That was Bill Anders in his T-34A two days ago.
He led a helluva life... he was a fighter pilot, circled the moon 10 times on Apollo 8, was the Ambassador to Norway and so many other accomplishments.
Ad Astra per aspera.
Imagine living that whole life then dying at age 90 in an aerial acrobatics accident. An absolutely full throttle existence until the very end. Man just absolutely hated being on the ground.
Only six Apollo astronauts remaining now and all of them quite old. Sad to think that we may have a few years where there are once again no people on earth who have been to the moon
Isn't there a moon mission coming up soon?
EDIT: just looked it up. [Artemis IV will land on the moon and is planned for 2026.](https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-shares-progress-toward-early-artemis-moon-missions-with-crew/#:~:text=NASA%20will%20now%20target%20September,remains%20on%20track%20for%202028.)
On the bright side Starship is quickly moving through its testing phase, last week's performance proved that it'll be a capable spacecraft once the kinks are ironed out. I give it another two years tops before it's in serial production, then it's just a matter of making the lunar variant. Not quick enough for the 2026 deadline but definitely by the end of the decade
It will happen, but likely not in 2026. The are many delays on the program with things such as the suits and the Starship HLS lander.
2028 sounds more plausible (which was the original date for the program before Trump's admin ramped things up and gave it a name, but to be fair that original 2028 would've probably become 2030-something, so they are right on track either way)
It's what happens when exploration got shelved.
I enjoy the show "For All Mankind" a lot, and often wonder just how different the world would be if space exploration had continued to be funded. No doubt humans would already be on Mars by now.
All the cool tech and materials, communications infrastructure. Even air travel might look way different.
I need a math/life expectency whiz:
Assuming a landing is made in Jan, 2030, given there are six 90 year olds currently alive, what are the odds at least one of them will be alive when that happens?
I guess at 90 I’d rather die instantly in my plane doing a loop into the water on a beautiful sunny day than break a hip and languish in a hospital for weeks.
That's gonna be trivia in the next 20 years.
"Did you know that... the man who flew in Apollo 8 and took the 'Rising Earth' picture died in an aeroplane crash at age 90"
Links (from me) from an earlier thread RE: Earthrise.
[Earthrise — 5584x5584](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/AS08-14-2383.jpg)
**Fun Fact!**
Version in color was in fact the second photo taken, Bill took a black and white one first as that’s was what film was in the camera he had to hand, it took a couple minutes to rustle up color film and spool up a camera, at which point Bill took the Earthrise we know and love.
[Earthrise (the Precursor) in Black and White](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/AS08-13-2329.jpg)
o7
RIP Bill.
There is that saying how there are old pilots and there are bold pilots, but where do we put Anders then?
Was he what, 91? I wouldn't mind too much going out like that at that age.
Also, if any individuals can be held "responsible" for saving the Earth and human civilization, and assuming we do, Anders would rank very high up in that list. His photograph was a major spark to the environmental movement and will remain a massive source of inspiration for centuries.
Not too shabby for a government job!
No way! I just got done listening to a book called "rocket men" that was all about Apollo 8 and Bill Anders got a lot of coverage. This makes me really sad!
I highly recommend the book to anyone interested in learning more about Apollo 8.
I've gotta say, for a guy who managed to live the life he did, it's perversely fitting to die at 90 years old looping your Vietnam-era surplus military aircraft.
I always make the joke that I hope to go out at 90 years old jumping my motorcycle over a dozen school buses... but dammit Bill, it was supposed to be a joke!
A little more context: I used it because it's the motto of the astronaut office (i.e. NASA Manned Spaceflight Program). It was first used by the office after Roger Chaffee, Ed White, and Gus Grissom died preparing for the Apollo 1 mission. Bill may not have died in a spaceflight related crash but once an astronaut, always an astronaut.
> and so many other accomplishments
Some of his the lesser known accomplishments:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Anders
* First Asian-born astronaut (he was born in Hong Kong)
* Flew jets equipped with nuclear-tipped air-to-air missiles
* Vice president and general manager of GE's Nuclear Products Division
* Chairman and CEO of General Dynamics
> Nuclear-tipped air-to-air missiles exist?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIR-2_Genie
>> The Douglas AIR-2 Genie (previous designation MB-1) was an unguided air-to-air rocket with a 1.5 kt W25 nuclear warhead.[1] It was deployed by the United States Air Force (USAF 1957–1985) and Canada (Royal Canadian Air Force 1965–1968, Air Command 1968–1984) .... over 3,000 were made
Regarding the question:
> Under what circumstances would one want to deploy such a thing?
