Incredible footage of the moment the right wing of a Skyraider clipped the tail of a P-51 Mustang during a formation demonstration at a recent UK Warbirds airshow.
This close-up video was taken at Flying Legends 2011, a Warbirds airshow held in Duxford, Cambridgeshire in England on July 10. Neither Amicale Jean-Baptiste Salis, the French pilot of the Skyraider, nor Rob Davies, the UK pilot of the Mustang, were seriously injured in this incident, with the former landing without incident but with damage to the outer edge of his right wing.
However, Davies and his Mustang, nicknamed ‘Big Beautiful Doll’ due to its impressive paint job, were not so lucky. Following the midair collision, the Mustang went into a steep descent. In a move that likely saved his life, the quick-thinking Davies bailed out of the aircraft with only 500ft between himself and the ground and pulled his parachute with just enough time left to land without sustaining serious injury. His aircraft was destroyed in a post-impact fire.
While this incident is still being investigated by the UK authorities, there’s been plenty of speculation about which pilot, or both, were in the wrong. Can you tell from watching this footage? We invite you to post your opinions as a comment below.
This video was taken by David Taylor.