Skip Evans--Pilot

[ltdiver 3]

Anybody remember Skip?

I was browsing the internet, looking for a particular arts theater in Riverside, when I stumbled upon this little article in the Press Enterprise. Didn't know about this movie! And looks like I missed its showing last month. Anyone see the film?

http://www.pe.com/entertainment/movies/stories/PE_Ent_Daily_D_doubletruck11.233fc5d.html

Quote

"The Flyboys," an action adventure about two kids flying a runaway plane, features the piloting stunt work of Skip Evans, of Riverside.

"A movie called 'The Flyboys' better have good aerials," said producer Dan Urness, who will be at the festival.

Evans started flying decades ago as an agricultural pilot, then taking skydivers up in Perris. He was involved in a well-documented incident in 1985 when a DC-3 he was piloting lost a propeller blade on takeoff. He went on to pilot jump planes for years and then got into flying for movies.

He still runs a family trucking company headquartered in Perris, but his aerial skill has been featured in "Letters From Iwo Jima," "Flags of Our Fathers," "Con Air," "All the Pretty Horses" and "Mulholland Falls." Most recently, he flew in "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" and the upcoming James Bond film "Quantum of Solace."

Landing his 1952 Twin Beach on a highway in "The Flyboys" and making it look like it was the untrained boys flying proved to be exciting for Evans.

"One time I got a little bit close to this one car and just hit the roof a little bit with one of the landing gears, and another time I barely got out of the way of a truck," he said.

The Twin Beech was built for the Royal Canadian Air Force and was derelict in the Perris Valley Airport when Evans restored it.

"The Flyboys" features the piloting stunt work of Skip Evans, of Riverside, in his 1952 Twin Beech. The movie is an action adventure about two kids flying a runaway plane.
"The plane is like a character in the film," Urness said.

The film also had the services of Tom Sanders, one of the best skydiving movie photographers who shoots with a 35 mm camera on his helmet, according to Urness.

Although stunt doubles did the parachute drops, the two boys who star -- Jesse James, 13 at the time, and Reiley McClendon, 12 during filming -- learned skydiving basics in a wind-tunnel machine so that close-ups could be shot of them "free-falling."

Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon

[ltdiver 3]

Oh wow! Found a more detailed article on the Flyboys movie, which talks about the stunts that Skip was able to do. No CGI here, folks. Only very good flying and incredible camera work!

See: http://www.movingpicturesmagazine.com/featuredarticles/guestcontributor/roccodevilliers_flyboys

ltdiver

Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon

[longtall 0]

any info on that 1985 accident?

" 90 right, five miles then cut."---Pukin Buzzards

[NickDG 23]

The DC-3 had 33 aboard (jumpers + 2 pilots) and it was on its take-off roll when it threw a blade off its left prop. Skip managed to get the airplane stopped, but the left engine broke a fuel line and a fire erupted.

You never saw 31 jumpers exit a plane so fast and they all got out safely. Skip and the other pilot went out the cockpit upper crew hatch, but couldn't just drop down because it's pretty high up, but mainly because of the fire below them.

There's another photo of it somewhere, but they gingerly walked down the spine of the cabin roof with fire raging on both sides of the aircraft.

The DC-3 pretty much melted into the ground and for a long time from under canopy you could see an almost perfect outline of the airplane on the ground.

Everyone realized that if that prop blade would have departed a bit later the airplane would have been airborne and things might have been a lot worse.

It was at that point that Ben, the DZO, realizing the potential for economic loss, leased out all the DZ operations to other people to run. The school, the up-jumper operterations, and all became individual concessions so Ben would be insulated. And that's how the short lived Perris Valley Skydiving Society was born.

Yes, Skip earned ever dime he ever made at Perris that day.

NickD

[skybill 19]

Hi Nick and all,
Yup that was a good one!!!! Scary stories thread has a post or two about 57Undertaker!!! I was in it!! Jerry Spencer was viedoing the takeoff when it all happened and kept filming..... Got a copy?? I do!!!

SCR-2034, SCS-680

III%,
Deli-out

[zoobrothertom 5]

"Got a copy?"

Nope! Can you post it?

____________________________________
I'm back in the USA!!

[itllclear 1]

Remember the bumper sticker:

"Skydiving's Hotter at Perris"

BSBD

Harry

"Harry, why did you land all the way out there? Nobody else landed out there."

"Your statement answered your question."

[itllclear 1]

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he flew in "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull"

Yep, the DC-3 in the movie had a floater bar. Could almost make out my fingerprints!

I've got about 20 hrs. logged SIC in 6MA.

Blue Skies!

Harry

"Harry, why did you land all the way out there? Nobody else landed out there."

"Your statement answered your question."

[highspeeddirt 0]

this video was just on world's most amazing videos this week.frightening shit.

[skybill 19]

Hi Sky Harry!!,
6MA you say, what a plane!! Besides "Jones and the skull" remember the flying Elvi jumping from it in "Honeymoon in Vegas!!" "Elvises light your fires!!!" Skippy had that plane shined up like a mirror!!

SCR-2034, SCS-680

III%,
Deli-out

[skybill 19]

Hi Zoobro,
'Don't have the gear to plug my old VHS stuff into the 'puter, yet. Still have to dig thru a closet full of beer case boxes of VHS tapes of skydives of yesteryear to find it!!!!! Meanwhile back at the DZ, someone may already have posted it somewhere on the WWW or try your local DZ!!

SCR-2034, SCS-680

III%,
Deli-out

[377 21]

Anybody remember WFFC (2004?) when skip brought N26MA to Rantoul? That was sure fun. I was on one load when a tall young readheaded girl jumper came up to the cockpit and asked the pilots: "will you give us some extra altitude if I take my top off?"

I wont say what happened but...we exited well over 15K. I have never been that high in a DC3 since.

2018 marks half a century as a skydiver. Trained by the late Perry Stevens D-51 in 1968.

[skybill 19]

Hi 377,
Oh there are many testamonies,"and photo's too!!" Yup, SOP for getting x-tra altitude from any red-blooded skydiverdriver!! If the Whuffo's only knew??

SCR-2034, SCS-680

III%,
Deli-out

[itllclear 1]

Quote

SOP for getting x-tra altitude from any red-blooded skydiverdriver!! If the Whuffo's only knew??

I had fun at a pilots' seminar on hypoxia.

Question: "What causes hypoxia? "
Answer: "Tits in the right seat of an Otter at The Prairie."

BSBD!

"Harry, why did you land all the way out there? Nobody else landed out there."

"Your statement answered your question."

[GreenLight 5]

Here it is... N157U Burns to the ground... Got this from the "Frisby Collection". I was unable to copy the sound but it is captioned.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTqkR8dATWs

Green Light
"Harry, why did you land all the way out there? Nobody else landed out there."
"Your statement answered your question."

[ltdiver 3]

Quote

Here it is... N157U Burns to the ground... Got this from the "Frisby Collection". I was unable to copy the sound but it is captioned.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTqkR8dATWs

Wow. Heard of it, but had never seen the footage. Thanks for getting it from Al's collection.

ltdiver

Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon

[VectorBoy 0]

Quote

Anybody remember WFFC (2004?) when skip brought N26MA to Rantoul?

2003- yeah I remember. I flew out with Skip as xcess baggage straight to the convention. The oil and fuel stops were the greatest, fly bys on departure at just about everyone. Small town airport welcomes. Never flew that low over the Rockies before. Skip is a great guy for sure.