Bonanza ditching in the Pacific

[NJMac]

9 hours ago, gsxrpilot said:

All you old farts need to try a little harder to keep up. It's the 21st century and everyone is carrying a still and video camera in their pocket, of better quality than cameras that cost more than your Mooney did just 20 years ago. Kids these days know how to use them as well. And why not. 

This might be different if he were filming instead of running through a check list after the engine quit. But once in the water, filming the situation probably was a very welcome distraction from the cold water, jellyfish stingers, etc. 

I for one, can't find any fault with the recording of the event and the ordeal. There are certainly lessons to be learned and visuals to go along with it. That's good for all of us.

Oh and by the way, posting videos on Youtube is a real career these days and can pay more than most of us have ever or will ever earn.

To itch my curiosity, I just did a google search for YouTube income. Looks like is $0.003 - $0.01 per view. 

This link ( https://millennialmoney.com/how-much-do-youtubers-make/ ) shred this 

“A recent German study showed that about 97% of all aspiring YouTubers probably won’t make it across the U.S. poverty line ($12,140).

And even if you make it to the top 3%, you’re looking at an average advertising revenue of about $16,800 a year – which is, like I said, not very much” 

i love a guy from your old area, demolition ranch. He consistently has multi million view videos each week. He’s making bank. I doubt there is anyone flying and making any real money off it.  Maybe chops but he sold out to do it. 

[NJMac]

14 minutes ago, tigers2007 said:

The pieces of this story can be easily assembled to imply that this was a stunt. So let me get this clear: 

• Flying it from Colorado to SFO/NorCal.
• Coincidentally he was approximately five miles from "the bay" as radio chatter indicated.
• VFR day. So who goes on a long cross-country and then decides to go fly to Hawaii?
• Then coincidentally an acquaintance was flying nearby and was able to capture the ditching on video?

Knowingly and willingly with filthy fuel tanks, especially with a passenger, is immoral. I'm curious if the FAA will deep-dive into the events leading to the accident and give him the hammer. 

 

The guy is totally doing it for PR. Just found a mention http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2019/08/21/half-moon-bay-plane-crash-david-lesh/  that he owns https://virtika.com/ which was conveniently linked in a news article. What a joke. 

Edited August 22, 2019 by NJMac

[tigers2007]

Is the USCG in on it too? This would have been a great training op. Great for recruiting too.

[Davidv]

Just now, NJMac said:

The guy is totally doing it for PR. Just found out he owns https://virtika.com/ which was conveniently linked in a news article. What a joke. 

Does David make his money by promoting his company? sure.  But to suggest that he would endanger the life of himself and his passenger for a PR stunt?  Why not crash closer to shore?  Why not have life vests or even a raft on board for the planned crash?  Let me guess, because he thought that if he did people would surely think it was planned.  I know David but have no dog in this hunt.  Yes he takes risks, but they are usually pretty carefully planned and executed.

[NJMac]

11 minutes ago, tigers2007 said:

Is the USCG in on it too? This would have been a great training op. Great for recruiting too.

Awe snap. The conspiracy is deeper than I initially thought 

[steingar]

6 hours ago, chrixxer said:

http://www.ktvu.com/news/ktvu-local-news/details-of-pilots-criminal-history-and-past-stunts-emerge-following-half-moon-bay-crash

Ahh Fox News.  The guy has long hair so he MUST be a criminal.  But really, the best they could come up with was chasing a Moose?

[tigers2007]

1. Fleeing & eluding Police (2004)
2. Chasing a Moose with car (2014)
3. Charged with Arson (2014, plead down to mischief)
4. Snowmobiling on snowless and protected wilderness land controlled by the USFS (Jul 2019)
5. Sensational and well-documented aircraft accident (Aug 2019)

Dude would be fun to to hang out with except when he is in control of a motorized vehicle. I wonder how thrilling the adventures could be if he drank?




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[gsengle]

Also not sure why he repeatedly said he stalled it in from 5-10 feet. He most certainly didn’t a stall from any height to touch down and continue forward as far as he did smoothly... imho


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[Davidv]

Maybe he had little retractable pontoons that would automatically self destruct after landing...

Or maybe his stall horn is activated 5-10 knots above actual stall speed.  I guess we will never know.

[gsengle]

Maybe he had little retractable pontoons that would automatically self destruct after landing...
Or maybe his stall horn is activated 5-10 knots above actual stall speed.  I guess we will never know.

Or not great situational awareness in the flare? Who knows


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[Davidv]

I can only imagine when the media finds out he also has a seaplane rating and gets ahold of the videos he shot last year when training.  “Here is another video of David landing a plane on the water.  Coincidence? We’ll let you decide”.

[N201MKTurbo]

Last week The boss and I flew his B36TC to Santa Barbara. No part of that flight is over water, but somehow ATC seems to think it is. On departure they had us almost 10 miles off shore. You wouldn't think that was an over water flight, but it was. Some inflatable flotation in the seat backs would make me feel better in those situations.