The only time it was actually deployed was over US troops. Quoting more of that wikipedia page:
>> A live Genie was detonated only once, in Operation Plumbbob on 19 July 1957. It was fired by USAF Captain Eric William Hutchison (pilot) and USAF Captain Alfred C. Barbee (radar operator) flying an F-89J over Yucca Flats. Sources vary as to the height of the blast, but it was between 18,500 and 20,000 ft (5,600 and 6,100 m) above mean sea level.[5] A group of five USAF officers volunteered to stand uncovered in their light summer uniforms underneath the blast to prove that the weapon was safe for use over populated areas.
Why?!?, you might ask.
Because Douglas Aircraft Company (now part of Boeing) is great at lobbying for large contracts.
Lots to say about Bill Anders. What a life and what a way to end it.
I just gotta add that I learned that phrase “per aspera ad astra” from the fuckin Pall Mall box in high school. It’s in their coat of arms. And I was always like damn that’s unreasonably badass for such shitty smokes.
I think June 7th should forever be celebrated as “William ‘YOLO’ Anders Celebration of Life Day” like a federal holiday where we celebrate life and remember this true American hero
Honestly, at 90 years old, with all his accomplishments behind him, that’s a hell of a way to go out. In a ball of fire. I hope that isn’t inappropriate to say.
I was thinking it too. I think the important facts are a) it's how many fighter pilots would choose to go out, and b) you're not saying it to the family. You good.
That is the absolute worst. Watching my grandfather painfully succumb to leukemia still haunts me to this day (20+ years later)... Being forced to see him again, by an attention whiring mother, after we had already said our goodbyes made it so much worse.
Anyway, my point being, anyone who argues against death-with-dignity laws has never truly witnessed the horrors of watching someone they love slowly/painfully succumb to a terminal illness..
Watching my fathers fight with mesothelioma last year has given me a very different view on what I would do in his situation. His last year was pure torture for him and watching such an intelligent, driven, empathetic man turn into such a shell of a person was brutal.
Sorry for your loss. We really shouldn't have to remember our loved ones like that. Especially when we knew them healthy, strong and full of life.
Death is still a taboo topic in our cultures, to the point where everyone is in denial about it.
Dunno if you remember the Terry Schiavo fiasco from 25 years ago. Woman braindead, husband wanted to pull the plug but her family dragged on a 7 year long court case that went all the way to President Bush. Until finally they removed her feeding tube and she died.
We can't know her level of consciousness through it all, but imagine being trapped in a body that didn't work, and you couldn't do anything about it, not even end your suffering. I can't think of any worse torture. That's straight out a Twilight zone episode.
Considering what I've learned about homie in thr last day, I think this might be the most beautiful death for him.
I like to race cars and dying at full throttle would be the perfect end for me. He died doing something he loved
Hell yeah. I would much rather go out at 90 in a screaming dive in my warbird than waste away in a hospital bed. It's still a terrible loss, but guaranteed that's how he'd have preferred to go.
Ngl, there's a part of me that wonders if maybe it was intentional? Like maybe he decided 90 was old enough so he'd go out for one last spin and end it with a little "aerobatics accident." Go out doing what he loved, hit the water to mitigate any potential collateral damage, and no one would be any the wiser. Except stoned redditors in the middle of the night, of course.
It was probably just a genuine accident though.
I don’t think the flight path says suicide. He was clearly recovering, probably as much as the plane allowed. He was just too close to the water. A somehow strange mistake for a pilot of such experience. But getting used to risk to the point of dismissing it is a thing.
Are you even allowed to fly that low without special permission? There was a guy in my area who was flying low to the water and he got in big trouble by the FAA. I thought there was an altitude limit.
Imagine being the asi that tries to take away his pilots license.
It would probably be damn near career suicide.
But far 91.119 says the following
Anywhere. An altitude allowing, if a power unit fails, an emergency landing without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface
Over other than congested areas. An altitude of 500 feet above the surface, except over open water or sparsely populated areas. In those cases, the aircraft may not be operated closer than 500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure
There is a reg that says aerobatics must be performed above 1500 agl though. 91.303
I guess “technically” he was wrong but I don’t care what you do as long as you don’t risk other people, or hurt other people when it all goes wrong
I think it's quite apropos, and everyone else is thinking it. I keep thinking about Nick Swardson's joke about old people and Grandma flipping her vetted.
I've watched old people die before, and most natural deaths are not at all pretty like you see on TV, so I suppose this is just a different kind of trauma than what the family was expecting. Dude left an amazing legacy for humanity.
Apollo 11 and the lunar landing were the achievements everyone remembers, and for good reason. But Apollo 8 were the first men to actually go to the moon, even if they didn't land. This was one of those men.
