Red Bull air race plane hits river

A Brazilian Red Bull Air Race pilot has escaped with minor injuries after his plane crashed into Perth's Swan River during a practice run.
Adilson Kindlemann, 36, a former airline pilot was doing a practice run on Thursday ahead of the World Championship competition event on Friday.

Witnesses described how Kindlemann's plane appeared to clip something before
plunging into the water.
Gary French, of Lathlain, in Perth's south, said he was watching the pilots run
through their paces on Thursday morning from the southern side of the river when he
saw the plane go down.
"I saw a wing hit the water and the plane went down," Mr French said.
Marianne Cashim, a Victorian tourist who was watching the planes, said the pilot was
only in the water for a few minutes before he was pulled out.
"He appeared to be coming out of a turn, he was quite low to the water and it was
like his wing just clipped something and he dropped straight in," Ms Cashim said.
"He was in the water for only a few minutes, they pulled him out very quickly.
"I'm not sure if he got himself out or they got him out, but help was there very
quickly and they took him off in the ambulance."
The race, which is held at various locations around the world, involves 15 pilots
completing time trials at speeds of up to 400km/h, whizzing through inflatable
pylons above the blue water of the Swan River.
Red Bull Air Race chief executive Bernd Loidl said emergency response teams were on
the scene in minutes and Kindlemann is in a good condition.
"The Red Bull Air Race team has pledged its full co-operation with the relevant
authorities to establish why this accident has occurred," Mr Loidl said in a
statement on Thursday.
Kindlemann, a rookie in the competition, is the first South American to compete in
the Red Bull World Championship.
He is a former airline pilot with 11,000 flights hours and 1200 hours in aerobatics.
Kindlemann was Brazil's national aerobatic champion between 2001 and 2004 and is an
honorary member of the Brazilian Air Force.
He earlier described on his website the difficulties of flying in the rainy and
windy conditions on Wednesday when the race was declared open.
"But this type of training is essential for us to face different situations and to
be prepared on the race day," he said through his website.
Police spokeswoman Ros Weatherall said the pilot was conscious when he was removed
from the plane and had minor injuries.
Ms Weatherall said the WA police were working closely with Red Bull and other
aviation authorities to determine how the accident occurred.
It was the first crash in the Red Bull Air Race's seven-year history.
A local aerobatic pilot who witnessed the crash, but did not want to be named, said
it appeared Kindlemann's port wing stalled as he rounded the last chicane on the
course and was hit by a gust of wind.
The stall caused the wing to drop and clip the water, with the plane then
cartwheeling and tumbling into the river, the pilot said.
He said squally conditions most likely contributed to the crash.
"There were 20 knot (37km/h) gusts out there when he was practising, and all it
takes is one of those gusts to change the relative airflow and the wing would have
stalled," he said.
"He must have hit pretty hard, because it made an almighty bang as it hit the water.
"There was a lot of damage to the plane."
Kindlemann's MXS-R race plane was later towed to the South Perth foreshore, where a
crane was used to salvage it.
Mr Loidl said later Kindlemann was approaching gate three in the middle of the race
track when the crash happened.
"Kindlemann impacted the water with his wings level and tail first," he said.
Kindlemann was rescued by specially trained emergency response teams in less than a
minute, Mr Loidl said.
"I am pleased to confirm that Kindlemann is in good health having only suffered
minor injuries," he said.
"As a precautionary measure, he will be held in the Royal Perth Hospital overnight."