Ewan H

I have no problem at all with people hand swinging from behind but it is very foolish to hand swing from the front, private strip or not, without the a/c being chocked and preferably someone in the cockpit. In the original post on this thread both the pilot and the marshal were at fault and in my opinion the pilot should either have stayed in the a/c or stopped the engine – he was clear of the strip – the latter possibly getting some response from the marshal or someone. To exit the a/c with the engine still running and then pointing it directly at and then walking it to within a few feet of the public crowd was asking for criticism. I am well aware of the problems that can be and are experienced with tail skid aircraft but these problems are no excuse for dangerous and risky practices, especially when the public could become involved. 🙁