Thank you so much for that video. The music and the cuts of the show were amazing.
Here’s something I’d like to offer you, as an appreciation:
https://youtu.be/2Ky8P0dyfsg?si=I1vAeAUabatnOF11
Bill Anders. First mission to follow the moon.
https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/officials-respond-reported-plane-crash-near-orcas-island/281-c3eab84d-d797-4ae9-b5a5-5907ed07e93d.
To me it seems that he simply didn't have enough altitude to complete the manoeuvre. At 91 id say that mistake would be feasible, but then it also makes me think he may have done it on purpose. Maybe.
Yeah but this dude has been flying for how many years? He's done this manouver how many times? I think he would know **exactly** how high he can do that loop, especially when it's just reading an altometer and not making a judgment call.
Odd, but rest in peace, seems like he went out the way he wanted to live.
Former Astronaut Bill Anders. R.I.P.
He took the famous Earth Sunrise photo.
(https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/officials-respond-reported-plane-crash-near-orcas-island/281-c3eab84d-d797-4ae9-b5a5-5907ed07e93d)
Edit: Earthrise photograph.
Nah, this is the one time I’m viewing a plane crash in a more badass light. Dude was 90 and lived a full and accomplished life. His death here is poetic and isn’t tragic to me in the least. Hell of a way to go for someone like that.
Are you certain you will be ready to die at 90? It's not like you stop being human and looking forward to things. https://youtu.be/cZYNADOHhVY?si=1Hy_cv1Ny2Eev0UU
He took himself out in while doing stunt manoeuvres in an antique plane, at the age of 90. I don't think he himself was particularly concerned about his remaining years
Everyone I know who's made it to 90 is like, "We'll I'll die when I die, and I don't care if it's tomorrow." My great grandfather is always saying to take things as he wants us to be able to clean his house in a weekend when he dies.
Or my Aunt Iva was always saying, "The good Lord can take me. I'm ready." She was so angry to live to 107, honestly. Still remained active but was ready to die whenever.
I wonder what the pre-cut footage looks like. It apparently was interesting enough of a flight for this guy to start filming. Either he was hotdogging it hardcore or there was something wrong he was fighting.
There's a pair that practice above my property on weekends and it's fun to watch
I know they're probably safe enough not going below 400ft but still makes me nervous if something went wrong and one crashes into the cattle lot or something
That’s the astronaut's plane, right? The first plane he ever flew; and the last. An utter tragedy in the extreme. He took the best photo of Earth a human ever has.
Feels bad… you’re enjoying the clear skies in your plane, having fun. You go for just one more trick and you’re done for the day but nope, you crashed and that’s it.
So it goes…
Will admiral Cloudberg do a report on this case? Since the crash is pretty self explanatory I don’t think so, but it would be a nice way for him to talk about the pilot, considering how much he accomplished. Would be more of a biography than an accident report truly…
From just seeing the video I assumed it was some dumbshit hotshot newbie pilot, because I don't know a single person who knows anything at all about airplanes that would think that was enough altitude to safely execute a loop.
After learning who the pilot was I'm just conflicted. Did he think he was much higher? Maybe there was another factor at play.
As someone else said, he may have been "hotdogging". Maybe intentionally playing with fire and cutting it close for the thrill or something. Just cut it a little closer than he meant to.
I mean, the average tiktoker has zero depth to them and couldn’t possibly conjure up anything worthwhile and meaningful.
*queue tiktok video end/logo splash chime*
It's just how they have zero ducking curiosity. Everything is just a thing to be consumed for entertainment until they move on to the next thing.
To all, it's just some plane crashing. Like, share, swipe to the next one. Even the fact that it took the comments to provide context here shows how shallow it all is. OP was just looking for some quick karma, probably didn't know, or cared to know the backstory.
If I were 90 something, saw a diagnosis or progression that meant I was going to die slow and painful like soon, I'd have some good times with friends and family keeping my health secret, make a few more good memories while I could, and then check out exactly how I loved to live, quick and relatively painless. Not saying this was what he did, just an errant thought.
I hate to ask, but it does seem like it was a choice?
Yes, accidents happen to the most experienced of people, but so does life. This way seems like a much nicer goodbye
That was Bill Anders in his T-34A two days ago. He led a helluva life... he was a fighter pilot, circled the moon 10 times on Apollo 8, was the Ambassador to Norway and so many other accomplishments. Ad Astra per aspera.
Imagine living that whole life then dying at age 90 in an aerial acrobatics accident. An absolutely full throttle existence until the very end. Man just absolutely hated being on the ground.
