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Teenager killed by model plane in England
#1

Sad to read this today. From the daily mail in the UK

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...plane.html



Teenager is killed after she is hit by model plane
A schoolgirl was killed after being hit by a model plane as she walked with her mother and sister.
Tara Lipscombe was struck on the head by the remote-controlled aircraft with a 5ft wing span and knocked unconscious in what was described as a 'million-to-one' chance.
The 13-year-old grammar school pupil was taken to hospital by air ambulance but died three hours later.
The Acrowot plane, which has a top speed of 50mph, was being flown by a 55-year-old man when it flew out of control.
Tara had been enjoying the Easter holidays on Dartford Heath, Kent, close to her home with a walk with her mother Jane, 46, and ten-year-old sister, Rachelle.
Kent Police said the tragedy was 'a very tragic accident'. A spokesman added: 'The man flying the plane is understandably in shock. He was absolutely devastated and fully co-operative.
'He was not arrested and although we are continuing to investigate the incident, it appears to be a tragic and freak accident. The man is now at home in London.'
According to a police source, the man had been trying to land the plane and was at a loss to explain Tuesday's accident.
Police have confiscated the Acrowot and it will be examined by experts.
Dartford Heath is owned by the local council and is popular with model plane fliers, who were given a designated area in 1997.
'We could all hear the plane but there are always planes about,' said an eye-witness, who asked not to be named.
'Then we saw it coming over the tree and it started to go "pop pop pop" and spluttered.
'It did a 360 degree roll, nose dived and smashed into the girl. Her mum just screamed and ran towards her.'
A model flying enthusiast who arrived at the scene shortly after the accident at 5pm described what happened as a 'million-to- one' chance.
John Lee, 53, said: 'I have been flying model aircraft for 40 years and as soon as I saw the ambulance, I thought "I hope it's not an accident involving a plane".
'I saw a man in his 50s coming towards me and asked him if he knew what was happening and he said: "My aircraft has just hit a little girl".
'He was holding his armpit and saying "I've got a bad heart".
'I thought he going to have a heart attack and tried to calm him down.
'He said a friend had been flying it. Just then another man appeared and he was obviously in shock.' Mr Lee added that the self-assembly-kit plane has been in production for around 15 years and, with a remote control unit, costs around £500.
The propeller can turn at 17,000 revolutions per minute.
Geoff Wallace, of the Bickley Model Flying Club, said:
'Dartford Heath can get very busy in the air, particularly at weekends.
'It is very rare for a plane to go out of control.
'Model fliers have a frequency assigned to them to avoid things like interference from mobile phone masts. This is a tragedy.'
Tara's family, including her father Graham, 50, were said by neighbours to be distraught.
They were being comforted at the home of Mrs Lipscombe's parents in Bexley, Kent.
Throughout yesterday, friends and well-wishers gathered outside the family's semi-detached home in Dartford, where a pile of sympathy cards could be seen in the porch.
Some friends also visited the scene of the accident to lay flowers.
Struggling to hold back tears, one said: 'I can't believe she is dead. It is so wrong.
'She was so lovely and gorgeous and popular. I can't think about it. I will always remember her no matter what.'
A neighbour said: 'It is just too terrible to talk about. She has been snatched from us and her family. They are a lovely family and do not deserve this, nobody does. It is just such a shock.'
A spokesman for the North Kent coroner said a post-mortem examination will be held.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...z2ux4R7kbR
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#2

That is absolutely terrible. Words cannot describe what the girl's parents must be going through. I hope they and the pilot manage to eventually find some form of inner peace.
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#3

This is not the first report of a fatality from remote planes and they have been reported in a lot of countries. A similar post last year gave rise to a tirade of examples of accidents causing deaths more frequently than planes including toppling vending machines.
Million to one chances of anything causing death is worthy of mention, if not to remind us of our safety obligations at our field. These including proper calls from the flight box when taking off, landing & low passes, calls to the pilot box when entering or crossing the strip & not breaching no fly zones. They may seem trivial but none of us want to be part of a tragedy exampled above.
No more needs to be said, this is a travesty to all concerned & a slur on our pastime to people who may already have objections to RC pilots. Our safety procedures are paramount to our reputation.
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#4

How old is this story ??????
It states she was enjoying Easter Holidays with family on the Heath.
Easter Holidays are in April....... that's a month away, seems a little strange to me.
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#5

When I looked at the link on my 'phone it went to the mobile Daily Mail site, which had a date of 17 April 2003 - so you're right mate, it was a while ago.

Even so, I wouldn't want to see any of us being at the centre of anything like that happening again.

Steve Murray
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#6

   
(04-03-2014, 08:01 PM)smuzz Wrote:  When I looked at the link on my 'phone it went to the mobile Daily Mail site, which had a date of 17 April 2003 - so you're right mate, it was a while ago.

Even so, I wouldn't want to see any of us being at the centre of anything like that happening again.

I had 4th march 2014 as the date on the page this morning. Most strange.
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#7

Yeh, it's strange - for some reason, the mobile server is showing ...

   

Steve Murray
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#8

Regardless of the timeframe, it is still a reminder of our safety needs. We have had quite a few new members since the last similar story hit our forum. Whilst we try to impress upon our newbies the need to be aware of and comply with our safety requirements, hopefully the re-emergence of this topic will help to re-inforce them.
We also have visitors come to our field to watch and it is up to all of us to be alert to their presence & potential to wander into no-go zones and properly instruct them to stay the required 30m away from the strip.
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