http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/09/16/nevada.plane.crash/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

 Rob  Woods

 One of the most horrible things I was ever unfortunate
 enough to witness. The P51, traveling around 500 MPH, pulled
 up and did a high speed split S vertically into the ground
 just in front of the box seats.

 Our man Dave Leonard who happens to be a doctor immediately
 volunteered to help.

 His assigned, badly mutilated, patent died in the hospital right
 after they arrived by ambulance.

 Dave told us it was as bad as anything he had seen in Iraq.
 He said it looked like a grenade going off in the stands.
 Body parts all over the place.


 Paul Lamar


 Only saw one not very informative video but .... I wonder why so many
 people were sitting so far in front of the grandstand/bleachers?  Was
 there no line to keep spectators back from the flight line?  I have
 never been to Reno so I don't know.

 SD

 The flight path is about 1000 feet from the spectators
 and it is carefully calculated by the FAA.

 Dave thinks the pilot blacked out.

 Paul Lamar

Clues:
It looks like there is a missing trim tab.  It may just be the angle of the sun.  From the side the pilot isn't visible.

My cousin, who was out to watch his plane, Last Lap Player, race in Formula 1, said it looked like Galloping Ghost did about a 10G pull up, which may support the black out theory.

Chris Cosman

Photos from KSL.com