Lee Behel
Lee Behel | |
---|---|
Born | Wesley Behel |
Died |
8 September 2014 Reno, Nevada, USA |
Cause of death | Aircraft crash due to structural failure |
Nationality | United States |
Ethnicity | Caucasian |
Citizenship | United States |
Known for | Racing aircraft |
Wesley "Lee" Behel was an American aviator and air racing champion.[1] He was the creator and, at the time of his death the president, of the "Sport Class"[2] a group of racing airplanes designed for planes under 1000 cubic inches in size that participate in the Reno Air Races each year in September, as well as a retired Lt. Colonel in the Nevada Air National Guard.[3]
Behel joined the Nevada Air National Guard in 1972, where he flew several aircraft, including the F-101 Voodoo, the F4 Phantom in which he accumulated 2,500 hours of flight time, as well as the RF-4C reconnaissance aircraft.[4] He retired from the Guard in 1996.
In 2000, he first flew in the AirVenture Cup Race, a cross-country open-circuit air race, with his ten-year-old son Jay on board. He would fly that race fifteen straight years.[4]
On 8 September 2014, Behel perished while flying Sweet Dreams, a custom built one of a kind[5] aircraft that was powered by a Chevrolet small-block engine that had been adapted for use in this specific aircraft.[6]
The crash took place in the north end of the race course when the plane Behel was flying suffered a "catastrophic mechanical failure" at 3:16 p.m.[7] According to witnesses, the aircraft took off and flew to enter the course. Around the 5th outer pylon, in an area of the course known as "High-G Ridge",[8] sections of the right wing broke away from the airplane, which then rolled sharply to the right and impacted the ground.[9] The aircraft was estimated to be traveling nearly 400 miles per hour (640 km/h) and was no more than 100 feet (30 m) off the ground when the failure occurred.
The crash occurred during a qualifying heat early in the 2014 Reno Air Race program and will be investigated by the NTSB as well as the FAA. Behel was a certified fighter jet pilot whom also enjoyed flying single-engine stunt planes.[1] Behel had once owned Steven's Creek Porshe/Audi in Santa Clara, a business that he had sold in 2012.[8]
In April 2014, Behel had set 3 class world records in the same aircraft: Speed over a 3 km course, 3 km time-to-climb, and speed over a 15 km course.[4] Additionally, at the time of his death he held the world speed records for the RF-4C in 100 and 500 km closed courses.[4]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 http://www.epi-eng.com/aircraft_engine_conversions/gp_5_reno_racer.htm
- ↑ http://www.sportclass.com/pilots/lee-behel/
- ↑ http://airrace.org/updated-statement-from-the-national-championship-air-races/
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Reno Crash Claims Pilot Lee Behel". eaa.org. Experimental Aircraft Association. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
- ↑ http://www.businessinsider.com/r-pilot-killed-at-reno-air-races-scene-of-2011-crash-2014-9
- ↑ http://www.flyingmag.com/technique/accidents/lee-behel-sport-class-founder-dies-reno-crash
- ↑ http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/09/08/plane-crashes-reno-air-races/15310357/
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 http://abc7news.com/news/local-pilot-involved-in-fatal-accident-during-air-race-in-reno/300349/
- ↑ "Preliminary NTSB Report". NTSB.gov. National Transportation Safety Board. Retrieved 20 October 2014.