What is the future for air shows?

It doesn't really matter if we speculate about the pilot crashing into an empty field though, what the CAA have done, is to stop any other plane crashing on a road with a huge loss of life.Would anybody really like to leave things until the next fatal crash?

Remember, these ariel shows by old aircraft are done solely to amuse people not for any serious reason, we could still admire modern aircraft doing whizz by or stunts.

Uplifting to see the respect everyone is giving to those that died.

One piece of good news is that there doesn't appear to be any more victims under the wreckage.

Whilst having the utmost sympathy for those who have lost loved ones in this tragedy, I'm with Crun in wondering why nothing is an accident any more. We cannot legislate all risk out of life. The very public nature of this accident, its visibility on all media plus the incongruity of the situation is what makes it feel so shocking. Had this been a road accident which had caused multiple deaths we wouldn't have been talking about banning lorries or cars. In fact it wouldn't have merited much more than a brief headline on the evening news. Sensible precautions such as those announced would seem to be a proportionate response.

I don't like air shows or the underlying militarism I believe they represent.

I think it's a terrible tragedy that so many people's lives have just been wiped out in an instant like this.

I know there are lots of accidents on the roads, and railways have seen some terrible disasters too, but these stunts are really not necessary whereas travel is. If they do continue, I think these stunts should be done over the sea and not over populated areas.

I agree completely with Eloethan.

And me

I understand that is what is being proposed.

I think it's worth remembering that society has always benefitted from what might be called side-shoots of military technology. This continues. Being uncompromisingly anti-military is short-sighted.

According to Radio Sussex, it sounds as though the Shoreham Airshow may be moved to enable the flying to take place over the sea. I have wondered why it wasn't already done there, like Eastbourne Airborne.

Society benefits from of shoots of military technology because so much money is ploughed into it [look how fast things progressed due to WWI,II and the space race]. If we ploughed that much cash into doing good things just think what mankind could achieve .Although sometimes it's the pressure caused by the situation that spurs on the inventiveness .

I share the view about militarism .......... but, at the outdoor concerts that my DD and her OH run, there is a Spitfire fly past to music from a live orchestra. I was amazed to find myself moved by it - partly the music of course, but also the thought of all the young men who lost their lives flying the spitfires and doing what they felt was right to protect our country. As a lifelong pacifist, I had to acknowledge that feeling and try and understand it in the context of my abhorrence of what the bombing over Germany did to innocent people.

Lucky I understand your post absolutely.

When we were out walking at Middleham a few weeks ago a very large, old'ish plane flew overhead and yes, we were very moved seeing it. I'm still annoyed that I missed seeing the Lancaster fly overhead recently. Strange how things made of metal cans stir the heart in such a way. Problem these days is that, instead of worrying about a lot of things our parents would have [polio outbreaks etc] the danger facing us and our loved ones now seems to be 'being in the wrong place at the wrong time' and we have absolutely no control over it. If it hadn't been for the bravery of those men on the train at the weekend there would have been a massacre in the news as well as the air show disaster.

thatbags I think you should preface your remark that those who oppose militarism are short-sighted with the words "in my opinion".

Speaking personally, I don't really care what "off shoots" military technology has provided to the world - such benefits have, in my view, been completely eclipsed by the devastation that these vile weapons have wreaked. Also the almost unimaginable amounts of money and expertise that have been needed to produce these weapon systems would I feel more than compensate for a loss of peripheral benefits.

I just heard on 6pm news that 4 Britons have lost their lives in a light aircraft crash in Canada. Do we ban these aircraft from flying sightseers over mountainous terrain?? Another tragic accident. My sympathies to the families of all concerned.

I would never travel in a light aircraft even though various friends over the years have owned them and offered trips. One such friend did actually crash and was killed .