I love to fly: warm spring sunrises with misted valleys, summer afternoons, landing somewhere serene, a cold drink after tying down and watching thunderstorms. Winter mornings and fields glazed with sparkling snow and ice, cold dense air allowing awesome rates of climb. But sometimes flying is a bad idea—a very bad idea.
Weather? Check!
Aircraft? Check!
Notams and route of flight? Check.
Pilot? Pilot? Piiiiiilot?
I have addressed this previously, but as long as incidents still occur, the topic merits attention. How well do you check yourself and those joining you for the next aviation adventure? If physically and mentally you’re not on top of your game, don’t get on top of the hard stuff because any debilitation impairs judgment. When bad things happen there’s usually a chain of events, without one of which a bad outcome could have been avoided. And the biggie there is decision making. If you are not 100-percent well you are not, in my opinion, fit to fly, because while you can probably get away with it most of the time, you will not be functioning at the level needed to deal with things when life goes pear-shaped.
My pal Dave has suggested we take a leaf out of airline protocol. They use a team approach, flight planning, weather briefings, flight envelope criteria, and a co-pilot for crew resource management. Why not line up friends and family members, list your personal minimums, and before each trip garner their input as to whether every given flight is a good idea? And take it seriously. So let’s look at some issues that should lead to a no-go decision, and, in true Late Show spirit, let’s count down from 10.
10. Your passengers are not properly briefed. Preflight them just as you do yourself. Are they well enough to fly? Do they have required medications at hand? The time to discover your passenger has heart disease or epilepsy is not when you are shooting the ILS in IMC. Have they eaten anything that could cause an issue on board? Small airplanes and heavy doses of beans do not mix. And while eight hours bottle to throttle is a bare minimum for pilots, someone who was on the town last night is not welcome in my airplane. The sound and aroma of hangover-induced vomiting does not work for me.
9. You’re under the weather. Under normal circumstances, your nose produces more than two pints of mucus a day. When infected by cold or flu viruses, this increases dramatically. Additionally, your strength is depleted, hearing is impeded, and debilitating ear pain on ascent or descent may occur. Some bright sparks try to mitigate symptoms with over-the-counter medications. Not a good idea; many cause sedation and are banned by the FAA.
8. You are seeing a doctor for a new health issue. Sort out your well-being first. Then fly.
7. You are under any kind of emotional stress at work or in your home life, or are worrying about friends, colleagues, or loved ones.
6. You have not had a suitable preflight meal or drink, or have consumed alcohol in proximity to the planned flight. Eight hours is not enough.
5. You did not get enough sleep—or your bed partner is complaining that you snore. Beware, you may have sleep apnea.
4. You are taking an over-the-counter medication that might not be acceptable to the FAA or imply you have an underlying health issue.
3. You are taking any new medicine, and have not cleared it with your aviation medical examiner, the AOPA or FAA medication database, or AOPA Pilot Protection Services.
2. Something isn’t right. Ever had a day where you just don’t feel “right”? Maybe you are coming down with a cold; maybe a conversation you had with a loved one or colleague is troubling you. Maybe today is the anniversary of a sad life event? If you have any inkling you are not on top of your game, don’t get on top of the clouds.
1. You have “get-there-itis,” that most fatal aviation-related disease. If you must be somewhere at a given time, leave early or let someone else fly. Too many grieving families would rather their loved one had missed the birthday party; too many business colleagues would have forgiven you blowing off the meeting. Defer your flight. In my experience each time I have done that, and not pushed my personal envelope, I have caught up with a movie I wanted to watch or had a fascinating chat with some nice person in a hotel bar.
Fly well, fly often, but fly safe. Please.
Email [email protected]
Jonathan Sackier
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