flying dog Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 (Sorry if the name is spelt wrong.) Phil Unicum - an aerobatic pilot - was hurt in an accident on Saturday 18 June while doing the "Drunk pilot" stunt. He is injured with possible back injuries, but he is alive and "ok". He was at Maitland hospital and is being trasfered to Newcastle hospital today - Monday. Not many more details at this point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne T Mathews Posted June 19, 2011 Share Posted June 19, 2011 (Sorry if the name is spelt wrong.)Phil Unicum - an aerobatic pilot - was hurt in an accident on Saturday 18 June while doing the "Drunk pilot" stunt. He is injured with possible back injuries, but he is alive and "ok". He was at Maitland hospital and is being trasfered to Newcastle hospital today - Monday. Not many more details at this point. The accident happened at the Barraba airfield at about Noon on Sunday 19 JUN in front of a crowd of about 2-300. Immediately after lift-off, Phil climbed the aircraft (Pitts) steeply then nosed over, dived at the ground, and during the recovery, smote the ground with enough force to collapse the R/H gear. The aircraft came to rest off the side of the runway. Phil climbed out of the aircraft by himself, but was taken to hospital some time later for a check up and observation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flying dog Posted June 19, 2011 Author Share Posted June 19, 2011 OK, thanks for the corrections. But yes I too am glad to hear he is ok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djpacro Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wU9GTHs6N0s Hopefully Phil will be back in the cockpit again before long. A few things which I hope some people will learn from this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XP503 Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Hope to see Phil back in the air very soon 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yenn Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Sad to hear that. Phil is a gentleman also a good pilot. Hope for a speedy recovery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ozzie Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 I hope Phil is OK real soon. Was that an intentional power change at the push over or was it a surge? I hope the little Pitts makes a full recovery too, it is a regular sight around our area. Ozzie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 I'm not going to comment on the actual event, except to say that Phil is a pilot who I have recommended a lot of people go to for EMT. The thing is IF he can come to grief, (and I hope he recovers well from his injuries). Then anybody can....We have had quite a few good pilots come to grief in the last few years. The plane doesn't matter . It can be replaced. People can't. Nev.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motzartmerv Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Is it just me or did the engine cough?...glad he's ok... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomo Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Ouch! Glad he's going to be okay, hit hard by the look of that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winsor68 Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Damn! I saw Phil do his drunken pilot display at Shute Harbour Airshow... I have been kicking myself that I didn't video it for Youtube... He certainly put on a great drunk pilot display, in my opinion the highlight of the aerobatics for me. I hope his back injury is not too life changing... Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winsor68 Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Is it just me or did the engine cough?...glad he's ok... Motz... that is part of his display! Honest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
farri Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 Though I don`t know Phil, I`m sorry that this has occured to him and I hope he has a full recovery so that he can fly again! It`s sad that anyone should ever come to grief, and yes, it does show how it can occur to anyone!!! I don`t believe that we will ever be accident free! The best we can do, is to do the best we can do!!! Frank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
farri Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 You're may be right Frank, but "accident free" is my plan!....Don Ramsay Don, I think all of us want to see a perfect world, where there are no accidents or injuries, in all walks of life, not only in aviation, however , based on a lifetime of experience and observation, I just can`t come to the conclusion that this is achievable! Maybe I`m wrong!!! As I`ve said previously! Let`s all keep on trying to do our best!!!! Frank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old man emu Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 We have just been asked to quote on the repair job. The engine will need a bulk strip, and the prop will have to be replaced. Don't know yet how bad teh fuselage is bent, or how much wing rebuild there will be. The plnae may prove uneconomical to repair. That's not to say that is irrepairable as a Project. OME Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fly_tornado Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 But do you really want to fly a Pitts that has been crashed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mazda Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 I think it would be difficult to find a Pitts that hasn't been crashed! Apart from the one in OME's hangar of course. Best wishes to Phil for a speedy recovery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old man emu Posted June 23, 2011 Share Posted June 23, 2011 Ha Ha Ha, Take a look at the pix of the new one we are assembling. One of the pix shows two Pitts. We have just rebuilt the red one after a ground loop and the orange one has had a prang in the past. OME Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teckair Posted June 24, 2011 Share Posted June 24, 2011 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wU9GTHs6N0sHopefully Phil will be back in the cockpit again before long. A few things which I hope some people will learn from this. Don't know what else you would expect to happen??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted June 24, 2011 Share Posted June 24, 2011 I wasn't going to buy into that, but you are right, Teckair. The "no room for error" situation is just that. Nev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rick-p Posted June 24, 2011 Share Posted June 24, 2011 If you play with fire, no matter how much of an expert firebug you are, you eventually get burnt. Hope he gets better soon and back into it as I was planing on doing his EMT course and he is probably the best guy to do it with. Get well soon Phil. Rick-p Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winsor68 Posted June 24, 2011 Share Posted June 24, 2011 Yep... But hey... He is a grown adult. As long as he doesn't hurt anybody else... I reckon controlled daring do has its place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turboplanner Posted June 24, 2011 Share Posted June 24, 2011 It makes political waves, and people start agitating out of all proportion or reality to ban things, even one or two posts on this thread. Before you know it public liability insurance cost is up/no longer available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old man emu Posted June 25, 2011 Share Posted June 25, 2011 I heard some news about Phil Unicombe today. Apparently he had an operation on his back very soon after the prang. The surgeons repaired teh broken bones by injecting some sort of glue to bind them together. I heard that the procedure did not involved cutting his back open. We'll have to start calling him Arald Luscombe now. Anyway. I heard that he is up and about. He won't be fully recovered for a few months when he will have completed his physiotherapy. A hint at the cause of the prang is that Luskintyre is 100 ft AMSL and Barrabra isn't. OME Why Arald? You ever heard of Araldite? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turboplanner Posted June 25, 2011 Share Posted June 25, 2011 What a lesson that is for all of us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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