Dad dies after being struck by his own plane in ‘freak accident’

Roger Wallace, 60, was flying the 5ft-wide model plane at Pima County Fairgrounds in Tucson, Arizona

A father of two tragically lost his life in an extraordinary “freak accident” when he was struck by his own model aircraft, sustaining fatal injuries.

Roger Wallace, 60, was operating the 5ft-wide remote-controlled plane at the Pima County Fairgrounds in Tuscon, Arizona, when the devastating incident occurred.

He lost track of the aircraft in bright sunlight, and the 3kg model caused severe damage to his heart and lung.

Roger collapsed unconscious whilst his companions attempted to assist him before paramedics arrived, but sadly their efforts proved futile and he was declared dead at the scene.

Roger had been a member of the Southern Arizona Modelers, a radio-controlled aircraft group, for three years, reports the Mirror.

Club President Jerry Knebel told the Arizona Daily Star in 2002: “This was not a common thing. This was just the freakiest of freak accidents that could possibly happen.

“No one can believe this. We can’t believe it ourselves, and we’ve been doing this the past 30 years.”

Roger had previously owned an auto parts business but had sold it several years earlier, and was employed by the new proprietors whilst considering retirement before the tragic incident.

Before joining the aircraft club, Roger had been drag racing at the local drag strip – and was seeking a safer pastime. Knebel continued: “He talked so often about how the flying was safer than the drag strip. He came over because he thought our sport was the safer sport.”

The club maintained strict safety protocols, with one member always serving as safety officer during flights, adhering to Academy of Model Aeronautics safety standards.

Knebel said: “We pride ourselves on not having any accidents at all. We haven’t had one in many, many years.”

Roger’s obituary described him as: “He was a kind, loving, friendly man and so ful of life and laughter. He will be greatly missed by all his friends and family.”

In September, an aviation content creator tragically perished before more than 1,000 viewers when his ultralight aircraft plummeted from the sky and erupted in flames during a live broadcast.

Tang Feiji was streaming when his twin-rotor machine took a sharp turn and plunged nose-first into Jiange County, central China. Horrified spectators flooded the chat with frantic messages urging someone to “call the emergency services” and “save him”.

Despite their urgent appeals, it was too late, and Tang, 55, was declared dead at the scene from the crash. The aviation enthusiast had built a substantial following in Guangyuan City, Sichuan Province, through his regular flying videos, amassing approximately 100,000 followers on Chinese social media platform Douyin.