Model who walked into the prop
 

Remember the Texas model who walked into the propeller of the samll plane after a sight-seeing tour? I guess the ins company of the plane's owner offered her 200K and she refused and is now lawerying up to sue for much more.

Am I missing something here? Didn't she WALK INTO A MOVING PROPELLER?

I guess we should reward stupidity and/or carelessness, it's the American way:rolleyes:

I wasn't there and I wonder if you were. I can see where some negligence could have occurred. It was mentioned on a previous thread that pilots are and should be aware of all things safety regarding the operation of aircraft.

The question may be why was she allowed off the plane until the prop had stopped turning. All I'm saying is there are a lot of circumstances to consider. 200K won't cover her career losses either. Not that she would have traded her career and eyesight for any amount.

Right now I'm sick and tired of ins cos and have just hired a lawyer to settle what I couldn't do on my own. I was perfectly willing to be fair but got stonewalled by Allstate. I hope she (the lawyer) goes in deep.

I bet her medical expenses are more than 200k.....

I read that there is a dispute about whether she was considered a passenger (where the companies' liability tops out at $200k) or a "bystander" since she had already stepped on the tarmac, where she could sue for any amount.

There may be some negligence on the part of the pilot but let’s also step back for a second

a prop aircraft with a running engine is pretty loud and it is obvious that the prop (or in her speak the spinny thing) is right up front.

I think anyone with any level of intelligence would walk away from the prop instead of towards it.

So at this point she did something very stupid - almost killed herself - killed her high dollar modeling career

The pilot/air service company should likely be on the hook for medical expenses if they did not tell her to stay in the plane while the engine was running but other than that she needs to "man up" and take responsibility for her stupidity

I work with planes a lot, but not a pilot. The company had a duty to protect her.

You can't see the prop a lot of times......

Just the other day I was wondering myself as I stood next to a running turboprop - took out my cell phone and tried to take a pic of the spinning prop and I as a lot closer than I initally thought I was.

I can see how it could happen, made me rethink what I was doing.

Why would the pilot leave the engine running on the passenger exit side of the aircraft?

Passengers cannot be expected to know the first thing about airplanes, loud noise is disorienting, rotating propellors are invisible, and it was night time.

I guess next time your wife and kids get off a plane at night, the pilot should send them down to the tarmac and let them find their way to safety, while he keeps the props spinning. I'm sure they can see rotating propellors in the dark, and if they are stupid enough to get decapitated, we'll all mock you in ALL CAPITALS.

I suspect the engine was almost stopped when she got there. No noise, dark. She could have stumbled on her heels if she had been sitting for a long time. As I said, I wasn't there. None of us were. Why are we discussing this?

So you can air out your opinion on tort? I guess that was the point.

I don't like outrages settlements for coffee spilled in the lap any more than the next guy. But walking around aircraft in operation is a little more than a drive through window incident. Some negligence is apparent to me be it shared or otherwise.

you should look up the pictures of the coffee burns (NSFW)

the woman asked for McDs to cover her medical expenses and they refused

OK, I used a famous example of tort that most did not agree with. Give me a better example and we'll move on.

From what I can gather it was a single engine aircraft and the pilot left the engine running to move/fly the aircraft after she departed the aircraft. The pilot instructer her to go to the rear of the aircraft and she did not.

Knowing that common sense is rare and people have poor situational awareness in infamiliar situations I would have killed the engine until she was off the ramp. That being said, she should take some responsibility for her actions as well.

Perhaps I used a poor choice of words. If she is only seeking to be compensated for her medical expsenses, then so be it.

I guess the main point of the post is personal responsibility and the lack thereof.

Thanks for the personal attack jyl--I guess this shoul be PARF'D.

Does anybody know if she was on her cell phone at the time of the incident?

There will not be a next time for my wife and kid - they would not be on a tarmac next to a plane with a running engine - that being said I would not trust my 9 y/o would not to walk towards the prop but I know my wife is smart enough to say - hey it's loud so that means the engine/prop are running - that prop can mess my day up - think I will go the other way or stay put until someone directs her what to do.

The model should have been a little more aware of her surroundings

I have tackled numerous folks who were told..
do what the crew tells you..
go straight & keep your head down..
keep your gear close & headgear in hand
only to see them go left or right..
while opening a briefcase or flipping out their phones..
towards the humming tail-rotor..
young Dr's were the worst...

Rika

They asked her what happened and she was stumped.















Sorry...

I am a pilot, and I have experience with passenger carrying aircraft. In my opinion, the pilot was negligent.

When I did commercial flooring hospitals and dorms were the worst. We had a girl with waist length hair bypass the tape and climb over the guy troweling glue only to make it 3 steps before slipping and falling in the glue. Boy was she mad. She then asked how to get it out of her hair and was told to cut it. College age girls can really cuss up a storm.

I feel bad for the model, but people really do need to be a little more responsible for themselves. Though if she truly is trying to get only her medical expenses I might agree that she could be reimbursed.

