David Jenkins’ Condition Was Previously Undiagnosed

The U.K. Air Accidents Investigation Branch has released a report from an accident which occurred last April in which a well-known air show pilot was fatally injured.

David Jenkins' Edge 360 went down during a media event April 22, 2015 promoting the launch of the Old Buckenham air show. He was 61 year old.

According to the report: "The pilot was flying a series of aerobatic maneuvers at Old Buckenham Airfield when the accident occurred. His aircraft failed to recover correctly from a gyroscopic tumbling maneuver and inadvertently entered a spin. The pilot made no apparent attempt to recover from the spin and suffered fatal injuries in the ground impact.

"The aerobatic maneuver was entered at relatively low speed and height, which may have been due in part to a lack of recent aerobatic practice and the use of a new or improvised aerobatic sequence. The investigation concluded that the aircraft entered the spin as a result of inappropriate control inputs, which also precluded a recovery.

"The pilot was found to have been suffering from a serious and previously undiagnosed heart condition, which had the potential to affect his ability to perform the aerobatic manoeuvres safely and which could have produced incapacitating symptoms at a critical stage of the flight.

FMI: Download Report