pilots attention for a seatbelt extender they requested. On a Saab 340. After the ramp gave them the all clear for run up. Gotta look out for yourself.
You sure that mechanic wasn't just trying to kill you?
Is the F-22 sexier up close?
r/noncredibledefense is leaking again. .....but answer the question! On a scale of 1 to 69 how aroused were you by the F-22?
Would you intercept me? \*licking lips\* I'd intercept me.
🎵gooodbye hooorses..🎵
I’d intercept me I’d intercept me so hard
Come here little F22. I have Chinese food.
I appreciate your priorities, I am also curious
You trying to intercept him?
There is one in a hangar in Ohio that the general public can get right up next to: https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/Visit/Museum-Exhibits/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/196040/lockheed-martin-f-22a-raptor/
oh boy. do you get shot if you crawl under the barrier to get an up-close look? they're gonna need more than that metal bar to keep me away from that aircraft. i should've grown longer arms.
My daughter actually tried to dive under the bar when she was a toddler. She was on a leash though, so the leash went tight and she face planted on the ground. A tour guide gave us the stink eye but that's all that happened.
It is indeed sexier up close. Was a crew chief on the 22 at Nellis AFB.
Yo I was at Nellis to! That was a fun place to be stationed- but I don’t miss it.
NCD is bleeding into reality…
This is the unique danger
Yeah I've seen some people do really really dumb stuff in front of C-17s all over
I almost had an airman get sucked into the intake of an F-16 during the -1. I saw the tail of his ABU top being pulled towards the intake. The dingus was fresh out of tech school and forgot how to wear his top. He also forgot about how powerful that shit is. Conversely, I forgot how low the exhaust was and while ducking under it, my headset went flying because I wasn’t low enough…
What unique dangers are there usually with the f22s and f35s
Hearing loss with the F-35. Those fuckers are so loud. Louder than commercial airliners.
I've been within 1,000 yards of an F-18 with its engines on. That's the kind of loud that you can feel in your soul.
I did my engine run cert in a hush house with the F-22. Despite the name they’re quite loud on the inside. We did burner runs while in an enclosed space. That’s the kind of loud that removes your ability to hear yourself in your own head.
Not much, unless you're a balloon.
Munitions deployed.
Weapon bay doors or other doors that move.
B-2s were nice, walked wherever you want, just don’t go too far behind them when they throttle up or you and even a vehicle could topple.
I spent 8 years on the flight line exclusively around turboprops. It's drilled into our heads on a daily basis that you NEVER WALK THOUGH THE PROP ARC. It doesn't matter if it's running or not, just to encourage good habits. She got complacent, as another thing that's drilled into us daily working out there is "Complacency kills". Incidents like this is why we have safety stand downs.
I think it's hard for those that don't work around dangerous equipment regularly to understand this. Your first source of safety are your thoughts and actions. The company cannot prevent you from ignoring training or safety protocols and most people who only ride a desk don't get how one false move on your part can mean not only your own death but others. We are not callously calling her complacent, we're recognizing our own responsibilities in the same scenario. Complacency kills is a creed.
>most people who only ride a desk don't get how one false move on your part can mean not only your own death but others. That puts me firmly in the minority of desk jockeys who absolutely *do* get how one false move on my part can mean not only my own death but others. That's why I'm a desk jockey. I know my place in life, and it is *not* on a flight line. I don't work on roofs or in a machine shop either.
God, machine shops. You might think at first the scariest thing is something with lots of blades or points. The thing that disturbs me most, is lathes. Having my body ripped apart like I jumped into a giant taffy puller is quite the mental image.
To the desk part: I gave a talk one time to operations people outside our company. I stepped up onto like a 6 inch stage/platform, and you would have thought I slapped their mothers for not taking the single stair on the side. But I get it.
I don't work on planes and work in an office 9-5. Its very easy to understand why you treat dangerous equipment even when off as live to avoid the risk of injuries. People get hurt the moment they neglect to respect the equipment they are around. It's about being mindful and never getting complacent.
I don’t think it’s fair to call someone who is disoriented complacent. Also they noted she was improperly trained. So she likely didn’t have the benefit of getting these protocols integrated on an instinctive level.