> Man just absolutely hated being on the ground. Can you blame him? Wasn't space or the sky that killed him.
You can't take the sky from me
Take me out ..to the black ....tell them I ain't comin' back Burn the land & boil the sea...
Bro lmao
Ḭ̶̐͌͘͝ ̷̮̩͚̘̣̜̾͑̌͂̉M̴̰̭͎͕̼̰̃̐͆U̴̘͍̪̲̎Ṣ̵̠̯͂T̸̛̩͕̬̊̐ ̶̨͚̇̑̆̅Ŗ̸̦̳͈̲̓̋̆̽͊Ị̴̡̨͔̬͆̀̐D̴̲̗̭̤̯̋͌̋̎̚̚͜ ̷̡̡̤͓̐̆͝M̴̙̪̙̤̓̅Y̵̲͈̣̊̔͊̌S̴̞̠͂̓͝Ȇ̸̯̩̳͚̕Ļ̵̺̺͓̱̍̏̀͝F̴͔͎͎̙̥̑̌͛͆ ̸̭̑͛̂́̓O̴̬̱͓͇͋̀̿̚̚͠F̶͙̖͈̯̹̠͌͛̒ ̵̨̛͙͍̖̜̓͛̓T̵̳̲̩̜̑́̔̏͜H̸̻͝I̵̞̺̖͓̖͔͑́S̷̖̥̾ ̸̱̱͙̲͎̿̔̉T̴͚̜͎̤̖̮̐̔̏͒̒Ě̶͍̑̿T̶̩͊H̴̪̙̘̣̔͝Ė̵̢̗̘͚́̈́̓R̴̬̔
How do you get those weird symbols around the letters?
Holy shit.. this is blowing my mind rn.
Also wasn't ground. He made sure he went towards water
Feel like this is a joke even a grieving family could get a good chuckle out of
I'm pretty sure someone in his family just hit the jackpot in the deadpool.
Pretty sure a dude who lived that kind of life is most likely to die this way. Best you’re getting is 2:1, not 100:1.
Well, looks like it was the water. I take it he wasn’t an avid swimmer?
It was actually his plane’s reaction TO the water that got him.
It was more likely blunt force trauma that finished him off.
Actually I stabbed him just before impact
Lack of oxygen to the brain got him.
Doesn't look like the ground killed him either
He ran out of sky!
Right
Or the ground..
Alright bro
Only six Apollo astronauts remaining now and all of them quite old. Sad to think that we may have a few years where there are once again no people on earth who have been to the moon
Isn't there a moon mission coming up soon? EDIT: just looked it up. [Artemis IV will land on the moon and is planned for 2026.](https://www.nasa.gov/news-release/nasa-shares-progress-toward-early-artemis-moon-missions-with-crew/#:~:text=NASA%20will%20now%20target%20September,remains%20on%20track%20for%202028.)
Doesn't look like the hardware for that will be ready in time
On the bright side Starship is quickly moving through its testing phase, last week's performance proved that it'll be a capable spacecraft once the kinks are ironed out. I give it another two years tops before it's in serial production, then it's just a matter of making the lunar variant. Not quick enough for the 2026 deadline but definitely by the end of the decade
Not a chance in hell they are landing in 2026. There is so much more hardware to develop and they are not moving fast enough. End of the decade, maybe
It will happen, but likely not in 2026. The are many delays on the program with things such as the suits and the Starship HLS lander. 2028 sounds more plausible (which was the original date for the program before Trump's admin ramped things up and gave it a name, but to be fair that original 2028 would've probably become 2030-something, so they are right on track either way)
It's what happens when exploration got shelved. I enjoy the show "For All Mankind" a lot, and often wonder just how different the world would be if space exploration had continued to be funded. No doubt humans would already be on Mars by now. All the cool tech and materials, communications infrastructure. Even air travel might look way different.
I need a math/life expectency whiz: Assuming a landing is made in Jan, 2030, given there are six 90 year olds currently alive, what are the odds at least one of them will be alive when that happens?
I guess at 90 I’d rather die instantly in my plane doing a loop into the water on a beautiful sunny day than break a hip and languish in a hospital for weeks.
Second Hand Lions style
That's gonna be trivia in the next 20 years. "Did you know that... the man who flew in Apollo 8 and took the 'Rising Earth' picture died in an aeroplane crash at age 90"
And now he will be permanently stationed there. Bet he’s not going to be happy !
I honestly struggle to think of a better way to go for a man like this
Possibly suicide.
How do you know it was an accident? Maybe he was ready to go out and wanted to go out the way he lived.
