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RV-10 Accident

Todd,
Very glad to hear you and your daughter are going to be okay. Rest up and let us know if there's anything we can do to help.
 
I just cannot say how good it is to hear from you, especially since we were on the forum Friday talking about our event in Athens. You were discussed, prayed over, and all of that during breakfast here.

Get well, and let us know if there is anything we can do here in Athens to assist.
 
Todd, Ray and I are close by....

...and can assist in any recovery, legwork, whatever. You're 30 minutes away. Call or PM me if you need
Cell 478 494 three seven 5 seven,

Best,

Pierre
 
Todd, we are very glad to hear that you are recovering. It is certainly terrible to hear of the loss of your airplane, which we all know how much time you put into it and how much enjoyment it was giving you.
We hope you have a speedy 100% recovery.

Vic
 
Todd, is it too early to start coming up with nic-names for you? ;)


WOW! :eek: I'm glad you are okay man.
 
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Wow

Reading through the posts and some details of what happened...amazing. It seems both you and your daughter had someone looking out for you. It gives me the willies just thinking about it.

We wish you the best for a speed recovery and are sure glad you both survived such an ordeal.

As for the plane, in the scope of things...WHO CARES!. Best wishes from fellow vafers in Canada. We hope the recovery is short and full.
 
TSwezey said:
Well on the Purple board I was RV-10Builder then RV-10Flyer now I guess I'll be RV-10Burner!
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I don't know...since the fire was at the conclusion of your flight, I would suggest the obvious -- "afterburner". :D

So glad you and your daughter are OK, Todd.
 
First flood, now fire......

Wow! That's really scary. You guys suffer any damage to your ear drums as a result of the explosion? Just curious. You have a lot to thank God for!!

It's a real bummer about the plane. "Stuff" can be replaced but lives cannot.
Our kids lost their camper in the Nashville floods. They got out with their lives and that's all that matters. First flood, now fire, what's next....locust? :rolleyes:
 
Todd,

Glad to hear of a fortunate outcome after such a dreadful experience. I wish you and your daughter well with a full and speedy recovery.

God Bless.
 
Jamie said:
I don't know...since the fire was at the conclusion of your flight, I would suggest the obvious -- "afterburner". :D

So glad you and your daughter are OK, Todd.
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Okay, since we know he's going to be alright now, we can start kidding...
Since he got "cooked"... "Hibachi" :D

Glad you're okay, buddy!
 
Wow, amazing/ scary story Todd and so glad your and your daughter are ok. I was thinking of you two all weekend. Speedy recovery to you both.
 
lucky

I'm glad to hear that you and your daughter got out, and were released after only a couple days.

I grew up having an uncle around (he was my inspiration to fly, as it happens) who burned in crop duster crash in the late 60's, and he and his injuries made it very clear that there aren't a lot of good outcomes from a fire. He continued to fly, after a very long recovery.

When you are thinking about what happened, remind each other that you two dealt with a difficult emergency, and and survived.

I look forward to updates from you here as you recover, and sort out what happened.

As for nicknames, I'd say that you may now accurately answer to "Lucky".

Best wishes for a full recovery,
 
Thank God that you and your daughter will be OK. Hoping for a speedy recovery for you both.

Dick Sipp
N110DV
We met at Jekyl earlier this year.
 
Todd,
I know you like to be noticed, going the alternative engine route and everything, but burning your own plane to a crisp just to become the center of attention on 4 different forum threads (AOPA, Purple Pilot's, Matronics and of course this one here at VAF) is going just too far! ;)

All kidding aside, glad you and your daughter are still with us.
 
My best wishes on you and your daughter fast recovery. Sincerely glad that you are OK considering how much worse it could have been.
 
Auburntsts said:
Todd,
I know you like to be noticed, going the alternative engine route and everything, but burning your own plane to a crisp just to become the center of attention on 4 different forum threads (AOPA, Purple Pilot's, Matronics and of course this one here at VAF) is going just too far! ;)

All kidding aside, glad you and your daughter are still with us.
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I do what I can do. Hadn't been to the matronics board in a long time. I would rather not be the subject matter on any of the boards and still have my beast.
 