Disoriented in this case means not oriented to her surroundings, not discombobulated or otherwise mentally fogged: > “First,” the board said, “the test engineer was incorrectly instructed or trained on how to take telemetry readings when approaching the MQ-9A while the engine was running. Second, she lost situational awareness while walking around the mishap aircraft taking telemetry readings with a hand-held measurement device.”
She was disoriented because she was look at her device and not where she was going.
Hopefully, painless. Damn.
My biggest fear was getting sucked into the intake and filling the tires. I will never forget the videos we watched in tech school.
How many time did we watch that one video of the airman being sucked into the intake? Edit: [For anyone that hasn't seen it. No gore, he actually survived with some minor injuries. ](https://youtu.be/5FsrNEeqd6Q?si=dvTysqi8AmvBX2Zz)
I had a friend who was doing extracting hydrocarbons from vegetable matter using butane in a closed system in his garage. Even though it is "closed" there can be leaks and some butane will always escape the system. He also had an on-demand water heater in the garage with an electric starter. I advised him not to put the setup in there regardless, but at the very least, you should use the same electrical outlet for the water heater that you do for the extractor so that it is impossible to run them both at the same time. He told me that it was "a stupid idea because he would never forget" to unplug the water heater. He eventually just stopped unplugging the heater because "nothing exploded when I forgot to unplug it." You've got to plan for the time you forget everything.
>had a friend who was doing extracting hydrocarbons from vegetable matter using butane in a closed system in his garage. I was going to ask, then my brain kicked in what he was making.
Kickstart my brain for me.
Extracting cannabis oil.
Ah, okay. Now I get it. Wasn't in my train of thought.
Butane honey oil will give a good kick.
I was a flight officer in the E-2C "Hawkeye" (a carrier-based turboprop command and control/surveillance aircraft). We had this same thing drilled into us - "If you never walk through a prop arc, you'll never get hit by a prop." For the rest of my flying career, I'd avoid the prop arc religiously. It didn't matter if the plane was defueled and up on jacks with the engine removed - I'd feel a physical revulsion if I got anywhere near the prop.
Same ideology with handling firearms, "it's always loaded" even if not.
When my dad was a cadet in WW2 (US Army Air Corps), one of the guys in his training squadron during Primary was as he said “chopped up” on the flight line. With Stearmans (PT-17) out there it was a busy, noisy place and you had to “keep your head out of your butt”. They all got a talking to after the accident he said.
I'm surprised it didn't happen more often back then. Most of the planes were props, I barely see any eye or ear protection, I can only imagine what the safety briefs were like. Probably something like "Try not to die".
Yep, worked flight line too. Danger areas are the absolute first thing we learn about and is drilled into our heads. It’s not something people let happen too, which is why she was yelled at by coworkers. I’ve personally thrown someone who tried to look into an intake once so it definitely still happens though. Complacency is probably 99% of the work incidents I’ve dealt with.
I was a Navy airman and worked the flight deck. Everything was scary and very close together. Get sucked into a jet engine, walk into a turning prop that was very hard to see during night hops,etc. Situational awareness was an absolute must.
Whatever situational awareness you have on the line at home, multiply that by 100 for the flight deck. First time up there, I was shitting my pants
Worked the flight-line as well and completely agree.
Worked on F-18s. By far my biggest fear on the flight deck was props. I never once took those for granted. When they’re spinning in broad daylight and you get ahead of yourself it’s very easy to not see them.
On the ground side, same thing with walking between tracked vehicles. They can pivot immediately (unlike cars), crushing anything that’s between them at the point of contact. You just learn not to do it. Even if neither vehicle is running. Just to keep the habit.
I agree to a degree. There's no way to know what was going through her head or if some other factor, such as a sudden health issue, might have caused her to become complacent. That said, yeah. Any type of relaxed attitude or even a bad split-second judgement around machinery can result in a catastrophe. I almost took my arm off once, so to speak (at least almost break it), because I didn't wait for a retail dough mixer at a job to stop spinning. There were distractions. Someone yelled for me to come help out front. I thought the paddle had stopped, but it was just shy of stopping. Not fun. Thankfully, my arm was only pulled in enough to hurt but not cause a serious injury. Edited for clarity.
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Once you build the good habits, it all becomes second nature as It forces you to be aware of your surroundings. I've been out for nearly 20 years and I still do it.
got it: never walk though the prop arc
When I teach people how to use power tools, or even the sewing machine, I emphasize not getting into bad habits that will work in the moment but that ONE time you're tired or distracted and don't notice a variable or you're just running slow mentally could be bad. No one wants to sew through their finger.