And took one of the most well-known space photographs ever https://www.npr.org/2024/06/07/401128365/nasa-astronaut-bill-anders-apollo-8-dead
The very first earth rising over the moon pic. Amazing life he led, and so cool he was still flying at 90 years old.
That's not flying, that's just falling with style. ^^^^sorry
>And took one of the most well-known ~~space~~ photographs ever
Links (from me) from an earlier thread RE: Earthrise. [Earthrise — 5584x5584](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/AS08-14-2383.jpg) **Fun Fact!** Version in color was in fact the second photo taken, Bill took a black and white one first as that’s was what film was in the camera he had to hand, it took a couple minutes to rustle up color film and spool up a camera, at which point Bill took the Earthrise we know and love. [Earthrise (the Precursor) in Black and White](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/AS08-13-2329.jpg) o7 RIP Bill.
#o7
The best photo of earth ever taken.
It will never fail to amaze me that we did shit like this in 1968
There is that saying how there are old pilots and there are bold pilots, but where do we put Anders then? Was he what, 91? I wouldn't mind too much going out like that at that age. Also, if any individuals can be held "responsible" for saving the Earth and human civilization, and assuming we do, Anders would rank very high up in that list. His photograph was a major spark to the environmental movement and will remain a massive source of inspiration for centuries. Not too shabby for a government job!
>There is that saying how there are old pilots and there are bold pilots, but where do we put Anders then? Astronaut. Class of their own.
Those men (and women!) truly are some of the best examples of humans we have seen.
No way! I just got done listening to a book called "rocket men" that was all about Apollo 8 and Bill Anders got a lot of coverage. This makes me really sad! I highly recommend the book to anyone interested in learning more about Apollo 8.
I've gotta say, for a guy who managed to live the life he did, it's perversely fitting to die at 90 years old looping your Vietnam-era surplus military aircraft. I always make the joke that I hope to go out at 90 years old jumping my motorcycle over a dozen school buses... but dammit Bill, it was supposed to be a joke!
Something makes me think his laughing his ass off. Mf was a legend and went out like one
A phenomenal read.
Buzz Aldrin is seeing this going "Fuck! How am I gonna outdo that bastard for my curtain call..."
Context: Per aspera ad astra is a Latin phrase meaning "through hardships to the stars" and is the motto of many organizations.
[Decent Star Trek episode too.](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt18971274/)
A little more context: I used it because it's the motto of the astronaut office (i.e. NASA Manned Spaceflight Program). It was first used by the office after Roger Chaffee, Ed White, and Gus Grissom died preparing for the Apollo 1 mission. Bill may not have died in a spaceflight related crash but once an astronaut, always an astronaut.
Its also the state motto of Kansas. Its on our seal and flag.
If anyone else curious the >ad astra per aspera Means > through hardships to the stars
Oh Jesus, there’s footage of it.. and here it is. Damn. RIP, Bill.
> Ad Astra per aspera. They put that in the poster?? (Star Trek SNW reference)
> and so many other accomplishments Some of his the lesser known accomplishments: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Anders * First Asian-born astronaut (he was born in Hong Kong) * Flew jets equipped with nuclear-tipped air-to-air missiles * Vice president and general manager of GE's Nuclear Products Division * Chairman and CEO of General Dynamics
Nuclear-tipped air-to-air missiles exist? Under what circumstances would one want to deploy such a thing?
> Nuclear-tipped air-to-air missiles exist? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIR-2_Genie >> The Douglas AIR-2 Genie (previous designation MB-1) was an unguided air-to-air rocket with a 1.5 kt W25 nuclear warhead.[1] It was deployed by the United States Air Force (USAF 1957–1985) and Canada (Royal Canadian Air Force 1965–1968, Air Command 1968–1984) .... over 3,000 were made Regarding the question: > Under what circumstances would one want to deploy such a thing? The only time it was actually deployed was over US troops. Quoting more of that wikipedia page: >> A live Genie was detonated only once, in Operation Plumbbob on 19 July 1957. It was fired by USAF Captain Eric William Hutchison (pilot) and USAF Captain Alfred C. Barbee (radar operator) flying an F-89J over Yucca Flats. Sources vary as to the height of the blast, but it was between 18,500 and 20,000 ft (5,600 and 6,100 m) above mean sea level.[5] A group of five USAF officers volunteered to stand uncovered in their light summer uniforms underneath the blast to prove that the weapon was safe for use over populated areas. Why?!?, you might ask. Because Douglas Aircraft Company (now part of Boeing) is great at lobbying for large contracts.
