Guard your plane at the airshow

[pelmet]

I remember taking a classic old airplane to a fly-in/airshow almost a decade ago. It was a rare bird and of course, could easily be damaged. The show was open to the general public as a family day and lots of families were there. There were no ropes around the aircraft on display and I spent a lot of time walking around the aircraft in between talking to people in order to keep it from being damaged by kids, parents with kids, etc. The parents might pick the kid up to look in the cockpit and the kid is kicking the airplane. Other kids are pushing on the fabric, etc. When I wnet to the washroom, I got Jerry Yagan, who also had a cool plane at the show to guard my plane.

I was lucky, The guy across from me in a Chipmunk went for lunch and came back to find the master switch on. Then there was the Beaver on amphibs. They arrived and left their airplane on display with no one around. When they came back in late afternoon, they discovered that someone, likely kids, got into the airplane and selected the gear lever up. The left forward gear leg was partially retracted and when I left, they were trying to figure out what to do. Guard your plane from the public.

I was reminded of this with a video I came across today. A helicopter starting up with a teenager inside...

https://bringmethenews.com/news/mankato ... d-faa-says

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_cont ... =emb_title

By the way, if a helicopter is running with someone unqualified as the operator, I suggest getting far away very quickly. It is not the time to stand around and watch like the people in the video are doing.

[GoinVertical]

Aircraft on static display should simply have the battery / batteries disconnected unless someone qualified is going to be staying with it at all times.

Obviously if it's left alone a full walkaround and position of every switch should be verified before power is reconnected.

[DH82EH]

I've taken my Tiger Moth to a fair number of fly ins and the like.
I like to give interested people the opportunity to check it out up close.
I'm even OK if they want to touch, with suitable respect. (If it were me, I'd have the decency to ask first)
There in lies the rub. The general public has no idea how to behave around aeroplanes.
It's not bongo drums and it's not monkey bars! For god sake put out that effing cigarette you fool!

A favourite story I've heard is of the guy who flies his P-51 in and parks it to go for lunch.
When he comes out, buddy has parked his fancy car next to the Mustang and proceeded to climb up on the wing to look inside.
Without skipping a beat, the Mustang owner climbs right up on the roof of buddys car.
"What the hell are you doing!??" Buddy yells.
"I might ask you the same thing" is the reply.

[pelmet]

A favourite story I've heard is of the guy who flies his P-51 in and parks it to go for lunch.
When he comes out, buddy has parked his fancy car next to the Mustang and proceeded to climb up on the wing to look inside.
Without skipping a beat, the Mustang owner climbs right up on the roof of buddys car.
"What the hell are you doing!??" Buddy yells.
"I might ask you the same thing" is the reply.

Have had a similar tale told to me by another warbird guy who used to own a Pitts about an adult putting his kid on the wing and being non-apologetic about it. Followed him to the parking lot and got on his car. So not sure if it is true or perhaps a few people have done this to get the message across to these people.

Maybe people should treat airplanes like certain dancers. You can look closely...but don't touch without approval.

[HiFlyChick]

I was surprised at what can happen even with you watching!

I wasn't at a public show, just letting a passenger's family see the aircraft she had come in on. Her two little boys sat in the the front and everything was fine (they were about 8 and 10) and were polite and sweet boys. When their little 2 yr old brother wanted in, the oldest boy held him on his lap - I was only a foot away and watching like a hawk, and his mom was on the other side. After they had left, I went flying and when I was assigned the transponder code I discovered that the last digit on my old Bendix/King transponder had had its knob ripped off! Briefly wondered it it had been accidentally hit from the top by the movement of people in and out, but the shaft was gone, so apparently he pulled it straight out. Don't yet know how the little guy did it with none of us seeing...

ATC: Code today is 4372
Me: Could I have something with a 4 as the last digit...?

[AirFrame]

A local owner of a Chipmunk came back to his airplane at a show to find a less-than-two-year-old standing on his wingtip, with his father standing at the wing root encouraging the kid to run down to meet him. Big smiles on both of their faces. This on a beautifully restored Chipmunk with immaculate paint.

The same owner built a Glasair, and took it to a different local show, where the organizers didn't offer even a ribbon to separate the planes from the plebes. Had to kick more than one kid off of the wheelpant, that they had climbed up on to look inside. He never left his plane at that show, spent the entire time walking around it shooing people doing stupid things away.

At Arlington one year an owner of a restored straight-tail Cessna 172 was sitting under one wing with friends watching the airshow. On the other side, a family had walked up and was making use of the shade on that side of the plane. Not really an issue, this is fairly common when you have a high-wing plane parked near the front of the show line. The father, however, proceeded to remove his shoes and socks, and hang his socks on the propellor to air out. Never mind that he was upwind, and the smell carried over to the rest of us on the other side of the plane... It's not a f*cking clothes rack!

In none of these cases did the perpetrators offer any apology or show any remorse for what they'd done. When confronted, the response was uniformly "what's the problem?"

Some people are just idiots around airplanes.

[Capt. Underpants]

Some people are just idiots.

[digits_]

I think some of the issues are caused by a misunderstanding. Visitors are often not aware that the planes on display are brought there by the owner at his/her own cost, sometimes even paying admission or other fees. Visitors incorrectly assume that they are the customer and the plane owner is being paid to display their plane. This puts them in a different mindset. They see you as a service you've bought, not as a favour you're doing them.

[pelmet]

I think some of the issues are caused by a misunderstanding. Visitors are often not aware that the planes on display are brought there by the owner at his/her own cost, sometimes even paying admission or other fees. Visitors incorrectly assume that they are the customer and the plane owner is being paid to display their plane. This puts them in a different mindset. They see you as a service you've bought, not as a favour you're doing them.

