Just in...
September 24, 2006......
> THE ATTACHED PICTURES ARE FROM A MIDAIR BETWEEN A HAWKER
AND A GLIDER OVER
> MINDEN NEVADA ABOUT A WEEK OR SO AGO...SOMETIME IN EARLY
SEPTEMBER.
>
>> HOORAY FOR THE LADY CAPTAIN THAT GOT THE HAWKER ON THE
GROUND AT CARSON
> CITY.......WHEN YOU SEE HER INSTRUMENT PANEL, YOU WILL BE
AMAZED.
>
>. It's absolutely astonishing at the degree of
damage to the
>> Hawker and fact that the aircraft was safely landed.
Raytheon is sure
>> justified in publishing these images as a testament to the
ruggedness of
>> the ship ~ and certainly the skills of the PIC.
>>
>> Subject: Hawker 8379 vs Glider
>>
>>>>
>> It's 2 Miracles!
>>
>> Minden-based glider pilot survives a mid-air collision
with a corporate
>> jet traveling at 450 mph over north Douglas County, and
the jet pilot lands
>> her craft despite the cockpit dash/controls being
obliterated upon impact
>> with the glider.
>> Glider Pilot Hirao Akihiro is alive tonight because his
glider was hit in
>> a wing, and not the fuselage, by a fast moving corporate
jet at 16,000 feet
>> near the Carson City/Douglas County line. Akihiro
told authorities that
>> he was flying his Minden-based glider in an upward
spiral to gain altitude
>> into today's westerly winds. As he made another
upward loop, Akihiro
>> said he saw the jet coming right at him, and in an
instant, his craft was
>> missing a wing and was falling to earth. He said he
immediately popped
>> the glider canopy, and simply crawled out of the pilot's
seat, and activated
>> his parachute for the long float to the ground.
>> Meanwhile, aboard the Hawker corporate jet, debris from
the collision
>> shot up and into the cockpit, completely ransacking and
ripping apart the
>> cockpit control dashboard and electronics. The lady
pilot was lacerated
>> by flying dash parts and aluminum shards, yet she managed
to gently guide
>> her multi-million dollar aircraft to the westerly approach
to the Carson City
>> Airport. Because of the nose damage, and the
obliterated control devices
>> inside it, she was not able to lower the landing
gear. So she belly
>> flopped it onto the asphalt. The craft slid to a stop
about half-way down
>> the runway. All three crew and 3 passengers quickly
got out of the plane
>> which they had just earlier boarded near San Diego enroute
to Reno.
>>
>> A fuel leak was quickly foamed by awaiting fire
fighters.
>>
>> Meanwhile, Akihiro, 58, finished his parachute journey
back to earth,
>> landing in the Granite Peak area, just south of where his
glider crashed.
>> He said he took off his chute harness and waited a while
for any signs of
>> rescuers, but eventually decided to walk out toward the
west. It was at
>> the mouth of Lone Pine Canyon that a Washoe Tribal Police
Sergeant came
>> across Akihiro walking downhill. Akihiro was taken
to the Minden Airport
>> where he was debriefed by authorities. When over,
awaiting news
>> reporters asked for an interview, but he declined.
Instead, he just got into an
>> awaiting car and left.
>>
>> They say Akihiro is an avid glider pilot, and a native of
Japan.
>>
>> The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board is
investigating the
>> accident.