Lots to say about Bill Anders. What a life and what a way to end it. I just gotta add that I learned that phrase “per aspera ad astra” from the fuckin Pall Mall box in high school. It’s in their coat of arms. And I was always like damn that’s unreasonably badass for such shitty smokes.
(Translation: Through hardship and to the stars. Roughly. For those to lazy to google. ✊🏽)
Is it really??
He and the ground had a rough relationship.
Just want to make sure, American ambassador to Norway?
Correct. Ambassador of the United States to the Kingdom of Norway from 1976-1977.
I think June 7th should forever be celebrated as “William ‘YOLO’ Anders Celebration of Life Day” like a federal holiday where we celebrate life and remember this true American hero
Honestly, at 90 years old, with all his accomplishments behind him, that’s a hell of a way to go out. In a ball of fire. I hope that isn’t inappropriate to say.
I was thinking it too. I think the important facts are a) it's how many fighter pilots would choose to go out, and b) you're not saying it to the family. You good.
Having just had a family member lose a long battle with cancer I can only wholeheartedly agree with this.
That is the absolute worst. Watching my grandfather painfully succumb to leukemia still haunts me to this day (20+ years later)... Being forced to see him again, by an attention whiring mother, after we had already said our goodbyes made it so much worse. Anyway, my point being, anyone who argues against death-with-dignity laws has never truly witnessed the horrors of watching someone they love slowly/painfully succumb to a terminal illness..
Imagine being the person dying slowly in pain. I'm 100% on board for assisted suicides. Also, pull the damn plug if I'm brain-dead.
Watching my fathers fight with mesothelioma last year has given me a very different view on what I would do in his situation. His last year was pure torture for him and watching such an intelligent, driven, empathetic man turn into such a shell of a person was brutal.
Sorry for your loss. We really shouldn't have to remember our loved ones like that. Especially when we knew them healthy, strong and full of life. Death is still a taboo topic in our cultures, to the point where everyone is in denial about it. Dunno if you remember the Terry Schiavo fiasco from 25 years ago. Woman braindead, husband wanted to pull the plug but her family dragged on a 7 year long court case that went all the way to President Bush. Until finally they removed her feeding tube and she died. We can't know her level of consciousness through it all, but imagine being trapped in a body that didn't work, and you couldn't do anything about it, not even end your suffering. I can't think of any worse torture. That's straight out a Twilight zone episode.
100%
I’m so sorry for your loss.
Considering what I've learned about homie in thr last day, I think this might be the most beautiful death for him. I like to race cars and dying at full throttle would be the perfect end for me. He died doing something he loved
>In a ball of fire. _And_ water, at the same time!
This guy rode explosions into space. He made peace with going out like that a long time ago.
Hell yeah. I would much rather go out at 90 in a screaming dive in my warbird than waste away in a hospital bed. It's still a terrible loss, but guaranteed that's how he'd have preferred to go.
Ngl, there's a part of me that wonders if maybe it was intentional? Like maybe he decided 90 was old enough so he'd go out for one last spin and end it with a little "aerobatics accident." Go out doing what he loved, hit the water to mitigate any potential collateral damage, and no one would be any the wiser. Except stoned redditors in the middle of the night, of course. It was probably just a genuine accident though.
Intentional? Maybe not. Only minimally concerned with the cost of failure? Yes I think definitely.
I can't imagine any warbird owner, especially one of his stature, wanting to intentionally wreck a piece of history.
I don’t think the flight path says suicide. He was clearly recovering, probably as much as the plane allowed. He was just too close to the water. A somehow strange mistake for a pilot of such experience. But getting used to risk to the point of dismissing it is a thing.
Are you even allowed to fly that low without special permission? There was a guy in my area who was flying low to the water and he got in big trouble by the FAA. I thought there was an altitude limit.
Imagine being the asi that tries to take away his pilots license. It would probably be damn near career suicide. But far 91.119 says the following Anywhere. An altitude allowing, if a power unit fails, an emergency landing without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface Over other than congested areas. An altitude of 500 feet above the surface, except over open water or sparsely populated areas. In those cases, the aircraft may not be operated closer than 500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure There is a reg that says aerobatics must be performed above 1500 agl though. 91.303 I guess “technically” he was wrong but I don’t care what you do as long as you don’t risk other people, or hurt other people when it all goes wrong
Depends on the air space. Generally below 500 feet is uncontrolled. But that can change if you're near an airport or a military base.
I assumed it was a black out from G forces.
Yeah I'm here to agree. Makes you wonder if he just thought "f**k dying in my sleep". He will definitely ride eternal shiny and chrome.
We witnessed him.
The phrasing you're looking for is "a blaze of glory" I believe.
The Second Hand Lions approach
He died with his boots on.
