The headline should read Pilot dies in crash . . . not Pilot killed in crash. . . Using the word KILLED infers someone did something to cause the tragic event. I send my regrets to the family knowing what they feel.

With these kind of fiery fatalities growing in number, air shows are going to be drawing a very different kind of crowd in the future.

Well, when you give the people what they want....

These air shows are always an accident waiting to happen. They will not discontinue these boy's showing off their toy events, until a plane comes down and kills 100's of people.

There I was in my P-51 Mustang hot on the tail of an ME-109 high over the wheat fields of rural France when I had a mechanical malfunction and had to hit the silk at 5,000 ft. Luckily, I parachuted into at a location where I was picked up by the resistance and made it back to my American airbase.

Crash! Oh, golly, Miss Molly!

It's not that the pilots know the risks, it's the fact that they kill innocent bystanders like in Reno last year who came to have a good time. A person in the stands didn't say he would risk his life to come to the air show and watch the planes fly. He assumed a safe environment when he came to the air show. Something needs to be done to have air shows where the pilots fly farther away from the people.

My condolences and prayers go out to the family, friends, and collegues of this fallen pilot. I was standing in a cornfield with about 15 friends, a half a mile away from the site, and watched the jet plummet to the ground and explode. In that moment, we were all horrified. The children watching were in shock and disbelief. We waited for the hope of a parachute, but there was none. Please do not make light of this death because it was "another airshow accident". Many hearts are broken and our community is in shock. I'm sure everything is being done to reduce the risk of similar incidents in the future.

I work at the Yankee Air Museum which has the Thunder over Michigan Air Show every year. We have been fortunate enough to have the Blue Angels regularly. These men and women are the best in the world, as are the Thunderbirds. They are the smartest, most brilliant aviators, practice, practice and more practice to provide and experience in speed, sound and perfomance, worth seeing and feeling (the sound gets into your body) for anyone. Seeing what our military can do is worthy of every American to experience. Too bad they have cut the budget for these groups to perform from over 40 to about 26 or so shows. See them whenever you can. You will not be disappointed. No one is there crashes. I can assure your of that. Seeing our military capability first hand is truely wonderful. For any pilot, who braves flight and fails to land, my best to the families. I still won't miss a show. Even if these major two presenters are not part of the show, aviators brave speed, stressed aircraft, the wonder of flight for our enjoyment. Congrats to all of them. I wish I could fly.

Thank you junglover, you said it all. I am in Davenport & this crash happened less then a mile from my home. You are right, this whole community is in shock & all our prayers are for the family & friends of the pilot who lost his life. This was a tragedy that no one could have predicted & it should never be made light of. A husband, father, son, brother & friend lost his life doing what he loved to do. If anyone would look at the Hopper Demo team's website you would see they are very big on promoting safety & educating. I don't understand why so many made it a religious thing in here, it has nothing to do with what happened.

Skydiving, rock climbing without all safety gear or even

surfing with the sharks. How long will it take for some

people to realize they are/we are mortal and that

there is no coming back?

Thank you junglover, you said it all. This crash happened less then a mile from my home & you are right, the whole community is in shock & praying for the family. This was not something that could be predicted to happen & if people would look at the Hoppers website they would see that they are big in promoting safety & education. This was a tragic accident & a husband, father, son, brother & friend was lost doing what he loved to do. An FYI, those in charge of the Quad City airshow are also big on promoting safety for both the pilots & the audience. Yes, airshows are for entertainment but they also teach people about the history of flight & there isn't a pilot flying at any airshow that wouldn't tell you they do it because they love it & they all know the risks involved.

I apologize for the double post. It didn't show so I retyped it. This is the 1st time I've done this so again, sorry for the double post.

This crash happened within 200 yards of our car as we were driving down I-80, and the image of the fireball is burned into my memory. I have to think that the pilot's last conscious effort was to steer himself away from traffic and buildings. My deepest sympathy goes out to his family and friends.

I own and have flow my L-39 for years, both as an airshow performer and race it at the National Championship Air Races in Reno each year. I flew Navy fighters and light attack jets off carriers for a few years as well.

Airshow pilots have to be FAA certified in all their program maneuvers. The guy who was killed was likely an ex-Air Force or Navy pilot with a lot of hours and experience flying formation and acrobatics. Odds are that he flew for the Blues or Thunderbirds at some time in his career. And, aishow performers have to practice a BUNCH, pass an annual flight exam in their programs, and pass a recertification exam each year. So this guy was no novice-- he knew his stuff, had practiced it MANY times, and was probably one of the most proficient formation acro pilots around.

Likewise, the aircraft has to pass its own set of FAA-mandated inspections each year, which includes records of scheduled maintenance. The FAA critically and carefully reviews ALL aircraft and pilot records before the pilot or the plane are allowed to perform. If ANYTHING is out of order, no pilot and no plane flies. And, no, I don't work for the FAA or any aviation-related company.

Have no idea what caused the accident, but it clearly wasn't due to lack of either plot proficiency or aircraft design. There is an element of risk in airshows and ariraces, but the FAA does a super job of minimizing risk for attendees. The pilots are generally professionals and assume these risks. Accidents happen, just like airline accidents and NASCAR. And they even happen to the best-qualified and experienced.

If you haven't seen one, watch an airshow, if only on UTube. Its a fun and interesting experence.

O dear Lord Jesus, I am so sorry this has happened again, I stopped going years ago because they happened 30 years ago THEN. PLEASE everyone demand that they not use planes older than 10 years old, we love our pilots and they are wonderful examples of courage and skill- may God erase the tears and horrors any children have seen ==I am available for ministry as a Licensed Chaplain = My email is Leslieandmarc2@msn.com I am a former Quad Citian and know well the QCA and love it still- will always be home to me.

Bob, if you go to KWQC.com there is a video of the crash. It actually looks like the pilot stalled & couldn't pull up. That is just a very uneducated guess on my part. Thank you for giving out all the info you did. This pilot was not a rookie & had flown for over 24 years in all different kinds of planes.