Runaway Plane Video Scarier By Far Than The Cirrus Debacle

An FAA employee with a movie camera just happened to be on scene when a pilot hand propped a Cessna taildragger with his girlfriend inside and one brake working. What happens next is truly frightening.

Plane & Pilot

Tuesday, September 25, 2018 at 09:08 AM ET

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Key Takeaways:

The article discusses the dangers of hand propping aircraft, referencing a recent incident where a Cirrus started and moved without a pilot in control.
It also features a historical, "truly terrifying" FAA film from the 1950s that depicted a hand propping accident, emphasizing the long-standing risks involved.

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By now you’ve doubtless seen the video of a guy hand propping a Cirrus and it starting and, well, there being no one in the Cirrus to keep it from doing what it normally does when the engine starts (apparently at high rpm).

But back in the day—the 1950s by the look of it—the FAA released a movie (I guess they hadn’t yet started up a YouTube account) that showed a hand propping accident that’s truly terrifying. Warning. This is upsetting to watch but everybody survives.