very sad news, but for me, not unexpected. in the back of my mind, I had a feeling he would die without regaining consciousness, I'm just surprised he managed to hang on for as long as he did. in the end, when the body can no longer fight to survive, it's only option is to let go.
this will be the wake up call I personally feel F1 still needs. despite the advances in technology & safety standards over the last 20 years, it's still very much a dangerous sport, and always will be.
I can recall a few years ago, someone on these very message boards made the statement that they believed there wouldn't be another fatality in F1, as they thought that it had become too safe. well, it's not, and the only thing that has prevented a fatality before now is plain and simple good fortune.
kubica, webber, alonso, massa, raikonnen among others are still alive and in good health because they were fortunate enough to survive potentially disastrous accidents.
the problem with good fortune, is that it doesn't last, and sooner or later, the luck will always run out for someone, and unfortunately for bianchi, it was him this time.
sadly, this won't be the last tragedy in F1, the nature of the sport will eventually bring about the same outcome for somebody, as long as the sport has a core human element, death is inevitable. there will be the next fatality, whether that is in the next race, next season, or well into the next decade, nobody knows, but it will happen. the drivers are all too aware of this, and accept the risks when they get into the car..
