3 ms·

Man decapitated by remote-controlled toy helicopter

14 points by Kilo-byte 13y ago

ChuckMcM 13y ago
Ouch. I was at a model meet as a kid when a 1/10th scale plane careened into the crowd and sent a couple of people to the hospital but this is the first time I've read of an R/C model killing someone.
Theriac25 13y ago
Yeah, that's not a toy.
- wldlyinaccurate 13y ago
  Agree. Solid blades being spun by a powerful motor? Not the sort of toy I would give to my kids.
  - Luyt 13y ago
    You are absolutely right. I owned a RC sailplane (wingspan 2 meter), with an electric motor to get it up in the air. That motor had a sharp propellor on it, and was incredible powerful for its size; it was fearsome. It probably had enough power to cut off fingers.
Udo 13y ago
This is very sad, and I feel for his loved ones. At the same time it's worth pointing out that these things command respect and sensible caution, as it is with pretty much any other hobby. > In one video, he drops the $1,500 model from above, only to restart the rotor > just inches from his head.
harrytuttle 13y ago
These aren't really 'toys'. They stop being toys when you buy them from the model shop instead of the toy shop. Couple of incidents from my youth: A good friend of mine had a couple of bones smashed in his ankle after a fairly innocent looking Yokomo MR4 TC ploughed into his leg at around 40mph. Hospital, static cast, crutches for 2 months. No prop and wasn't even airborne. Model rockets: these are the worst. I nearly killed someone with one after a fin snapped off (due to putting a E engine in a low D rated rocket) and it basically lost stability and went sideways missing someone's face by literally 3 inches. It had to be dug out of the mud due to the impact force. This particular chopper incident was probably the guy being an idiot. I've seen it before. They hover their choppers inverted and do stunt rolls about 6 feet away from their heads. One bit of wind or a miscalculation and this happens. However, we shouldn't stop playing with these things. We should just put safety first.
anigbrowl 13y ago
Pirozek developed a YouTube channel where he would post footage of various tricks and flights using a Trex 700 model helicopter. In one video, he drops the $1,500 model from above, only to restart the rotor just inches from his head. The helicopter's blade span measures 62 inches, its rotor spins at more than 2,000 rpm. Well, that was fucking stupid. That's a rude thing to say, but his youtube channel is full of comments along the lines of 'he died doing what he loved...must have been something wrong with the helicopter, he was such a great pilot.' WTF.
- zobzu 13y ago
  hmm yeah indeed.everyone piloting those (this very kind of big helis that is - small quads in comparison are relatively harmless) know itll chop various parts of your body clean off. then everyone piloting at that level know failures always happen. its not about if you crash, but when you crash. thats like the first rule of rc flying and its even more true when ot comes to helis.
- primelens 13y ago
  Just saw one of his videos. And while he was a very skilled pilot, I wouldn't get within meters of those things while they were airborne and spinning at those speeds. Geez! What a waste for someone to have such skill and yet lack the simplest common sense.
leetrout 13y ago
My heart goes out to his family. It seems timely to point out that if you're out there flying any size or type of model aircraft (as another posted, not fair to call it a "toy") you should seriously consider joining the AMA[1]. It appears that this young man was a member and flying at a sanctioned location[2]. His family should receive $10,000 in death benefits from the club[3]. This hobby has the possibility for you to hurt yourself, someone else, or damage property and being a member provides a lot of benefits, even if you're just out flying in a park in some cases. I hope they remain safe in future activities and they don't lose the right to fly. [1] http://www.modelaircraft.org/ http://www.modelaircraft.org/ [2] http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2013/09/05/remote-control-helicopter-kills-man-in-brooklyn/ http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2013/09/05/remote-control-he... [3] http://www.modelaircraft.org/files/103.pdf http://www.modelaircraft.org/files/103.pdf
- harrytuttle 13y ago
  I imagine their insurer would probably only pay out it they weren't flying the giant chain saw next to their head... This was more than avoidable.
- zobzu 13y ago
  note that similarly high performance rc cars sometimec shop feet off too, sadely - anything that relatively heavy and powerfull can hurt pretty bad.
deleted 13y ago
[deleted]
bsullivan01 13y ago
Sad for his family but, as sad as it sounds, frankly its better that he didn't take someone else's life. These are dangerous toys and soon enough we'll see heavy regulation. I was surprised to learn that a lot of people are killed in Pakistan by kites http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4800004.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4800004.stm

14 points by Kilo-byte 13y ago

Ouch. I was at a model meet as a kid when a 1/10th scale plane careened into the crowd and sent a couple of people to the hospital but this is the first time I've read of an R/C model killing someone.

