Friend recalls the last moment of the former South African pilot who collapsed in empty talk

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Friend recalls the last moment of the former South African pilot who collapsed in empty talk

The audience watched a place decorated with the crash of South African Air Force pilots in a local aerial performance, shocked and frightened, while they recalled his last moments.

James O’Connell died after a plane crashed during a show at the West Coast Air Show 112 km (70 miles) north of Cape Town.

According to the organizers, Mr. O’Connell “had a “regular display” on retired military aircraft “when “suddenly there was a loss of altitude and into a steep dive.”

Currently, an investigation into the accident is currently underway with the tribute from the experienced former Air Force pilot.

Mr. O’Connell’s crash was captured by many videos and images that were widely shared on social media.

In one, the 68-year-old aircraft can be seen as an Impala Mark 1, then flew upside down, then returned to its original position, and then dived into the ground with a nose.

Then huge smoke and fire can be seen as it crashed on the ground and the crowd can hear the shock of shock.

Aerial performance commentator Brian Emmenis can then be heard present and commented on O’Connell’s performance, urging the shocked crowd to “stay calm and stay in their place.”

Two days after the horror crash, Emmenis shared his last exchange with the decorative pilot while talking to the BBC.

Mr Emmenis said he knew from the latter era that O’Connell was a test pilot for the South African Air Force.

According to him, Mr O’Connell worked in the Air Force for nearly three decades before moving to the Test Flight Academy of South Africa (TFASA), where he served as the chief flight instructor and was the head of the Test Pilot School. The academy confirmed that Impala was one of its display aircraft.

“James O’Connell is an incredible test pilot…a very popular guy [and] He is a thorough professional, but also a good friend and a good guy,” he told the BBC on Monday.

Emmenis said the pair talked about O’Connell’s performance ahead of the upcoming release.

He noted that Mr. O’Connell is currently “in a good mindset.”

“When he paid taxes…my words [to him] yes:’ [display] My friend’ [replied]: ‘Thanks’. ”

Mr. Emmenis then explained in a statement issued by the organizers of the West Coast Air Show that Mr. O’Connell had entered a “dirty configuration” – described as a move to prolong the bed – and he turned the plane over and “bedied”.

“But when he turned around, I could see the plane with its nose upward attitude, worried about me. I stopped talking and I looked, because I thought, ‘Wow, he was very low, jumped to the ground’ [flame]. ”

Experienced commentators describe the shock and destruction of the entire aviation industry in the news of Mr O’Connell’s death.

“South Africa was destroyed. In fact, it was not just South Africa – I kept getting calls from everywhere [the world]. Aviation is a small world, it is a group of brothers…especially [in] Sailing flights is usually the best choice to do these displays. ”

While it was too early to speculate what was wrong, he believed that as a “high-quality test pilot,” Mr. O’Connell would not try anything he thought he could not manage.

“If you don’t know what this is, I don’t think anyone will do that,” he said.

Clive Coetzee, organizer of the West Coast Air Show, said he was “deeply saddened by the event” and spoke about its shocking effect, not only for attendees, but for other participants.

These include a young pilot who will perform his first show on the same day but exits when he witnesses Mr O’Connell’s crash.

Although Mr. Kutzy only met Mr. O’Connell on the day of the fate accident, he described him as “funny guy” and “very good” based on their final chat.

Both declined to comment on Impala’s track record, but Mr. Emmanis said: “It’s in a state that remains perfect, and when the Test Flight School took it away, they stripped it and checked for any defects. So there’s nothing wrong with that, it’s absolutely perfect.”

Impala is a retired Air Force aircraft that first sailed into the sky in 1957.

Mr. O’Connell’s main tribute is TFASA, who describes him as a “true aviation legend” of 36 years.