An accident during an aerobatic show leads to disaster
On 28 August 1988, more than 300,000 people gathered at the US Ramstein Air Base near Kaiserslautern to watch an air show. The event was set to culminate in a display by the Italian Air Force, renowned (and often criticized) for their high-risk manoeuvres. During the display, three aircraft collided at a very low altitude, just 300 metres from the crowd. Whilst two of the aircraft came down away from the crowd, one crashed and exploded nearby before sliding into the crowd whilst still on fire.
Seventy people died and a further 1,000 were injured. The chaos of the rescue operations likely cost additional lives that might otherwise have been saved. Whilst German medics began their on-site triage and treatment routine, Americans simply snatched injured people from them and drove off at speed. The deployment of standard US battlefield tactics in a civilian context drew heavy criticism and led to protocols being agreed for joint emergency rescue operations. Aerobatic displays were banned in Germany for several years.
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