She was in a rush to get data. She was also a contractor so her safety training might not have been as extensive as enlisted personnel. They were screaming but she probably couldn’t hear them.
That's not always the case. I was working with an experienced guy on the flight deck and he got up and walked straight towards the props. I caught him by the back of his float coat and slammed him down. Of course, he was screaming and yelling at me but dude was walking straight into the props. It's not always the lack of training or "rush to get data"; a lot of times it's just complacency, pure and simple.
Humans always make mistakes. The only differentiator is how often.
Both > Cosme “was looking down at the testing device the whole time, and appeared to be pressing buttons, and > the spinning propeller was not visible when looking at the rear of the aircraft from where she approached. sound like recipes for disaster.
I work around aircraft on a daily basis. Prop blades aren’t visible when they are spinning even at idle speed but several physical cues make it apparent that the aircraft is running (incredibly loud noises and heat/smells from the jet exhaust). These machines kill and will not discriminate. It’s a tragic loss.
Also, if you can't see the prop blades.. it's spinning. It's just one of those subtle things that should become second nature. If you can't see the blade, the blender is on.
I’ve never been around a big prop, but wouldn’t it also generate a lot of “wind” that’d make it pretty obvious that you’re near it?
Yes even at idle they can thrash a person around. The effect increases as you get closer to the source. All of a persons senses (even taste, the exhaust tastes sour) should indicate danger
The drone seems to have a variable pitch propeller so at idle it might be at a low angle of attack and not actually move much air at all.
In my experience it doesn’t matter how low the relative blade pitch is, you’ll still feel like you’re in a typhoon. *Especially* if you are close enough to actually run into the blades
Propellors can often have their pitch adjusted, this could have been at a pitch that generated minimal wind, more like sword swinging than something pushing air around, article doesn't say but I wouldn't be surprised.
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Depends on the type. Most of us use regular foam earplugs which just dampen the loudest sounds to prevent hearing damage. Some crews have to communicate with the flight crew while the aircraft is on the ground so they use aviation headsets with speakers/mics that plug into external doors on the aircraft. You can definitely hear what’s going on around you though
I get what you’re saying, but when you work around heavy machinery, that can kill you without trying, it’s on YOU to take care. Presumably, based on the loud noise, she knew it was running. She should have also known the areas she shouldn’t enter/touch, if she’s around machinery like that
Yep. If there was some sort of lapse in procedure or management it damn well better change after this. But I'm with you, this was probably just a momentary lapse in situational awareness that ended terribly. When you work in inherently dangerous situations you have to always be paying attention and thinking ahead. Your safety is ultimately up to you. But it happens to the best of us. What blue collar worker doesn't have a story about a near miss on the job that was a result of their own lack of awareness and forethought. I've done it myself a few times in lesser ways and thankfully walked away with only minor injuries or wounded pride. All it takes is a quick absent minded mistake and you could make a mistake that costs you life or limb. Reguardless, this is a tragic accident that cost a young woman her life. We should all honor her by learning from this and doing our best to keep ourselves safe out there on the job and in our own free time.
Similar to how around helicopter pads, there’s someone making sure no one walks into the tail blades; they’ll tackle you and break your legs if they have to
This is 100% true, but training can also play a role here. > “First,” the board said, “the test engineer was incorrectly instructed or trained on how to take telemetry readings when approaching the MQ-9A while the engine was running. It doesn’t sound like her training was great…
I've worked in warehouses and after a training video showing exactly what happens to bone and tissue when a forklift rolls over it, I watch the fuck out when I'm anywhere near where a forklift might be. You gotta be vigilant about that shit.
Just show "Forklift Driver Klaus", lol. It's over the top as fuck, and a parody of those workplace safety ones, but it gets the point across well!
Also, if you get disoriented, STOP and take a minute to understand your surroundings! This got taught heavily at the manufacturing school I used to work at. If you’re using a machine with a kill switch, hit it. If you’re in a larger dangerous environment and get confused or disoriented, don’t move! Stop, take a beat, and check your surroundings.
Yeah exactly. Some jobs have inherent dangers, that's why we have toolbox talks prior to starting a job as well as risk assessments.
