FrankPilot

Come follow YouTuber “Missionary Bush Pilot” & his Feb 2025 video “Plane Crash in PNG: What Happened?” in which he discusses a recent nearby aircraft crash, as he flies from Nadzab Airport to the unbelievably challenging airstrip of Dinangat, in Papua New Guinea. Hope you like. Cheers. Note: I do all the research for my videos & the text words are all mine. I run my words through an AI voice (an Australian male because that's what I am!) for those who want to listen as well as look.

The famous post-WW2 F-86 Sabre fighter jet was the USA’s 1st swept-wing fighter. It used research captured from German WW2 aeronautical engineers. It set world speed records, & was a great success in the Korean war. Come learn more about it, & enjoy some real-life footage. Cheers.

Jerrie Mock (1925 - 2014) in 1964 was the 1st woman to fly solo around the world. She flew a single-engine Cessna 180. Mock did what Amelia Earhart failed to do when she vanished in her twin-engine aircraft in 1937. Come along for the ride, at least part way from the USA to Egypt. Hope you enjoy. Cheers. Note: I do all the research for my videos & the words are all mine. I run my words through an AI voice (an Australian male because that's what I am!) for those who want to listen as well as look.

Trafford Leigh-Mallory, a rather divisive character, was a WW1 RFC pilot & a key RAF Commander in WW2 Battle of Britain. He became Air Commander-in-Chief (C-in-C) for the WW2 D-Day Landings. Finally, he was appointed as Air C-in-C of WW2 SE Asia Command (SEAC). This video covers his tragic flight in his Avro York to take up the SEAC appointment. Hope you like. Cheers. Note: I do all the research for my videos & the words are all mine. I run my words through an AI voice (an Australian male because that's what I am!) for those who want to listen as well as look.

In 2015 Michael Smith, an Australian businessman, fulfilled his dream of flying around the world. He did so in a SeaRey amphibious aircraft – the first solo seaplane circumnavigation of the world. With only a single engine, no autopilot, & limited flying experience, he was perhaps lucky to survive the experience. Come follow along in MSFS from Melbourne, Australia to London, UK. Hope you enjoy. Cheers.

Lawrence Sperry (1892 - 1923), son of the famous inventor of the gyroscope, was an accomplished pilot who amazingly invented the 1st autopilot, artificial horizon, turn coordinator, safe parachute, sports aircraft, amphibious aircraft, drone, & lots more. He tragically died in an aircraft crash at age 31. Come learn more about him. Hope you like. Cheers.

Jorge Chavez, a Peruvian Frenchman, was the first person to fly over the European Alps. He crossed the Simplon Pass from Switzerland to Italy in a primitive Bleriot aircraft in 1910. Unfortunately, while landing in Italy, he crashed & died a few days later. Come learn about his flight, & enjoy real-live footage of a Bleriot aircraft at the end. Hope you like. Cheers.

Patagonia is an ancient, beautiful area covering the southern part of South America. Like so much of the world, it has been fought over & divided, & its indigenous people, who have been there from before 10,000 BC, have been largely decimated. But at least its natural beauty & value is now recognised through a series of Biodiversity Reserves, National Parks, & UNESCO World Heritage Areas. It was first flown over & studied from the air by German Gunther Pluschow in 1928/29. Come see his story. Hope you enjoy.

During WW2, the USAAF had about 30 airfields in Australia to help protect Australia & to prosecute the war in the Pacific. Scores of USAAF aircraft crashed in Australia during the war, with consequential deaths & injuries. In this video we look at the top 8 deadliest crashes.

In August 2025, a Piper PA-28 Cherokee, with a student & instructor on board, made a forced landing onto a golf course. The aircraft crashed heavily, but did not hit anyone or anything on the ground. There was no post-crash fire, & the occupants were very lucky to walk away largely uninjured. With the benefit of hindsight, they maybe lost valuable time communicating with ATC & initially aiming for another far-away golf course, which maybe prevented a safer landing in an open space or on one of the many beaches. What would you have done? Hope you like. Cheers.

Rose Bay, in magnificent Sydney Harbour, Australia, was the world’s last flying-boat base. Come re-live this golden-age of aviation history, based on a new book produced with the present-day Sydney Seaplanes. Hope you enjoy.

In 1985 USA super-star Ricky Nelson’s WW2 DC-3 crashed & burned after blinding smoke filled the cockpit. The 2 pilots escaped, but all the passengers - Nelson, his fiancee & 5 band members - died in the burning aircraft. Nowadays there is an Emergency Vision Assurance System (EVAS) which allows pilots to see their basic instruments through the smoke. In this video we discuss both the crash & EVAS. Hope you find this interesting.

Note: In the video above, VMC on the 1st slide and IFR on the 2nd slide should both read VFR.

On 15 Jul 2025 in Australia, a Beechcraft Debonair crashed & the pilot died, after flying VFR into IMC. This all too frequent situation was particularly shocking because the pilot was not qualified for cross-country or instrument flying, & in worsening weather & rising terrain he passed by 2 airports just moments before the crash.

What on earth caused a Cessna Citation business jet to return to its departure airport 10 minutes later, & then crash & burn on late final, killing all on board, including a family of 4. We won’t know the answer until the NTSB investigates, but considering the possibilities provides some early useful re-inforcing of safety lessons.