A Sign from the Almighty

A Sign from the Almighty

1990 1 January 5-6 A Sign from the Almighty (386) Man proposes, God disposes. It was the worst air-show accident in history. All three pilots and at least 47 spectators were killed in the holocaust. More than 360 people were injured, including many children. At first, many of the spectators did not know what had happened. One of them said, “I thought it was just some kind of special effect.” This terrible happening bore out that saying that “man proposes but God disposes.”

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Time magazine of September 12, 1988, published a report with photographs, entitled, “Hellfire from the Heavens” which gave details of a tragic Air disaster in West Germany on August 28, 1988. It happened during an air-show, near the Ramstein Air Base in Frankfurt, in which ten military aircraft of the most up–to–date design were taking part. About 300,000 people had gathered to watch this special demonstration, fancifully titled, “Arrow Through the Heart.”

As shown in the diagram given above, ten aircraft – jet planes flying at 350 miles per hour – flew high into the sky to create a heart-shaped formation. One of these planes was to leave this formation during the flight in order to pierce the “heart” like an arrow. This tenth jet, piloted by a veteran Italian flyer, Ivo Nutavelli, arched down in a solo loop intended to take him through the lower half of the two “heart” as the formations passed each other beneath him. But Nutavelli arrived too low and perhaps a split second early. The “arrow” was supposed to fly at a slightly higher altitude than the other jets, but levelled out at the same altitude, so that instead of “piercing the heart,” it struck at least one of the other planes. Three planes burst into flames. In normal circumstances, this extraordinary display by military jets would have produced tremendous thrills and excitement, but after this terrible accident, all the glamour was blasted out of it in just a few hellish minutes.

It was the worst air-show accident in history. All three pilots and at least 47 spectators were killed in the holocaust. More than 360 people were injured, including many children.

At first, many of the spectators did not know what had happened. One of them said “I thought it was just some kind of special effect.” This terrible happening bore out the saying that “man proposes, but God disposes.”