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Man Killed By His Own Radio-Controlled Helicopter In Brooklyn
An anonymous reader sends this news from the Wall Street Journal:
"A 19-year-old model helicopter enthusiast was killed Thursday when a toy helicopter he was flying struck him in the head, a law-enforcement official said. Victim Roman Pirozek 'was known to be aggressive in his flying and often executed tricks. He was executing a trick when he was struck,' the official said. Mr. Pirozek – depicted in [this YouTube video] he posted in July — was flying a remote-controlled helicopter worth about $2,000 when it struck him, cutting off the top of his head, the official said. The Woodhaven, Queens, resident was pronounced dead at the scene. His father was with him at the time of the accident, the official said."
Holy hell that's insane. What a way to go :(
Hats off for model helicopter enthusiasts.
Too soon?
This guy is going to get flamed but I agree. No flying-chainsaws near your own head. It seems like a "no-brainer" oops, too soon?
Real helicopter pilots always wear a helmet. And so should you...
BTW, would somebody think of the children ? How long before some maniac brings one of these to school and decapitates a bunch of innocent children?
It is long overdue we ban them on school grounds (and for a couple of miles around each school) and establish a national registry for the devices and background checks for buyers!
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Yeah, I agree this very unsafe behavior for at least one reason, just off the top of my head.
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"The only difference between men and boys are the price of their toys."
Don't be so sensitive on the terminology. Any recreational device can be considered a toy. Some "toys" are quite expensive, and some can be quite deadly if used improperly and require caution and respect, but they're still basically adult toys.
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At least he didn't kill anybody else.
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...the Rotary Club will make him an honorary member?
I was a klutz, big hands, big feet, big head, small body, but I tried out for every sport and when I didn't make the teams I waited to be picked last for pickup games. I don't know if this guy missed out on team sports but maybe he did. Sports teach you you can get hurt. Computer games and remote controlled toys don't teach you about getting hurt. They don't instill caution.
I can hear the legal coffers clinking as lawyers prepare to amass and file class action lawsuits over an infrequent incident blown out of proportion by newscasts seething with "Think of the children" and "Helicopters kill people" campaigns.
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...NYC outlawing remote-controlled planes/helicopters/etc in 3...2...1...
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There are also procedures for using chainsaws, barbecue grills, and other things that can kill a person. There probably are procedures, at least minimal, CYA procedures for model aircraft too. That he wasn't following them is why he killed himself. Given his performance-nature of his stunts, think of it like the guy who juggles chainsaws, a not-recommended use of the device, that could, and in this case did, lead to injury and death.
I play with model rockets. Fairly big ones, I'm up into the "G" engine size, and we practice a certain amount of range safety. I've had factory-made engines explode on the pad and that 30' distance is very important, as are following procedures for hooking up the electrical wiring for the ignition. Even with rockets that have exploded on the pad, rockets that have broken up in-flight right after leaving the pad, and rockets that have caught on fire, no one has ever been hurt because we're not stupid enough to sit right next to the rocket when we fire it. The only real danger we have to face is rockets whose parachute ejection fails, and the rocket coming down like a javelin, which has happened a couple of times but nowhere in the vicinity of where anyone was at the time.
I feel sorry for the guy's family, but my sympathy is limited by the documented reckless behavior he's shown before.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
Some of the stunts he performs are pretty impressive, but as far as I can tell they're all dangerously close to him, given the model can go what appears 0-100 in less than a second. At some points the vehicle is less than 10 feet from him. I would call it a toy, but it's a bit beyond that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRPfLKVMGM8 - Last video posted by Pirozek. Rest in peace, doing what you loved.
I'm not saying it's likely at all, but how can one be sure that someone else didn't override his signal and took over control of the craft? Just a thought.
It's quite possible with the old analog FM transmitters if you knew which channel they were in, and even then the two transmitters would be "fighting" for control and positive override control would be very difficult. The way he was used to flying so close to himself (according to one of the stories) it only takes a brief "radio hit" while the chopper was close enough to him to lose momentary control and cause this impact. Someone could possibly take advantage of one of these moments and just mess with the signal a little bit, if they wanted to do it deliberately.