Wow what a great discussion on Matronics. I told Dave that I thought I was raising the flaps when it blew. My daughter said I was turning it off. Either case the smartest thing to do would have been to open the doors but I didn't know the plane was so packed with fumes. I can tell you if/when I build another RV there will be no fuel lines in the cockpit. I woke up at 2 in the morning thinking about a much better lever free fuel system. If you have time read the Matronics thread it is very good.
 
My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.

I will read your matronics post with great interest.

Michael
 
Fire is among my biggest fears in flying... Glad it turned out as well as it did for you.

Have you determined a cause/origin?
 
Hey Todd,

Thanks for chiming in on the Matronics discussion. I'm the one who kicked off the flap motor/boost pump theory. It's interesting to know that you were flipping the switch at the moment; that at least makes me feel less stupid.

I tend to agree though. Until your event, I never thought about the mixing pot of explosive elements that merge in the tunnel. Scary stuff when you really begin to realize what's happening in there.

Also another reason to keep all O2 lines from running in the tunnel too... Something else I hadn't thought of until your event.

I hate having any guinea pig scenarios, but I'm really glad the pig is still alive and can contribute to keeping this from happening to anyone else in the future.



Phil
 
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Thoughts and prayers are with you and your daughter bud! What a harrowing experience! :eek: Glad you're both going to be fine...

:)
 
New Estinquisher

Toobuilder said:
Fire is among my biggest fears in flying...
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Very happy that all is going to be well for both of you. Fire is a terrifying event in any circumstance.

Last month I replaced my "pocket sized" fire extinguisher in my Grumman Traveler with a much larger Halon version within easy reach, (http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/pspages/c352tsc.php). The couple of extra pounds is well worth the extra seconds it may give you.

"That which does not kill us makes us stronger." Friedrich Nietzsche
 
skyfrog said:
Very happy that all is going to be well for both of you. Fire is a terrifying event in any circumstance.

Last month I replaced my "pocket sized" fire extinguisher in my Grumman Traveler with a much larger Halon version within easy reach, (http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/pspages/c352tsc.php). The couple of extra pounds is well worth the extra seconds it may give you.

"That which does not kill us makes us stronger." Friedrich Nietzsche
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The little one is almost useless! I will put a bigger one in next time!
 
TSwezey said:
The little one is almost useless! I will put a bigger one in next time!
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Now there is experience talkin right there! ;)

This may be a dumb question, but did you or your daughter have any damage to your hearing? I mean with those kinds of pressures inside the cabin did your hearing check out okay? Just curious.

Any guesses on your part what happened? Did you build the fuel system yourself or was it a Van's design system in the tunnel?



*********************


Todd (Mr. Lucky), I think I can speak for a lot of us that your candor and openness about what happened is really courageous of you. Sharing information on the event, letting us ask questions, keeping a sense of humor, so others may learn from what happened is really commendable on your part. You are a credit to experimental aviation in many ways and on many different levels. Thank you.



:)
 
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Todd - Beth and I are so happy you and your daughter are A-OK!!! ...and that you're willing to connect with all of us here at VAF!

Our payers are with all of you!

- Peter
 
Geico266 said:
Now there is experience talkin right there! ;)

Todd, this may be a dumb question, but did you or your daughter have any damage to your hearing? I mean with those kinds of pressures inside the cabin did your hearing check out okay?

Any guesses on your part what happened? Did you build the fuel system yourself or was it a Van's design system in the tunnel?

Just curious.
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We have a return so some of it is different then Vans. Next time no aluminum tubing and no fuel inside the cockpit! They try to cram a 100 pounds of crud into a ten pound box.

No hearing problems what so ever. No pressure feeling at all. It was so strange. It blows the doors and windows off but doesn't touch you.
 