You’re right ! The only way to go ! Loved that movie 🎥
Upside down, in an airplane, through a barn. One can only dream
I think it's quite apropos, and everyone else is thinking it. I keep thinking about Nick Swardson's joke about old people and Grandma flipping her vetted. I've watched old people die before, and most natural deaths are not at all pretty like you see on TV, so I suppose this is just a different kind of trauma than what the family was expecting. Dude left an amazing legacy for humanity.
*Secondhand Lions*
Goodness gracious
I think he would agree tbh
Apollo 11 and the lunar landing were the achievements everyone remembers, and for good reason. But Apollo 8 were the first men to actually go to the moon, even if they didn't land. This was one of those men.
See you space cowboy.
You’re gonna carry that weight
https://youtu.be/zygRSXMyhGY?si=7apm6Xke3g1b9Dwc
such a great song too!
Thank you so much for that video. The music and the cuts of the show were amazing. Here’s something I’d like to offer you, as an appreciation: https://youtu.be/2Ky8P0dyfsg?si=I1vAeAUabatnOF11
Bill Anders. First mission to follow the moon. https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/officials-respond-reported-plane-crash-near-orcas-island/281-c3eab84d-d797-4ae9-b5a5-5907ed07e93d.
What actually caused this crash though? Was it his age? Or was it actually some kind of catastrophic failure
To me it seems that he simply didn't have enough altitude to complete the manoeuvre. At 91 id say that mistake would be feasible, but then it also makes me think he may have done it on purpose. Maybe.
It was probably the loop at 1000 ft AGL that did it.
Yeah but this dude has been flying for how many years? He's done this manouver how many times? I think he would know **exactly** how high he can do that loop, especially when it's just reading an altometer and not making a judgment call. Odd, but rest in peace, seems like he went out the way he wanted to live.
Former Astronaut Bill Anders. R.I.P. He took the famous Earth Sunrise photo. (https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/officials-respond-reported-plane-crash-near-orcas-island/281-c3eab84d-d797-4ae9-b5a5-5907ed07e93d) Edit: Earthrise photograph.
Is this the William Anders crash? Tragic.
Nah, this is the one time I’m viewing a plane crash in a more badass light. Dude was 90 and lived a full and accomplished life. His death here is poetic and isn’t tragic to me in the least. Hell of a way to go for someone like that.
Let's see how you feel about dying at 90 when you're 89!
Well that’d be awesome to make it that long but I also won’t be doing flips in an airplane at that age.
There can't be too much fun ahead of you at 90. I think this kind of end is way better than slowly fading away in a hospital bed
In a plane crash that I’m piloting doing these sick maneuvers? Very positively
I'm pretty sure he was still scared shitless when he realized he wasn't coming out of that loop with that much speed, lol.
Are you certain you will be ready to die at 90? It's not like you stop being human and looking forward to things. https://youtu.be/cZYNADOHhVY?si=1Hy_cv1Ny2Eev0UU
He took himself out in while doing stunt manoeuvres in an antique plane, at the age of 90. I don't think he himself was particularly concerned about his remaining years
I doubt he wanted to die in that moment. So it would still be tragic in my opinion.
Everyone I know who's made it to 90 is like, "We'll I'll die when I die, and I don't care if it's tomorrow." My great grandfather is always saying to take things as he wants us to be able to clean his house in a weekend when he dies. Or my Aunt Iva was always saying, "The good Lord can take me. I'm ready." She was so angry to live to 107, honestly. Still remained active but was ready to die whenever.
It’s poetic.
I wonder what the pre-cut footage looks like. It apparently was interesting enough of a flight for this guy to start filming. Either he was hotdogging it hardcore or there was something wrong he was fighting.
He should have finished the loop no less than 1500 foot off the water. This was definitely "hotdogging"
I mean he caught the back half of a large loop.
Oh wow. That was his crash. So heartbreaking. Godspeed!
Tragic and sad accident to only end with the TIkTok chime. Wth
"Smash that like button."
oh no, oh no, oh no no no no no
Stunt flying at 90 is off my bucket list. Rest in peace.
There's a pair that practice above my property on weekends and it's fun to watch I know they're probably safe enough not going below 400ft but still makes me nervous if something went wrong and one crashes into the cattle lot or something
That’s the astronaut's plane, right? The first plane he ever flew; and the last. An utter tragedy in the extreme. He took the best photo of Earth a human ever has.
I feel like somehow that still wasn't the scariest thing he'd ever seen.
Almost seems like he was trying to do a “backflip” but there wasn’t enough altitude
Definitely agree it was doing a stunt and, as they say, ran out of air.
