FighterControl

Pune wrote: ↑

Sun Nov 29, 2020 6:07 pm

Wow, I've seen a lot of F.1. accidents over the years but todays was terrifying, how Roman walked away from that is beyond me.
Having the front half of the car go through the Armco and he survived, the HALO did it's job...
The crews on scene were brilliant, here's to a swift recovery..

plmc135 wrote: ↑

Sun Nov 29, 2020 7:15 pm

He isn't a roman soldier his first name is Romain.

jimbo wrote: ↑

Sun Nov 29, 2020 7:35 pm

Pune wrote: ↑

Sun Nov 29, 2020 6:07 pm

Wow, I've seen a lot of F.1. accidents over the years but todays was terrifying, how Roman walked away from that is beyond me.
Having the front half of the car go through the Armco and he survived, the HALO did it's job...
The crews on scene were brilliant, here's to a swift recovery..

One hundred percent agree, no matter how you spell his name, he had his angel with him today. How brave were the medical car team, running towards an inferno, knowing there were 100kgs of fuel in there and lithium batteries.

raptor9 wrote: ↑

Sun Nov 29, 2020 9:31 pm

Had a non-alcoholic beer tonight, and saluted the chassis designers, marshals, and the medical team. Fire can never be ruled out, although the last serious F.1 crash fire was many years ago at Imola Gerhard Berger's Ferrari. Problem is, had Romain been knocked out, the result would have been very different. In the old days, following various reviews, a silver-suited and helmeted fire marshal was present at most posts. They were very cumbersome, and very very hot. The marshal wearing one at Brands Hatch when Jo Siffert had his accident was unable to get close to the car, with the inevitable result. It was then decided that the most important thing was to extinguish the fire, before attempting rescue, so the silver suits were dispensed with. Looking at todays hugely fortunate escape, questions must be raised as to whether more dedicated fire trucks with much more capacity for dowsing flames needs to be [a] more numerous], and have instant track access. Massive kudos to everyone involved in reaction to this accident. Like Pune, I have been to many F.1 G.P,s here and abroad, and seen many accidents. They don't get scarier than this one!.

raptor9 wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 30, 2020 10:12 am

Back in the day, Silverstone converted a Jaguar XJ6 into a dedicated fire engine, with large tanks of retardant and trained personnel as crew. It followed the first lap of every race, even at club events. [I once filmed it spinning at Beckets!!] Perhaps this concept should be looked into again. Fighting a large fire with hand held extinguishers is a difficult way to deal with this. Indycar, in the U.S. uses dedicated fire trucks to attend serious incidents, and they are on scene very quickly. Incidentally, Formula cars breaking in half is nothing new. The rear of the car is simply connected by half a dozen bolts, and will separate from the tub if the forces are very great. All the rest of the car are different parts attached to the tub and the engine. There is no chassis as such behind the driver these days. I remember John Watson's Mclaren breaking in two at Monza in a barrier collision that was not too severe. Regular occurrence if you watch Indycar in the States.

raptor9 wrote: ↑

Mon Nov 30, 2020 10:32 am

Hi, Pune. It was Tom Pryce who was killed in S.A. hit by the extinguisher and the unfortunate marshal also died.. Revson died in a fiery crash also in S.A. in, I think, 1974, Hit the barrier, burst into flames. Regards, John.

raptor9 wrote: ↑

Tue Dec 01, 2020 6:50 pm

Challenger, I have to respectfully disagree with some of your comments. Modern Formula cars have Carbon Fibre Chassis, which are put through extremely severe crash testing to ensure their integrity in a crash. You are correct when you say the bits will fall off that are attached to it in a severe accident, but I think you will find that, in modern times, the Monocoque [spelling] tub has stayed intact whilst everything else falls off, which it is expected to do in the event of a serious crash. It is this strength of chassis that has ensured the survival of many drivers, including Romain Grosjean, because if you study the pictures of the accident, particularly the recovery after the crash, you will see that the chassis is STILL virtually intact. What kills drivers these days are sudden stops, involving massive 'G'loads, particularly from a side impact. How Romain survived a momentary 53 g is beyond my comprehension. Poor Antoine Hubert died at Spa last year in a massive impact from the side, yet his tub [chassis] remained intact, as did Manuel Correa's , who hit him. These crash tests, under the auspices of the F.!.A are very, very severe, and the chassis has to pass ALL tests before being allowed to compete. I have followed F.1 since 1960, and attended many G.P's here and abroad including 26 British Grand Prix in a row,!!, and, in modern times, I cannot recall a driver losing his life because of a chassis failure in an accident, because there haven't been any. Being hit by pieces of wreckage, certainly [Ayrton Senna} Jules Bianchi, hit a recovery vehicle. Head injury. No modern chassis failures, and I think it is much the same in Indycar in the States. Sudden stops, being hit by flying bits. Those are the biggest dangers to a driver's life, plus fire of course, but that is very rare thank goodness. So, not a miracle, but excellent engineering. Regards, John.

Challenger007 wrote: ↑

Wed Dec 02, 2020 11:48 am

I have not studied the construction of racing cars in detail, but I know for sure that some parts fall off in an accident, as if it was not a car, but a designer. It's good that riders are protected by a strong and lightweight frame, but the strength of the rest is poor.