Mig15 bottoms loop too low(?0

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Touchdown! Greaser!
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Display name:
Dave Taylor
I am hoping the story as related to me is correct. If not, it's a good one and fine pic too

"Contributer says : " The tail strike occurred during at a 1990 airshow in Harrison, Arkansas. Kelly, who was a technician for the FAA and somewhat
of a camera buff, was tracking with his camera, as this guy looped off the deck in a MiG-15.

The pilot had just completed a loop and misjudged his pull-out. Everyone
considering themselves as potential victims, took-off running in all directions.
But Kelly had a non-threatening position along with a strong motivation to take
the picture. So just as the MiG scraped the ground, Kelly captured this rare image.

Had it been circulated at the time, this once in a lifetime photograph might have earned an award.

A few weeks later, in Fort Smith, Kelly was showing me these pictures he had developed at a local Walmart. I asked him for a copy and now have it hanging
on my office wall – a clear depiction of the tiny difference between life and death.

Oh, by the way, the guy just made a wide circle, lowered his landing gear, touched down . . then taxied in showing scratched paint, but no sheet metal damage. "
 

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"Our Lady of Blessed Horsepower, don't fail me now!"
 
That guy flys his low passes even lower than Jesse!
 
That reminds me of the Blue Angels F-4 video from Threshold. Solo came through the vertical about 100ft too low and started talking to himself. "Don't pull, not going to make it, don't pull, might make it, don't pull don't pull don't pull, might, don't pull.." He managed to get it level with a minimal descent rate just as the tail hit. The front end slammed against the ground and slid 8000ft down the runway.
 
if there was really no sheet metal damage...that would be amazing
 
a much better outcome than an F-86 at an airshow at KBJC a number of years ago ... very high density altitude and the pullout was not high enough ... by quite a large margin. Pilot did not survive, sadly.
 
Didnt an AF plane set the alt too low on departure at Mountain Home recently, similar or worse outcome?
 
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