Agreed. I have been out and about on many private planes. Even knowing what I know, you really have to be thinking when you are around a plane when the engine is running. Bad things happen fast.

Even after being briefed, and then even after being told to walk behind the airplane, most people will walk the shortest path to the xxxxxxwhatever...

Most professional pilots (ones with a head on their shoulders) would never allow a running engine with a prop that would reach anyone on the ground to be turning while people could walk anywhere near the airplane.

Murphy was an aviator long before he was a liberal politician.

I fly in and out of Burbank a lot. There, you walk out to the plane, on some flights you can choose to board from the front or rear of the aircraft. They absolutely won't let you walk anywhere but the approved path. Too many amateur travelers, also known as tourists.

We all laugh and think idiot because it was a model. None of us were there. Just like millions of people weren't there in Florida last month.

Amen to that.


Ask any helo pilot about the tail rotor.

were any pit bulls involved in the attack of the model?

How exactly did this all happen - anyone know?

Did she disembark from the plane or was she just walking up to it?

Was there a pilot and crew or just a pilot?

Where were they when the accident happened?

Did the plane just finish landing, taxiing, or was it getting ready to take off?

Was she issued any safety instructions by anyone before the accident? If so by who and what exactly were they and when did she receive them?

Where was the plane and where was she in relation to the terminal when this happened?

What time of day or night was it?

Does she have any vision or hearing impairments (before the accident I mean)?

I think those are some questions we need answers to before assigning liability.

But maybe not :confused:

As a Flight Instructor I hand prop at least 2 planes a week. My hand is on the throttle on several flights a week as well when someone else spins the prop. I always walk around the wing tip before I enter the cockpit. I never load passengers with the engine running. I never prop an engine with another aircraft is nearby running. I have 38 year safety record. If another airplane is running it is hard to tell which plane is running.

I wasn't there either, but...
This is one of my biggest gripes with society today. It seems that an ever-growing majority of people think that it's justified to hold someone else accountable for their own actions. While it is tragic that something like this occurs, and any number of scenarios could have prevented it, the ultimate responsibility was hers. What kind of idiot walks into a rotating propeller? Probably someone who is self-absorbed and can't bother with common sense. She was a model...do you think she had the slightest feeling of entitlement to do whatever she wanted? She's lucky to be alive. I don't believe she's entitled to any compensation. She should cover her own medical bills. But that's just me living in a nanny state.

Plane had just landed from an aerial tour of Christmas lights.

So obviously night time.

Plane stopped, she got out and walked into prop.

Pilot only.

I had a "prop" incident years ago. Not a real plane, but gas R/C. Black blade, with two yellow stripes on each tip for visibility. I was giving the engine a tune-up and while at about 2/3 full frottle, I reached around the blade to feel the exhaust. I thought I was far enough out, as I did not see the yellow stripes. I put my left index fingertip and middle fingertip into the blade. Turns out the yellow blended in with the background. These priops spin at around 20,000 RPM's at full throttle.

The prop sliced both fingernails in half and cut the tip off my middle finger. Talk about pain.

I have also grown up around private planes and fly myself. You can't always see a spinning prop! Especially at night and certain other conditions.

Stop making the model out to be a bimbo. The pilot should have cut the engine and made sure there prop was not spinning before opening the door.

Accidents happen.

I have been dropped off and have dropped off passengers and I can see not cutting the engine.. Having said that I understand how an accident could happen.. But none of us were there so it's all speculation.
Dave is that your "why I don't play guitar so well" excuse ? hahaha

Todd, it was the very tip of my finger and it was not detached. Flopped it back over, taped it up and 10 excruciating hours later the pain subsided. I don't use it as an excuse. :D Procrastination, yes. :D

I don't like the fact that people don't admit their mistakes and look to blame someone else for their actions. But even if you admit making a mistake, some things should be idiot proof. A turning prop is such a high risk that proper safety precautions should be taken even if it is unlikely someone would walk into it. Either have someone who is properly trained block the path to it or have it off before possible access. If you read the original story, you will realize that this lady got mangled up really good and she has to start over in terms of her career and her lifestyle even. Some of you guys who have daughters, think about how you'd feel if it'd happen to your girl? "Ah sure, 200k will settle it, she can't put the blame on the pilot, she's the dummy here".


Cheers,

George

Model Survives Being Struck By Propeller - ABC News

Maybe she thought it was a jet?

Spot on! The above is correct and she did not do what the pilot told her to do. Why is he now responsible for her stupid actions?

Oh yea... she is a blonde... guess you have to stop the engine and get a seeing eye dog to lead her away...

I just don't like the blonde comments. Hair color has nothing to do with this.

Pretty funny, having Dave and Dr. Phil get into it over long blonde hair. ;)

G

I wasn't that solely at Dr. Phil. :D That goes for all of you, you, you... Guys.

I have seen pictures of both of you ... just sayin ... :)

G