Why people are upset at the Red Bull stunt
Joe:
I was not the only one who complained about the Red Bull stunt, but I was one of the first. This is what I observed.
I was out for a walk on Algonquin Island with my wife on a beautiful summer evening about 7:30 when we heard a terrible racket directly overhead. It was a helicopter hovering; its rotor blades thumping over and over, in a deafening, repetitive racket.
We stopped to watch and only then noticed that another smaller plane appeared to be buzzing the helicopter. Now, after reading the e-mails from the airport managers, I recognize that this was all part of a stunt or an advertising gimmick, but we did not know that at the time. I was genuinely concerned that the two aircraft would collide and debris would fall on the community.
The important point was that it looked scary from the ground. Joe, you are an airplane guy and you know better than I that it is difficult to judge something that is overhead at a distance, but to me it looked like the two aircraft were about to collide and this happened more than once. The small plane buzzed the helicopter several times.
We all have seen aircraft doing acrobatics and some people even enjoy that type of thing. Fair enough. As long as it is safe, I guess there is no problem, but the point that I want to make is that this was going on right over a residential community -- DIRECTLY OVER HOUSES, PEOPLE, BOATERS, AND FOLKS JUST OUT HAVING A PLEASANT EVENING STROLL.
I felt then and I feel now that this whole performance was unnecessary and possibly dangerous. These aerial stunts either should have taken place out over the lake, where it would not have bothered anyone, or better still they should have happened somewhere out of the city.
I want to make one final point, and Joe I hope you appreciate this. The Island Airport will remain politically sensitive as long as it stays in operation, but when the administrators of the airport approve of a stunt like this right over the heads of a residential community and one that feels very threatened by the existence of the airport, it is like saying we do not care one whit about the feelings of the people who live in that community. That attitude and behavior will inevitably lead to anger and sometimes intemperate statements.
The people who run this airport have to grow up and realize that they are running a facility in the middle of a city, and they cannot allow a bunch of fly boys do stunts directly over the heads of a residential community. If this behavior does not stop then the relations between the airport and the community will only get worse.
Bill Freeman
I was not the only one who complained about the Red Bull stunt, but I was one of the first. This is what I observed.
I was out for a walk on Algonquin Island with my wife on a beautiful summer evening about 7:30 when we heard a terrible racket directly overhead. It was a helicopter hovering; its rotor blades thumping over and over, in a deafening, repetitive racket.
We stopped to watch and only then noticed that another smaller plane appeared to be buzzing the helicopter. Now, after reading the e-mails from the airport managers, I recognize that this was all part of a stunt or an advertising gimmick, but we did not know that at the time. I was genuinely concerned that the two aircraft would collide and debris would fall on the community.
The important point was that it looked scary from the ground. Joe, you are an airplane guy and you know better than I that it is difficult to judge something that is overhead at a distance, but to me it looked like the two aircraft were about to collide and this happened more than once. The small plane buzzed the helicopter several times.
We all have seen aircraft doing acrobatics and some people even enjoy that type of thing. Fair enough. As long as it is safe, I guess there is no problem, but the point that I want to make is that this was going on right over a residential community -- DIRECTLY OVER HOUSES, PEOPLE, BOATERS, AND FOLKS JUST OUT HAVING A PLEASANT EVENING STROLL.
I felt then and I feel now that this whole performance was unnecessary and possibly dangerous. These aerial stunts either should have taken place out over the lake, where it would not have bothered anyone, or better still they should have happened somewhere out of the city.
I want to make one final point, and Joe I hope you appreciate this. The Island Airport will remain politically sensitive as long as it stays in operation, but when the administrators of the airport approve of a stunt like this right over the heads of a residential community and one that feels very threatened by the existence of the airport, it is like saying we do not care one whit about the feelings of the people who live in that community. That attitude and behavior will inevitably lead to anger and sometimes intemperate statements.
The people who run this airport have to grow up and realize that they are running a facility in the middle of a city, and they cannot allow a bunch of fly boys do stunts directly over the heads of a residential community. If this behavior does not stop then the relations between the airport and the community will only get worse.
Bill Freeman
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