[Jerry 5TJ]

If I were to ditch intentionally I would choose warmer waters than off the Golden Gate. 

[RogueOne]

59 minutes ago, steingar said:

Ahh Fox News.  The guy has long hair so he MUST be a criminal.  But really, the best they could come up with was chasing a Moose?

In another “time” I would of jumped on your comment, but going to come close to the -a- school of “just let it go” by saying “I saw what you did there”...

[RogueOne]

48 minutes ago, tigers2007 said:

1. Fleeing & eluding Police (2004)
2. Chasing a Moose with car (2014)
3. Charged with Arson (2014, plead down to mischief)
4. Snowmobiling on snowless and protected wilderness land controlled by the USFS (Jul 2019)
5. Sensational and well-documented aircraft accident (Aug 2019)

Dude would be fun to to hang out with except when he is in control of a motorized vehicle. I wonder how thrilling the adventures could be if he drank?




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Guy seems legit to me.  Nothing to see here.  Move along...

[RogueOne]

49 minutes ago, tigers2007 said:

1. Fleeing & eluding Police (2004)
2. Chasing a Moose with car (2014)
3. Charged with Arson (2014, plead down to mischief)
4. Snowmobiling on snowless and protected wilderness land controlled by the USFS (Jul 2019)
5. Sensational and well-documented aircraft accident (Aug 2019)

Dude would be fun to to hang out with except when he is in control of a motorized vehicle. I wonder how thrilling the adventures could be if he drank?




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Maybe some of the resident keyboard wizard sleuths can identify how he acquired a Beech and then became a U-Boat Captain.

[flyboy0681]

13 hours ago, Davidv said:

I’m not trying to speak for David, but I believe this wasn’t planned to be an extended flight over water flight.  He had flown from Colorado to CA and found the best place to ditch when he lost his engine on climb out.  Living in Florida I always have life vests onboard but I’m usually taking off next to water or flying over for 10-20 miles at a time.

I'm beginning to change my view on this. Most of my flights require me to fly over the widest parts of Lake Okeechobee, but I never carry vests thinking that I could always reach the shoreline. I'm beginning to rethink that wisdom.

[Tony Starke]

1 hour ago, steingar said:

Ahh Fox News.  The guy has long hair so he MUST be a criminal.  But really, the best they could come up with was chasing a Moose?

Yeah, those bastards are so biased toward long haired hippies. 

[RogueOne]

Passenger got more than she bargained for.  That guy owes his friend in the 172 and the U.S. Coast Guard his and his companions life.  I hope he pays it forward...

I could judge, but I will not.

Glad they survived.

Sad the Beech did not.

[RogueOne]

This just in: Verizon being sued by Cirrus for new slogan: “Call early...Call often”.

Film at 11.

We return you now to your broadcast in progress.

[bonal]

I don't know if this was deliberate or not but a couple things seem odd. First and perhaps the folks with Bonanza experience can address this but after watching the actual ditching several times you can see his shadow on the water as it converges and his sink rate looks very flat if his engine were dead I would think there would be a much steeper descent. It also looks like it never stalls there is no drop of the nose. Excellent pilot skill here. But the question I have is if this guy is such a video guy and has the presence of mind to record all that happened after the event then why did he not think to start recording the even as soon as he started having a problem. I know he was busy but his passenger could have held a camera/phone for some of it. Just seems odd that he being so into you tubing that he would pass up such an opportunity to share this event in its entirety for the benefit of others.

[jetdriven]

50 minutes ago, flyboy0681 said:

I'm beginning to change my view on this. Most of my flights require me to fly over the widest parts of Lake Okeechobee, but I never carry vests thinking that I could always reach the shoreline. I'm beginning to rethink that wisdom.

you can get an Onxy manual inflatable PFD for 69$ on eBay.  It weighs nothing, and one pull, it inflates.

[tigers2007]

Anyone know the N number of the Bo?  I want to try more keyboard wizard sleuthing. I'm curious if he really was on a flight from Colorado. As WABC's John Batchelor always mentions, "Never believe the first three [news] reports".  And is it really true that the Cessna that filmed the incident was an acquaintance? More news at 11.

[Davidv]

N134P - please investigate at your pleasure.  If you want to search the airman registry it's David Atman Lesh.

Also, David was recently trying to sell his Piper Lance with an engine close to overhaul.  I'm no financial whiz, but it would seem that crashing that one for insurance money would be a lot smarter than buying a new bonanza, upgrading it and then crashing it.  

[flyboy0681]

15 minutes ago, jetdriven said:

you can get an Onxy manual inflatable PFD for 69$ on eBay.  It weighs nothing, and one pull, it inflates.

We already have four vests, all I need to do is keep them in the back seat.