Model who walked into the prop

Eric 951 · 03-28-2012, 08:10 AM

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

Zeke · 03-28-2012, 08:18 AM

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.

smokintr6 · 03-28-2012, 08:19 AM

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

craigster59 · craigster59's Garage

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.

osidak · 08:41 AM

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

Hugh R · 03-28-2012, 08:41 AM

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

RANDY P · RANDY P's Garage

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.

red-beard · red-beard's Garage

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

jyl · jyl's Garage

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.

Zeke · 03-28-2012, 09:11 AM

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.

billwagnon · 03-28-2012, 09:16 AM

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

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

Zeke · 03-28-2012, 09:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by billwagnon

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.

flipper35 · flipper35's Garage

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.

Eric 951 · 03-28-2012, 09:39 AM

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.

kach22i · kach22i's Garage

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

osidak · 03-28-2012, 01:20 PM

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

Rikao4 · 03-28-2012, 01:40 PM

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

speeder · speeder's Garage

They asked her what happened and she was stumped.

Sorry...

cashflyer · 03-28-2012, 02:01 PM

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

flipper35 · flipper35's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rikao4

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

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.