I've been flying airplanes for 49 years. During my student pilot days, I thought that pilots walked on water; as I gained experience that thought became an illusion. For example:
A highly experienced flight instructor in a retractable-gear airplane is giving a flight review to a pilot who also has considerable experience in that type airplane. They land gear up.
Prior to a flight in instrument conditions, the pilot is observed wearing a headset while standing on the ground between the open cabin door and the pilot seat. All exterior lights including the strobe lights are illuminated. The battery and avionics switches are on as he listens to the ATIS, requests his IFR clearance, waits for a minute or two, and then copies the clearance. And he's going to depend on that battery for emergency backup when airborne? Ridiculous. Batteries are sacred. I don't care what the pundits say about minor electrical loads, don't use the battery unless it's absolutely necessary, and make certain it's well charged, particularly before instrument and night flights.
A pilot delivers an airplane that has received a short takeoff and landing (STOL) conversion. When asked, he tells me that delivering these airplanes is a full-time job. I say that seems impossible considering the icing conditions that occur in that part of the country. He says it's no problem if you know the area, because you can always get between layers or move laterally. Based on my experience flying in that area, I disagree. The following spring, search crews found the wreckage of an airplane he was delivering with his son while icing conditions existed. Both were killed.
Seven pilots have been killed during the past year in my area in two midair collisions. One involved a training flight and a light twin after they both departed from the same airport. The other one involved two young pilots flying a downwind leg at their home airport when another pilot on a cross-country flight flew across the airport at pattern altitude and broadsided the other airplane.
A pilot was insisting on departing from an airport in bad weather, and witnesses observed him arguing with his wife about leaving. So he left her at the airport, departed, iced up, and crashed.
An airline crew started a takeoff on a closed runway--not the assigned runway--and fatalities occurred. Even the most modern airliner has a magnetic compass, which should always be validated before takeoff to ensure that the other heading indicators are correct. Obviously, the compass heading on the runway must agree with the direction of the assigned runway. If you've not been trained to validate the magnetic compass while taxiing to and on the runway before takeoff, your training has been substandard.
A fatal airline accident occurred because of improper crew performance. According to the cockpit voice tapes, the co-pilot was not feeling well and "should have called in sick." The captain was letting the autopilot do all the work while flying in icing conditions and did not realize that the airplane was in a critical situation. I would like to know what happened before the flight with respect to crew rest and duty hours. Those could be significant factors.
Another fatal airline accident occurred during an international flight into convective weather. The cause has not been determined, but I've seen situations that come to mind. A captain is reluctant to tell the company to offload X pounds of cargo and add that weight in fuel so that he has options in the event of bad weather, or if the fuel tanks are full, he is reluctant to request an en route fuel stop. When a captain insists on such actions, some people become grossly upset, but sometimes you must be a real jerk in the eyes of others in order to ensure the safety of your passengers.
A captain whom I flew with early in my airline career when I was a new second officer (flight engineer) had this pertinent advice: "If the pilots are uptight and dead serious when you get on the airplane, watch out. If they're relaxed and having fun, you're in good hands."
Those reflections show that pilot errors run the full spectrum of pilot certification from private pilots to airline transport pilots. Ignore the rules, common sense, or that little voice in the back of your mind that says caution, and you'll pay the price with your life.
Fly smart, fly safe, and in light airplanes avoid high-energy weather systems, widespread low ceilings, and icing conditions. If flying a glass-cockpit airplane, keep your eyes outside the cockpit when flying in visual conditions. Only you can ensure flight safety.
Ralph Butcher, a retired United Airlines captain, is the chief flight instructor at a California flight school. He has been flying since 1959 and has 25,000 hours in fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft. Visit his Web site.
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