Speaking of stunts gone wrong, a pair of Red Bull demonstration pilots, cousins Luke Aikins and Andy Farrington, attempted a stunt in which each pilot bailed out of his identically equipped Cessna 182 aircraft with the intent of flying into the vacated cockpit of the other plane. It didn’t quite go off as planned. Aikins made it into Farrington’s by-then empty 182, but Farrington was forced to deploy his parachute after the plane he was aiming for failed to stabilize in its descent. The plane crashed and was destroyed, but Farrington was fine, as was Aikins, who safely landed the 182 he managed to fly into. The FAA, however, was not amused, and in the succeeding weeks, it came to light that the pilots had not gotten a waiver from the FAA for the flight. Aikins took responsibility, though the FAA yanked both pilots’ certificates regardless.
Red Bull Plane Swap
Key Takeaways:
- Red Bull pilots Luke Aikins and Andy Farrington attempted a mid-air plane swap stunt, where they would bail out of their planes and fly into the other's vacated cockpit.
- Aikins successfully entered and landed the other plane, but Farrington's target plane failed to stabilize and crashed, forcing him to parachute to safety.
- The pilots had not obtained the necessary FAA waiver for the stunt, leading to regulatory action.
- As a result of the unauthorized flight, the FAA revoked both Aikins' and Farrington's pilot certificates.
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