Two Airlink Embraer 190s perform dangerously low flyover at Cape Town’s DHL Stadium

[Cray]

Do you think they broke the regulations?

There is no way the pilots would have done it if it were unsafe or illegal..

Go and search a list of airshow disasters, things are usually safe and legal until an accident happens.

 

[Cray]

One of the things I love about south Africa is we're still allowed to take our own risks. We don't have some over eager nanny government restricting every piece of decision making. The eggchaser guy actually mentioned this in a video too. He was up on a mountain and said he'd never be allowed to do that in the UK due to their over eager safety regulations.

Agree in general, but no one in that crowd signed up for the risk of those planes flying that low.

 

[Thorium]

I was talking to a friend this evening - who lives on High Level Rd, pretty much opposite the stadium, but about 1km away.

"Storm in a tea cup" he declared.
He was watching the plane's initially circling Robben Island, wondering what was going on.
When they came in towards and over the stadium, they were well clear - not the "dangerous" claptrap coming out of, as it always does - facebook & twitter.

Two things he pointed out were the roof level of the stadium - an arc of sorts.
The other was human vision vs camera with a single eye.
As he correctly pointed out, "look thru things with one eye, and all looks different - a complete loss of perspective and depth, coupled with difficulty in judging distance.

That aside, there would have been very significant flight planning with a whole lot of authorities, given only police and military aircraft have authority to fly over city areas.

Storm in a teacup.

Seems some have forgotten about the massive, heavy & cumbersome Boeing 747 over Ellis Park.

Chalk and cheese.

https://twitter.com/x/status/2093909533802323985

 

[wingnut771]

You can go through the history of aviation and see plenty of crashes caused by pilots with big egos, of all races, all of who were picked on merit. A super experienced pilot Who thinks they know everything is far more likely to take risks than a newly qualified pilot.

100%, but the dummys outnumber the egotists imho.

 

[Jean Claude Vaaldamme]

One of the things I love about south Africa is we're still allowed to take our own risks. We don't have some over eager nanny government restricting every piece of decision making. The eggchaser guy actually mentioned this in a video too. He was up on a mountain and said he'd never be allowed to do that in the UK due to their over eager safety regulations.

Yes thats why we are allowed to drive without safety belts.

Flying a commercial plane low over a stadium with 60k people in it, is not taking your own risk. You risking thousands of peoples lives without their consent.

 

[wingnut771]

It was a little on the reckless side but beautiful to watch. They left no margin of error. From the eyes of a layman, a non-pilot and a casual observer, the leading jet appears to leave everything until the very last soecond before the engines begin spooling up.

I wonder what the lowest record in cm is for a low pass flyby at an airport over a runway at an airport with gear up?

 

[wingnut771]

Yeah. If he's a frequent flier, then he's been flown around by many "DEI pilots".

Indeed, but like I said earlier, the planes literally fly themselves when not doing low pass flybys over stadiums.

 

[Speedster]

Yes thats why we are allowed to drive without safety belts.

Flying a commercial plane low over a stadium with 60k people in it, is not taking your own risk. You risking thousands of peoples lives without their consent.

The risk might be lower than you think. I drive past other vehicles at an effective 240kph (120kph each way), often missing one another by 2m or so. Nobody thinks of this as excessive risk.

The only one able to determine the actual risk involved is a pilot of equivalent competence.

 

[wingnut771]

If it was too low (which is a judgement call), then that's on CAA and Airlink management, not the pilots. CAA and Airlink approved the flight plan and altitude of the pass. Don't blame the pilots for doing what they were asked.

Are you saying the pilot could have gone lower?

 

[Speedster]

Are you saying the pilot could have gone lower?

I'm saying if he stayed within the boundaries set by CAA and Airlink management, then they're aren't the ones to be copping flak.

 

[wingnut771]

What confuses/interests me about these flights is that they took off a full three hours before the flypast. That seems somewhat excessive?

From Cape Town?

 

[BouncyNinja]

Airlink responds to concerns over low-flying aircraft during Cape Town stadium flyby

Airlink has responded to concerns over its low-altitude formation flyby above Cape Town’s DHL Stadium, saying the flight was carefully planned, rehearsed and conducted within safety limits.

iol.co.za

"
The airline said the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) and Air Traffic Navigation Services provided guidance, approval and support to ensure the flyby was conducted safely.

The two aircraft were operated by highly experienced crews, with each aircraft carrying three senior captains serving as commander, co-pilot and safety/technical officer.

Airlink said flight data recorded by both aircraft confirmed that the flyby was conducted within the "

 

[saor]

Agree in general, but no one in that crowd signed up for this risk of those planes flying that low.

Almost thought the volume at that altitude might be an issue.

 

[wingnut771]

Not sure if this was posted, not going to read through all the expert pilot Karen posts to check either…

Storm 50’ over a large teacup…

View attachment 1933334

This implies no dei involved only meritocracy not quotas. I guess its only saa that has to go all in on the quotas.

 

[Speedster]

The pilot's name has been confirmed:
Wilgo Louw

 

[FiestaST]

 

[wingnut771]

 

[itareanlnotani]

Airlink responds to concerns over low-flying aircraft during Cape Town stadium flyby

Airlink has responded to concerns over its low-altitude formation flyby above Cape Town’s DHL Stadium, saying the flight was carefully planned, rehearsed and conducted within safety limits.

iol.co.za

"
The airline said the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) and Air Traffic Navigation Services provided guidance, approval and support to ensure the flyby was conducted safely.

The two aircraft were operated by highly experienced crews, with each aircraft carrying three senior captains serving as commander, co-pilot and safety/technical officer.

Airlink said flight data recorded by both aircraft confirmed that the flyby was conducted within the "

Really, and they got the flight data and fully confirmed it all in the last day. Wow, efficient. /s

 

[Gordon_R]

Really, and they got the flight data and fully confirmed it all in the last day. Wow, efficient. /s

There is no way they pulled the actual flight data recorder, as that would have removed the plane from service. Some aircraft have Quick Access Recorders (QAR), but not all do.

Google:

On the Embraer E195, the optional Quick Access Recorder (QAR) is installed in the pressurized rear electronic compartment to capture raw flight data for operational quality assurance.
Key System Details
Location: Pressurized rear electronic compartment.
Data Source: Receives flight parameters from Modular Avionics Unit (MAU) number 3.
Power Supply: Powered by DC bus 2 through a dedicated 5-amp circuit breaker.
Operation: Automatically turns on when the aircraft powers up and records based on operator-programmed logic.
Crew Indication: There are no visual indicators or status lights for the QAR provided to the flight crew in the cockpit.
Data Storage and RetrievalCapacity: Uses a removable PCMCIA memory card capable of holding over 70 hours of flight operation.
Maintenance: Technicians typically perform weekly disk changes or data downloads to analyze aircraft performance and safety metrics.

 

[Speedster]

View attachment 1933351