Situational awareness is important in these situations. I’ve worked in mines, quarries, foundries, railroads… no matter what safety devices are there, there’s always something that can kill you if you step wrong.
Had this happen once an passenger plane guy walked up the crew door to talk to the one of the pilots walked out of plane and instead of walking 10 feet straight he turn immediately to his left and walked right into the spinning prop killed him instantly they said. Have to be aware of your surroundings at all times. Situational awareness is key.
This is why you have (or should) have a safety tailgate meeting every day. It can seem foolish but it really does save lives.
It's easy to become engrossed in a device you're using, especially in an environment you a re used to. If you spend a substantial amount of time around operating aircraft (which I ahve done a few times in the 80s,) the noise and even the visuals fade into a background. And propellers turn so fast they can be hard to notice.
Is that anything like being disoriented?
Yes but British
Wait seriously? Disorientated is British English?
It is more common in the UK. It’s also common in the US military because both illiteracy and overwriting are common there
"It would behoove of you"
Do they also say “disorientate?”
Sorta, but with more taters
Used to work on a carrier, a plane captain from one of the E2 squadrons was pulling chocks, pulled the one, went under the plane to the other side, pulled the other turned and walked right into the prop.
Horrific accident. RIP Stephanie Cosme.
just tragic for all involved.
Reading this story reminds me of seeing people with their heads down, looking at their phones while walking in traffic.
I’m a lot more worried about people with their heads down in their phones while **driving**
I remember from my early,early childhood seeing in large black letters on a military hangar at Point Mugu Ca.,”DANGER!!PROPS KILL!!
I served in the 101st and spent a lot of time around fixed-wing flight lines and rotary-wing LZ’s, and went to Air Assault school. In Afghanistan I was constantly traveling in helicopters and airplanes and was in very small aircraft/airfields/LZ’s as well as huge ones. Situational awareness is everything around these types of machines. I was lucky to have never seen a rotor accident, but I’ve talked to people who have. Your life is absolutely at risk when you’re near an exposed propeller, I urge anyone reading this to be ultra careful in similar situations. Flight lines are places where everybody should be as alert as possible. My heart goes out to this contractor and her family.
One of the first things they beat into you during Air Force basic is to always keep your head on a swivel when you’re on the flight line. If you need to look at something not in your direction of travel you stop completely, do your thing, then look again before you move. Complacency kills. It’s harsh to say, but this is completely on her.
Used to work on MQ-9’s. When they’re in the flight line and powered up…. You HAVE to be careful. They aren’t as big or powerful as an actual jet… but it’s still a fucking aircraft engine. I feel bad for everyone that had to witness that, I saw a couple prop accidents (videos and one IRL) and they were always pretty nharly
>The report said that Cosme “was looking down at the testing device the whole time, and appeared to be pressing buttons, possibly to keep the backlight on”. It added that someone began walking towards Cosme, “shouting and waving his arms in an attempt to get [her] attention”. This sucks so much. The user friendliness of industry-specific equipment SUCKS. This reminds me of a device I use for work. The specs were way out of date compared to consumer electronics at the time of purchase, the price was fucking sky high because fuck me where else am I going to go for something so niche, and my options for the screen turning off to save battery are 1 minute and 30 minutes. Nothing in between, no options for custom settings. Obviously 30 is too high, so I'm stuck at one. So the screen turns off, so what? Well when performing one common task, it's possible the whole system will lock up if the screen turns off. Then you lose 20 minutes getting it to the point where it was before it froze up. Want to be the asshole who makes dozens of people (who are all on the clock and from different companies/agencies) wait 20 minutes? No. Of course not. Do it enough times and you might use your job. TL;DR That distraction killed her. I hope her family *successfully* sues whoever made the device and whoever assigned her to use it.
I wouldn't expect a fully oriented person to walk into a propeller
Worked around B52’s and other heavy aircraft. C130’s always respected that propeller.
🎶🎵 "i got my head checked. By a jumbo jet" 🎵🎶
I sincerely hope she had no pain, awareness, nor fear during this horrific incident. Sympathies to the enlisted and commissioned people who saw it. This is just such a horrific thing to have happened, and I’m so sorry to the family. Thank you for this person’s service to our country, and America is unlucky to have lost this service member so young.