Theriac25 13y ago

Yeah, that's not a toy.

wldlyinaccurate 13y ago
Agree. Solid blades being spun by a powerful motor? Not the sort of toy I would give to my kids.
- Luyt 13y ago
  You are absolutely right. I owned a RC sailplane (wingspan 2 meter), with an electric motor to get it up in the air. That motor had a sharp propellor on it, and was incredible powerful for its size; it was fearsome. It probably had enough power to cut off fingers.

Udo 13y ago

This is very sad, and I feel for his loved ones. At the same time it's worth pointing out that these things command respect and sensible caution, as it is with pretty much any other hobby. > In one video, he drops the $1,500 model from above, only to restart the rotor > just inches from his head.

harrytuttle 13y ago

These aren't really 'toys'. They stop being toys when you buy them from the model shop instead of the toy shop. Couple of incidents from my youth: A good friend of mine had a couple of bones smashed in his ankle after a fairly innocent looking Yokomo MR4 TC ploughed into his leg at around 40mph. Hospital, static cast, crutches for 2 months. No prop and wasn't even airborne. Model rockets: these are the worst. I nearly killed someone with one after a fin snapped off (due to putting a E engine in a low D rated rocket) and it basically lost stability and went sideways missing someone's face by literally 3 inches. It had to be dug out of the mud due to the impact force. This particular chopper incident was probably the guy being an idiot. I've seen it before. They hover their choppers inverted and do stunt rolls about 6 feet away from their heads. One bit of wind or a miscalculation and this happens. However, we shouldn't stop playing with these things. We should just put safety first.

anigbrowl 13y ago

Pirozek developed a YouTube channel where he would post footage of various tricks and flights using a Trex 700 model helicopter. In one video, he drops the $1,500 model from above, only to restart the rotor just inches from his head. The helicopter's blade span measures 62 inches, its rotor spins at more than 2,000 rpm. Well, that was fucking stupid. That's a rude thing to say, but his youtube channel is full of comments along the lines of 'he died doing what he loved...must have been something wrong with the helicopter, he was such a great pilot.' WTF.

zobzu 13y ago
hmm yeah indeed.everyone piloting those (this very kind of big helis that is - small quads in comparison are relatively harmless) know itll chop various parts of your body clean off. then everyone piloting at that level know failures always happen. its not about if you crash, but when you crash. thats like the first rule of rc flying and its even more true when ot comes to helis.
primelens 13y ago
Just saw one of his videos. And while he was a very skilled pilot, I wouldn't get within meters of those things while they were airborne and spinning at those speeds. Geez! What a waste for someone to have such skill and yet lack the simplest common sense.

leetrout 13y ago

My heart goes out to his family. It seems timely to point out that if you're out there flying any size or type of model aircraft (as another posted, not fair to call it a "toy") you should seriously consider joining the AMA[1]. It appears that this young man was a member and flying at a sanctioned location[2]. His family should receive $10,000 in death benefits from the club[3]. This hobby has the possibility for you to hurt yourself, someone else, or damage property and being a member provides a lot of benefits, even if you're just out flying in a park in some cases. I hope they remain safe in future activities and they don't lose the right to fly. [1] http://www.modelaircraft.org/ http://www.modelaircraft.org/ [2] http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2013/09/05/remote-control-helicopter-kills-man-in-brooklyn/ http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2013/09/05/remote-control-he... [3] http://www.modelaircraft.org/files/103.pdf http://www.modelaircraft.org/files/103.pdf

harrytuttle 13y ago
I imagine their insurer would probably only pay out it they weren't flying the giant chain saw next to their head... This was more than avoidable.
zobzu 13y ago
note that similarly high performance rc cars sometimec shop feet off too, sadely - anything that relatively heavy and powerfull can hurt pretty bad.

deleted 13y ago

[deleted]

bsullivan01 13y ago

Sad for his family but, as sad as it sounds, frankly its better that he didn't take someone else's life. These are dangerous toys and soon enough we'll see heavy regulation. I was surprised to learn that a lot of people are killed in Pakistan by kites http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4800004.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4800004.stm