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In Flight USA Articles
The Pylon Place - September 2012
Reno Air Racing Prep - 2012
By Marilyn Dash
Keeping up with the news surrounding the Reno Air Races this year has been exhausting. Racers and fans alike have so many questions, i.e., are we racing, what changes will we see, who will be there, who won’t, will the fans notice any changes? These are all good questions. I hope that I have, through this column, helped everyone understand what the process has been following the horrific event of September 16, 2011. I have tried to listen to the questions the fans have been asking and answer them here.
NTSB Provides Investigative Update and Issues Recommendations to Increase Safety at Air Races
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) provided an investigative update on April 10, 2012, on last year’s crash of a highly modified P-51D airplane at the National Championship Air Races in Reno, Nev. On Sept. 16, 2011, the pilot of the Galloping Ghost experienced an upset while turning between pylons 8 and 9 on the racecourse. The airplane crashed on the ramp in the box seat spectator area. The pilot and 10 spectators were killed and more than 60 others were injured.
In addition to the investigative update, NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman announced that the agency was issuing a total of seven safety recommendations to make the National Championship Air Races a safer event for pilots and spectators alike.
“We are not here to put a stop to air racing,” said Chairman Hersman. “We are here to make it safer.”
The Pylon Place - January 2012
Off Season Racing – The 24 Hours of LeMons!
$500 doesn’t buy you much when it comes to race cars. (Photo courtesy of Craig Driver)
By Marilyn Dash
Fans ask me all the time what we do in the off-season. We spend so much time getting ready for the Air Races in September. We generally get together in June and for many weekends each year for testing. Then we spend about two weeks together during September. But what do we do about the rest of the year? Well, this year, Team Ruby hopes to have a much better answer to the question.
The Pylon Place - July 2011
Air Racers 3D - Force of Flight
By Marilyn Dash
The phone rang. A voice on the other end of the phone asked me if I would be interested in taking part in the Air Racers 3D IMAX movie being filmed about the Reno Air Races. Would I? Really? Of course I would! More phone calls, more emails, small moments of hysteria, and I was on my way to Reno to take part in the project.
From the press release: “Through the eyes of first-time competitor and rookie pilot Steve Hinton Jr., son of champion air racer and acrobatic pilot Steve Hinton, the film will chronicle the preparation for and competition in the world’s fastest motor sport: the legendary Reno National 
IMAX filming in preparation for the Air Racers - 3D movie (3D Entertainment)Championship Air Races. The film will be in IMAX 3D and 2D theatres in the US beginning in the fall.”
The Pylon Place - November 2010
Part 2
Reno Air Races : The Lesser Known Stories
By Marilyn Dash
Last month we looked at some of the highlights and lowlights of the 2010 National Championship Air Races in Reno, Nev. This month, I wanted to look at some of the lesser known stories and answer some of the questions being asked by the fans.
There is some amazing racing going on, but not always for the Gold. How many of you were able to catch some of these epic races hidden away in the background.