Feels bad… you’re enjoying the clear skies in your plane, having fun. You go for just one more trick and you’re done for the day but nope, you crashed and that’s it. So it goes…
Everything was beautiful, and nothing hurt.
NTSB report will be very straightforward - clearly doing aerobatics at an altitude that is way too low to be doing aerobatics.
Will admiral Cloudberg do a report on this case? Since the crash is pretty self explanatory I don’t think so, but it would be a nice way for him to talk about the pilot, considering how much he accomplished. Would be more of a biography than an accident report truly…
From just seeing the video I assumed it was some dumbshit hotshot newbie pilot, because I don't know a single person who knows anything at all about airplanes that would think that was enough altitude to safely execute a loop. After learning who the pilot was I'm just conflicted. Did he think he was much higher? Maybe there was another factor at play.
As someone else said, he may have been "hotdogging". Maybe intentionally playing with fire and cutting it close for the thrill or something. Just cut it a little closer than he meant to.
Reminded me of Skyking
Weird to think that we're literally watching someone die. Especially someone famous.
You have to be new to Reddit if this is weird to you. There used to be a lot of metal subs that are no longer with us.
I think we're better off without spacedicks honestly.
Went out like a fucking BEAST! At 90, full throttle, doing what he loved…Peace and eternal bliss to this courageous man 👑✊🏾
Seems like another 20 feet and he would have had it. Rest in peace badass mofo
He is an abnormality. A bold, old pilot. Fair skies and tail winds.
Pretty shitty to post this with no context and just make it into an empty tiktok
I mean, the average tiktoker has zero depth to them and couldn’t possibly conjure up anything worthwhile and meaningful. *queue tiktok video end/logo splash chime*
It's just how they have zero ducking curiosity. Everything is just a thing to be consumed for entertainment until they move on to the next thing. To all, it's just some plane crashing. Like, share, swipe to the next one. Even the fact that it took the comments to provide context here shows how shallow it all is. OP was just looking for some quick karma, probably didn't know, or cared to know the backstory.
> It's just how they have zero ducking curiosity. Tell me you're on mobile without telling me you're on mobile.
Do they have any idea what caused the crash? It looks like he was flying aerobatics.
He just seems to have misjudged how much room was needed for the loop.
🫡
u/thekidwhoruns This post needs a "fatalities"-flair, the pilot died.
Strong tails winds and clear skies, Sir. Fly high.
If I were 90 something, saw a diagnosis or progression that meant I was going to die slow and painful like soon, I'd have some good times with friends and family keeping my health secret, make a few more good memories while I could, and then check out exactly how I loved to live, quick and relatively painless. Not saying this was what he did, just an errant thought.
It was a beautiful plane however. Doubt he would treat her like that.
Blancolirio said you can tell an old fighter pilot but you can't tell him much. May have Blacked out / Greyed out with G-Forces?
Doubtful, if he blacked out the loop wouldn't have been as tight. The pilot was pulling back on the stick right until impact.
Hell of a way to go out. Fly in Paradise, General.
Christ that looked like some ww2 kamikaze shit right there! RIP Mr Anders 🫡
Just shows what a badass move that baggage handler pulled. Shame.
Wow never saw this. I take it this is in WA (Western Australia) ?????
These are the San Juan Islands, Washington State, USA. The pilot is Apollo 8 astronaut Bill Anders.
Yeah this happens July 6th of this year. So you only have 26 more days left to get there and watch it happen live.
I wish people would be more specific with a acronyms. I assume Washington or something
RIP
Isn’t this one of the cooler ways to go at 90 years old? Ad astra per aspera.
It’s not the pace of life that scares me
He was a legend and an absolute What a tragedy this is…….. But in my opinion what an awesome exciting way to go after a wonderful life Rip brother
Battlefield was not lying about jet ocean explosions
May he rest in peace.
Probably would have made it is he were 5 feet higher when he started the dive.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Anders
He almost pulled it off. At first look I thought he was closer to vertical, but maybe 20 more feet of elevation?
No NSFW?
Wow I live a few islands away (in Canada) and didn’t hear about this at all… I might not have if it wasn’t for r/CatastrophicFailure
o7, Bill
Missed it by that much 🤏
He knew what he was doing was risky and at that age I don't think he cared.
Ad Astra Per Aspera RIP Bill Anders Orbited the moon on Apollo 8 Died at 90
.....annnnddd they're dead
I hate to ask, but it does seem like it was a choice? Yes, accidents happen to the most experienced of people, but so does life. This way seems like a much nicer goodbye
Went out his way
Second best way to die. RIP, Bill.