Safety Comes First
MORE on fingers-in-the-prop: I guess there is some truth to the proverb that "It never rains but it pours." Last month's column began with a finger-in-the-prop incident that I stated was the first I had heard of in quite some time. Just a week after I mailed that column to Model Aviation's editorial offices I received a letter from Texan modeler Robert McMullen (not related to MA Associate Editor Ross McMullen), who included a color photograph of his right hand. The black-and-white copy of the photo (you should see it in color!) appearing in this column shows you the extent of the injuries that resulted from what appear to be about nine swipes by a propeller. I'll let Bob's letter tell you how it happened:
Safety Comes First
LONG ago-in the January 1980 issue of this magazine-my first safety column appeared. So, when I finish this column, "Safety Comes First" will have finished its first decade in print. For those who are short on math skills, that's 120 individual columns. When Bill Winter (who was editor of Model Aviation at the time) asked me if I'd be willing to author a safety column, my first reaction was that I'd give it my best shot, but I doubted I could come up with enough safety-related topics to make it beyond a year. Fortunately you, the readers of this column, have responded with many letters, and some clubs supply me with their newsletters. Both readers and clubs have provided me with an invaluable source of material on which the column is based. To quote the popular commercial for a wine cooler beverage, "We thank you all for your support." Now, whether I can complete a second decade remains to be seen!
Safety Comes First
CONFLICTS between full-scale aircraft and models: Periodically-but not frequently, for which I'm thankful-I receive reports from readers about models trying to share the same piece of sky as a full-scale aircraft. The most recent such report came to me from Bill Smith, a modeler from Oxnard, CA. Bill is in the U.S. Navy, and one of his jobs is that of Command Safety Officer. His letter enclosed a newspaper clipping from the "L.A. Life" section of the Camirillo Daily News which was captioned "Unwelcome Visitor." It read as follows: "Traffic reporters Jorge Jarrin of KABC-AM (790) and Dick Morgan of KFWB-AM (980) spotted an unusual and dangerous sight early one recent morning when they looked out of their helicopter as it lifted off over Van Nuys. A bright yellow remote-controlled model airplane was racing past them at 1,300 ft.
Safety Comes First
ERRORS of judgement: Henry Farrar, editor of the LIDS Flyer, the newsletter of the Long Island Drone Society, recently sent me a copy of a page from the November 11, 1931 issue of the British magazine, The Aeroplane. The page contained an article titled "Errors of Judgement." Since many model airplane crashes are the result of pilot error, I thought it appropriate to open this month's column with some extracts from that article. I would give a credit to its original author; however, no name was given.
Safety Comes First
FINGERS in the prop: There was a time when I seldom completed a monthly Safety column without including at least one incident in which someone described his personal experience in feeding his fingers through a rotating propeller. I hadn't received any reports of such happenings for some time until last week, when I was called by Mike Winter, CD of an upcoming Scale contest at Bealeton, VA. After asking if I would be one of the static judges at this contest, Mike related a personal finger/prop accident in which, strangely, the propeller lost!