In the case of an FM radio system it's more possible it may have happened by accident if someone on the same FM channel started their transmitter and gave his receiver even a quick radio hit. At a field with loose radio impound rules it's possible another user on his FM channel could have accidentally switched their transmitter on without checking to see if that channel was in use. In my rookie days I would have done something like that.
With the newer digital 2.4GHz spread-spectrum stuff it's highly unlikely to happen by accident and would be a lot more work to achieve deliberately.
Either way I would not take the chance to fly so close to me. I have a healthy respect of rotating machinery and so should everyone.
"Now, I doubt any of you would prefer a rolled up newspaper as a weapon against a dictator or a criminal intruder."
Given his performance-nature of his stunts, think of it like the guy who juggles chainsaws, a not-recommended use of the device, that could, and in this case did, lead to injury and death.
Actually, juggling chainsaws, while somewhat dangerous, isn't as bad as it looks. Even though the motor is running, the chain is not moving, at least with a stock chainsaw. You have to press on the trigger for the chain to move. Fucking safety interlocks, how do they work?
I feel sorry for people that don't drink, because when they get up in the morning, that's as good as they're gonna feel
They are definitely NOT toys
The high performance ones have 5 to 10 HP motors
The flying style currently popular among the top pilots is to fly very close to the ground and very close to the pilot
So naturally, the guys with less talent want to fly like the pros
I think this is kinda crazy..no room for error
There probably are procedures, at least minimal, CYA procedures for model aircraft too. That he wasn't following them is why he killed himself. Given his performance-nature of his stunts, think of it like the guy who juggles chainsaws, a not-recommended use of the device, that could, and in this case did, lead to injury and death.
Except that helicopter was many feet away from him for most of its use, and it was intended to be used exactly as he used it. It's sometimes not possible to be aware of exactly how far away and high up a model is just by looking, as models are small and depth perception is weak in our species.
There is only ONE 'CYA' rule for model aircraft: Try not to hit anything. Most of the time when you operate an R/C aircraft, it's something smaller and softer, where if it did hit a person, it might give them a small cut from the prop but is otherwise like getting hit by a big Nerf dart. This guy was using the metalized pro model, which was a bit more dangerous.
It sounds like he was doing some simple ground effect tricks, and the heli got too close and clipped him. It's actually a hobby and a sport, in which many hundreds of people participate. If you think doing tricks with model helis is 'documented reckless behavior', then I have nothing to say but "You must be a ton of fun at parties.."
If the only way you can accept an assertion is by faith, then you are conceding that it can't be taken on its own merits
Roman was out with his father
Of safety he couldn't be bothered.
As was his shtick
he pulled off a trick
and his helicopter became his barber.
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I keep seeing people (even the parent article here) using the term "toy" helicopter.
These models are NOT "toys". They're precision machines and very VERY dangerous. Treating them like toys is what leads to people getting hurt.
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THANK GOD!!!
No, I have my own dangerous hobbies. I've built engines, rebuilt carburetors and had my share of spontaneous combustion of some of them that I screwed up with, and had other automotive issues that were interesting to deal with when they cropped up. Nothing like a front tire blowout on a 30 year old truck at 75mph... Anyway, he cut part of his head off, his fault. I'm not saying that I would've told him to not do what he was doing, but I wouldn't have wanted to be around when he was doing it either. He did what he wanted to do, and it cost him everything.
Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
I had just visited the park where this happened to watch because i love this hobby (prior to the incident) and there really should be more safety precautions taken in fling fields, because these helicopters are only 40-50 yards from the spectators, and there is nothing stopping these things to do what it did to that kid
Last year I went to a fun fly at that field. A lot of those guys, including Roman (who I met), were pretty much flying right in their faces and on the deck the entire time they were flying. Even that day there was an incident where another guy was flying above his skill level on the deck, the tail smacked the ground and the heli started pirouetting out of control. Well it flew right into the pit area and hit a car, and the shattering glass injured somebody. And yet immediately after there were still about 6 or 7 guys at a time flying next to each other on a field that's about 500 feet wide without any concept of staying in their own flight box. Since that day I hadn't been there again and I definitely am not going back there now.