Shouldn’t matter one bit if the pilot was paid a huge sum. A large percentage of the people are inconsiderate a holes, whether it is potentially damaging aircraft, with their barking dogs, the way they drive, etc.

[digits_]

I think some of the issues are caused by a misunderstanding. Visitors are often not aware that the planes on display are brought there by the owner at his/her own cost, sometimes even paying admission or other fees. Visitors incorrectly assume that they are the customer and the plane owner is being paid to display their plane. This puts them in a different mindset. They see you as a service you've bought, not as a favour you're doing them.

Shouldn’t matter one bit if the pilot was paid a huge sum. A large percentage of the popular are inconsiderate a holes, whether it is potentially damaging aircraft, with their barking dogs, the way they drive, etc.

Of course it matters.

If I didn't know anything about aviation, and I'd see a nice airplane on the ramp with a pilot nearby at a random airport, I'll ask the pilot if I can take a closer look before I'd pop my head in the cockpit, because he is doing me a favour.

If I pay a ticket to an airshow that advertises static displays, I would -incorrectly- assume that gives me permission to look at those airplanes in static displays. If there is no rope or marking anywhere that tells me I can't touch them, I would touch them and pop my head in the cockpit to look at them.

I occasionally went to an car show when I was a kid. I paid admission and I could sit in a variety of cars if there was no red rope present. I'd never just hop in a ferrari on the street without talking to the owner, but at the shows I visited, that was allowed/advertised.

Put up a sign that says that the static display airplanes are flown in there by volunteer pilots, and you'd see the "abuse" drop. You'll always have assholes, but informing the general public about it will, in my opinion, help a lot.

[pelmet]

I think some of the issues are caused by a misunderstanding. Visitors are often not aware that the planes on display are brought there by the owner at his/her own cost, sometimes even paying admission or other fees. Visitors incorrectly assume that they are the customer and the plane owner is being paid to display their plane. This puts them in a different mindset. They see you as a service you've bought, not as a favour you're doing them.

Shouldn’t matter one bit if the pilot was paid a huge sum. A large percentage of the popular are inconsiderate a holes, whether it is potentially damaging aircraft, with their barking dogs, the way they drive, etc.

I occasionally went to an car show when I was a kid. I paid admission and I could sit in a variety of cars if there was no red rope present. I'd never just hop in a ferrari on the street without talking to the owner, but at the shows I visited, that was allowed/advertised.

The key word is advertised. And I’m sure you were not standing on the cars as we have heard with some stories here.

[98 Corolla]

I've had a commercial pilot say 'cool plane' and jump up on the wing of what I was flying, uninvited, and pull the emergency exit lever instead of the door latch lever. I watched as the door fell out of the frame and 10 feet to the ground bouncing off the wing. I don't think they even said sorry.

[digits_]

Shouldn’t matter one bit if the pilot was paid a huge sum. A large percentage of the popular are inconsiderate a holes, whether it is potentially damaging aircraft, with their barking dogs, the way they drive, etc.

I occasionally went to an car show when I was a kid. I paid admission and I could sit in a variety of cars if there was no red rope present. I'd never just hop in a ferrari on the street without talking to the owner, but at the shows I visited, that was allowed/advertised.

The key word is advertised. And I’m sure you were not standing on the cars as we have heard with some stories here.

Yes just like airshows that advertise static displays as explained in the paragraph that you didn't quote.

Walking on a wing would fall under the asshole category in the last paragraph of my post, although some would probably not do it if they knew what the consequences could be.

[pelmet]

I occasionally went to an car show when I was a kid. I paid admission and I could sit in a variety of cars if there was no red rope present. I'd never just hop in a ferrari on the street without talking to the owner, but at the shows I visited, that was allowed/advertised.

The key word is advertised. And I’m sure you were not standing on the cars as we have heard with some stories here.

Yes just like airshows that advertise static displays as explained in the paragraph that you didn't quote.

Whatever......guard your airplane. Some think if they paid to get in, they plan to go in without asking.

[lownslow]

I’ve come out of the store to find kids standing on the fenders of my antique truck. People are strange.

[pelmet]

I’ve come out of the store to find kids standing on the fenders of my antique truck. People are strange.

Exactly, and no one paid you to display your truck.

[AirFrame]

I occasionally went to an car show when I was a kid. I paid admission and I could sit in a variety of cars if there was no red rope present. I'd never just hop in a ferrari on the street without talking to the owner, but at the shows I visited, that was allowed/advertised.

There's a huge difference between going to a new car show, where dealers have all their models on display for the public to paw over, and going to a show-and-shine where everyone brings their antique and not-so-antique cars out and lines them up on display in a park or on a roadway. Even at one of those show-and-shine's people (mostly) know not to open doors and just hop in and try it on.

An airshow or fly-in is a lot more like a show-and-shine than a new car show. Most people *do* get it. Maybe it's just the small number who ruin it for the rest of people. Thinking about it, I wouldn't be surprised to hear that there are idiots at car show-and-shines too, who touch everything, open doors, hop in, stand their kid on the fender so they can look in, etc.

[DadoBlade]

Indeed guard your aeroplane, but as a photographer as well as a pilot, I must say ropes and fences around aircraft make for crappy photographs.

[AirFrame]

Indeed guard your aeroplane, but as a photographer as well as a pilot, I must say ropes and fences around aircraft make for crappy photographs.

Spoken like someone who doesn't own an airplane to protect.