TSwezey said:
No hearing problems what so ever. No pressure feeling at all. It was so strange. It blows the doors and windows off but doesn't touch you.
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Did you still have your headsets on? That certainly would have protected your ears.
 
Todd.........

I am so sorry about your airplane, in speaking with you in the past, I know how proud you were of the plane. However, I am so happy you and your daughter are alive & well. It could have been so different. Praise God for that. After you collect your thoughts and decompress, I hope you decide to press on in your aviation endeavors. You truly are a pioneer in experimental aviation.

All my best to you and family.
 
gimp2x said:
i'm guessing yess, otherwise it's near physically impossible the doors blew off and the eardrums are intact
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Yep. They were on and now they are melted!
35ckbck.jpg
 
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That's heart breaking Todd....

Can't tell you how happy we are that you're generally okay.

Are you going to be at OSH this year? I'd like to get a chance to meet you (and shake all 5 of your fingers).

Phil
 
Glad to hear you're doing well... I wonder if you didn't really feel anything because you were essentially at the center of the "blast". Everything went out from where you were, and the backpressure essentially hit you everywhere at once. That would be quite different than if the explosion was to one side and blew past you.

Might be time to add the new callsign to your signature...

[size=-2]And maybe change the status from "flying"... :([/size]
 
Snowflake said:
Glad to hear you're doing well... I wonder if you didn't really feel anything because you were essentially at the center of the "blast". Everything went out from where you were, and the backpressure essentially hit you everywhere at once. That would be quite different than if the explosion was to one side and blew past you.
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That's exactly what I was thinking but was having a hard time putting it into words. There wasn't an explosion from someplace else and it hit them. They were in the middle of the air in the cockpit igniting, and the 'explosion' was actually the doors blowing of the plane from the air igniting.
 
BrianNC said:
That's exactly what I was thinking but was having a hard time putting it into words. There wasn't an explosion from someplace else and it hit them. They were in the middle of the air in the cockpit igniting, and the 'explosion' was actually the doors blowing of the plane from the air igniting.
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Probably the fact that the overpressures were fairly low. Let's say 1 PSI, which is effectively a couple of thousand feet of altitude change. Humans can deal with that kind of pressure, but structures have a harder time.

The doors are what? Roughly 2'x3' or 24" x 36"? That's roughly 860 square inches.

At a 1 PSI pressure difference, the doors would have to withstand 860in^2 x 1 PSI = 860 lbs of force. Not sure if they could take that or not. But maybe the overpressure was 2PSI or 3PSI - who knows. Anyway, the forces add up pretty quickly on large surfaces.
 
Blasts go from the center out since the vapors were really around us I don't think any of the blast had to pass us.
 
Providence, my friend.... providence!

Todd, just give thanks, as we have, for your many blessings. Remember, an airplane or-------------(insert whatever, here) , ain't nothin' but a thing!

Regards,
 
daughters stuff

Todd---I've seen the plane---Does your daughter need help in replaceing some of her stuff that was lost? Looks like alot of chothes and things. Let us know.
Tom

TSwezey said:
I want to thank everybody for their notes and words. They have really meant a lot to me!
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Tom
I think we are going stop by there tomorrow and pick up what is left. But thanks I think we should be fine.
 
That was a very sobering picture. I can't imagine how it feels to look at that for you.

I hope the discussion of the RV-10 fuel system gets echoed here; I don't go to the Matronics lists anymore because the signal/noise ratio went to heck long ago.
 
Daughters same size for clothes?

Todd,

My daughter always has clothes we end up donating. If they are around the same size we could send you a box of stuff. PM me if you need something for her.

So glad to hear that you two are still among us.

If you go to OSH this year a cold one (or two) is on me.
 
Fire Suppression System

A few weeks ago there was a thread on internal fire suppression systems. Most of the comments felt that the system wouldn't really do any good. Well, I think 15 seconds of halon while you were trying to get out certainly wouldn't hurt. My mind is made up. I'm putting one in the new 7.

Like most, I really fear fire. Again Todd, glad you got out!!!!
 
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