Robert A. “Bob” Hoover (born 1922) is a former air show pilot and United States Air Force test pilot. His personal trademark is a wide-brimmed straw hat and wide smile.Bob Hoover is best known for his air show career, which started when he was hired to demonstrate the capabilities of Aero Commander’s Shrike Commander, a twin-engined piston business aircraft which had developed a rather staid reputation due to its bulky shape. Hoover showed the strength of the plane as he put the aircraft through rolls, loops, and other maneuvers which most people wouldn’t associate with executive aircraft. As a grand finale, he shut down both engines and executed a loop and an eight-point hesitation slow roll as he headed back to the runway. He touched down on one tire, then the other, before landing. After pulling off the runway, he would start engines to taxi back to the parking area. On airfields with large enough parking ramps (such as the Reno Stead Airport where the Reno Air Races take place), Hoover would sometimes land directly on the ramp and coast all the way back to his parking spot in front of the grandstand without re-starting the engines.
A few years after starting the show, he began carrying passengers during the show — after all, he reasoned, the Shrike Commander carries six passengers in comfort (though perhaps not as much comfort when upside down.) These passengers became known as “Hoover’s Heavers” due to the number who became airsick during the maneuvers.
With the advent of camcorders, Hoover added a flourish to the act by pouring a cup of tea from a Thermos, while performing a slow barrel roll (a 1G maneuver). Video of this has been widely distributed, to the pleasure of Aero Commander enthusiasts.
This Russian pilot comes in to land at the Innsbruck Airport, missing the touchdown point and finally touching down 2/3 of the runway later. Guess some days are better that others…
The French really do know how to make good videos. I’ve said this for quite a long time now. Anyway, check out these cool pilots and their Pumas doing some really crazy stuff over the deserts of Chad. That low pass over those three soldiers is really scary. I bet if I were in their shoes, I’d shit myself in fear. Enjoy!
This RC P-47 has quite a troubled day. After a first difficult landing, the pilot manages to send it once again in the air. On the second flight the right wheel bails out 
and the pilot is forced to belly land the plane. The P-47 is saved thanks to the pilot’s skills. The minimal damage belly landing ensures that this little RC plane will fly another day.
What I know about this video is that the helicopter is an Enstrom and is somewhere off the coast of Ireland on the deck of a Greenpeace ship. One of the deck straps was not released correctly. The pilot managed to control the helicopter but damaging the anti-torque rotor blades in the process. Check out the guy in the back as the blades pass inches away from his head. Good thing this didn’t turn into a disaster.
The Russian built Mil Mi-14 “Haze” is an amphibious version of the Mil Mi-8 Hip helicopter. Used mainly for naval operations such as anti-submarine warfare and mine counter-measures, the Mi-14 is also used for SAR (search and rescue) as well as other operations. In May 2006, a Mi-14 participated in a simulated oil spill emergency response situation off the coast of Japan. The helicopter crashed and started to take water. The pilot tried to take off but the rotor blades hit the water and the engine exploded. The pilot of the helicopter was killed.
It is always cool to try to impress your friends with some crazy low level stunts. They remain amazed at your courage and you will feel king of the skies. Of course you need to have the skills for such a demanding task, otherwise they’ll get the scare of a lifetime and you’ll finish the day on a hospital bed thinking what the hell possessed you to do such a crazy thing. So remember, doing crazy death spirals is cool only if you succeed in landing on your feet afterwards.
The Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 ( NATO codename Fishbed ) is still in service with almost 50 countries around the world more than half a century after its maiden flight. The MiG-21 LanceR is an upgraded version for the Romanian Air Force done by Elbit of Israel and Aerostar of Romania. This video offers an in-cockpit perspective of a LanceR training session at Luna Air Force Base.
Check out this CH-53E Super Stallion as it comes to land. See anything weird? Well if you don’t see the nose gear extended that is because there was some kind of problem… fortunately the mechanics did a great job and managed to release the gear. Also, got to hand it to the pilot. He did a phenomenal job controlling the “Hurricane Maker” ( sailors call the Stallion that way because of the downward thrust ). Great team effort!
Guess this is every passengers nightmare… a very rough landing giving you the scare of a lifetime. The aircraft in question is a BAe 146 and it hits hard. Not the most skillful of pilots, but then again human error counts for more than 80% of aircraft incidents and accidents. I’ve done some bad landings but this one is off the scale… quite a bounce ain’t it?
