Reno flight instructor reacts to deadly air race crash

RENO, Nev. (KOLO) - Travis Summers is a certified flight instructor at the Biggest Little Flight School. He knows the Reno Air Races well, and calls what happened on Sunday a freak accident.

“There could have been a lack of communication. But it is hard to see outside of those planes,” he explained.

Summers says air racing is inherently dangerous. and feels that scenario, while unlikely, can happen to anyone.

“They are the best pilots in the world,” he emphasized. “But that’s part of aviation.”

He feels Sunday’s crash, which claimed the lives of two pilots, came at the most dangerous time, even though it isn’t the time when the planes are going the fastest.

“Every time you come to a sudden stop that is where the real danger is,” Summers explained.

The FAA and NTSB are continuing to investigate the crash that happened after the T6 Gold Race on the final day of the Reno Air Races.

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