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Making Safe Choices
by Darren
Smith, CFII/MEI
Getting
the Most from Your Flight Training, June 2005
Recently, four
local,
high-time twin pilots died in their aircraft and took nine others with
them. They were more than potential customers to me, they were
experienced,
respected pilots who seemed to be doing everything right. Those
pilots included two local aviation safety counselors and two high-time
aircraft owners. These events
led me to question what it takes to have a long, safe flying
future.
After informally surveying hundreds of pilots, I learned it comes down
to making safe choices.
When a pilot
considers the aeronautical decision-making research on accidents, he
quickly learns there isn't a single decision that leads to the scene
of the accident. Actually, there is a chain of events that if
interrupted
by a
single choice, the accident is prevented. The chain of decisions
starts with a seemingly harmless poor decision but gets worse as the
flight to the accident scene progresses.
An aircraft has been
said to be perfectly safe as long as a pilot decides not to fly
it. The stats indicate that 85% of fatal aircraft accidents are
due to poor choices made by the pilot. So we're left with 15%
that we can't control: ATC operational events, equipment failure,
etc. Clearly, aviation safety rests in our hands
by the choices we make and how we manage the risks. Your success
in this endeavor is measured by the accident that doesn't occur.
As with all good things in aviation, there are far more questions than
answers. Consider these ideas and how they could affect your
aeronautical decisions. Let me know your thoughts and reactions.
1. Shortcuts are never
good
decisions. One of my instrument students taxied to the
wrong end
of the runway. When
he finished the run-up, he realized that he needed to taxi to the other
end because the wind had changed. When he got to the departure
end, he attempted to enter the
runway. When I stopped him, I queried him as to why he did not
lean the mixture for taxi and whether another run-up was
indicated. He thought it was not required and attempted to enter
the runway environment again. I told him that it was an error
that he did not lean the mixture for taxi and a run-up was
required. He was not convinced, so I asked him to try it and see
what happens. He was surprised to see the severe RPM drop during
the mag
check. After I explained how spark plugs can become fouled by not
leaning the mixture, I told him that aviation is a series of
choices. At that teachable moment, he (hopefully) learned that
shortcuts are
never good decisions.
Compromising
safety for the 'quick fix'/shortcut will eventually lead to
disaster. The challenge with taking shortcuts is that sometimes
they work. In your best moments, you realize what an efficient
pilot you are and how doing that item on the checklist was a waste of
time. The problem is that sometimes luck just plain runs
out. When small careless mistakes add up, it will catch
even the most experience pilot unprepared. On your worst day, it
might be the last.
2. Follow the rules.
The IFR system is a game of rules. When we step
outside the rules, we really take our lives into our own
hands. Such things as descent below the MDA without the
runway environment in sight, improper fuel planning, poor situational
awareness (where are you and what comes next), and incorrectly
executing clearances are quick ways to end the game with a losing
score. A recent accident in the Southwest Florida area
underscores the importance of playing the game properly. A
northern pilot starts on his cross country trip to Florida, bypassing
hundreds of cheap fill-ups to land at his destination... the one
without a landing fee. On his first missed approach he declares
"fuel in the yellow" and fails to heed the controller's suggestion to
go to the big airport (with a landing fee) but with lower
minimums. On his second missed approach he loses an engine and
declares an emergency. On his third approach he loses his
remaining engine and becomes a twin glider. The resulting
stall/spin accident cause in-flight separation of the propeller from
the
engine and it stabbed (straight down) a lazy boy recliner in a home
below. All aboard were lost. The pilot's failure in proper
fuel planning, choosing an alternate, and a desire to avoid a landing
fee accelerated him to his fate that day.
3. Situational
Awareness. Extensive thought should be given to your
flight from take off to landing. (Read related article: Flight
Profile Flying) A critical skill of a properly
prepared pilot is the ability to ask AND answer, "Where are you and
what comes
next." Whether this relates to who you talk to and when, your
progress enroute or on the approach, or the bigger picture of what's
happening around you and why, your task is to think about the factors
related to your flight and consider "what if".
Two examples illustrate the need to ask "what if?" and "where am
I what what comes next." Recently an
instrument student practicing the Bravo Pattern
under the hood was asked, "What would you do if you lost your engine
right
now?" Her answer was not the emergency procedures she should
initiate but
a dislike for the question asked. I explained that I was only
considering the options as I was looking outside at the rough
terrain. I told her I thought it would be a difficult engine out
landing if we lost our engine. Sometimes aviation ain't pretty
(Read related article: Anatomy
of an Engine Failure). Another student was
asked innocently enough, "Are you flying towards the inbound
course?" His answer was, "I think so." My response was,
"You flew through it about a minute ago." Do these scenarios
happen just to student pilots or to all of us? If you answered
"all of us" then you were correct but hopefully its rare. You
have a choice whether you will challenge yourself with these two
questions often during every flight: "Where am I and what comes
next?" and "What if?"
4. Complacency
Kills. I am constantly amazed by the smallest things I
learn everyday. I am equally amazed by the 120 hour
pilot who knows it all as well as the 5000 hour pilots who knows
it all. The reality is that neither knows enough. I am also
convinced that we are all guilty of a complacent mindset from time to
time. It's hard to remember sometimes that folks a lot smarter
than us figured out what gets pilots into trouble and how to avoid
it. Are we prepared to listen to those best practices and
incorporate them into our flying? Are we taking every opportunity
to keep our flight safe or are we doing what's good enough to get
by? Ultimately we survive through application of good flight
safety practices regardless of departure conditions, enroute weather,
or landing conditions. A flight instructor has an excellent
opportunity to observe the bad habits of a wide range of pilots.
Next time you fly with one, get as much as possible out of him
regarding your habits and skills. Approach your flying with a
studied curiosity and find the new thing you can learn today.
(Read related article: Things Your Flight Instructor Wish You
Knew: Airplane or Helicopter)
5. Pilot Maturity.
Making safe choices is related to the individual's maturity as a
pilot. There is a world of difference between a pilot doing
aerobatics 100 feet off the deck and low flight over open
terrain. And then sometimes there isn't. It goes further
than following the rules (Minimum Safe Altitude 91.119 in this
example), its a sense of what makes a flight safe. Continuing VFR
into IMC, conducting a flight without a preflight briefing,
switching fuel tanks after run-up, take off on a high density altitude
day with a full load, practicing maneuvers without clearing turns,
flight at unsafe altitudes, and
getting a fill-up without checking fuel quantity and quality are unsafe
acts which should raise the hair on the back of your neck. What you
don't know can hurt you. Read the accident reports at NTSB.gov if
you don't believe me. Part of
managing risk begins with recognizing risk then creating a readiness to
respond to it.
6. Readiness
mindset. Having an array of choices available when
disaster hits is dependent upon your mindset. Are you always
ready for trouble so you know how to manage it when the time
comes? Your power to control risk and determine your fate
should convince you that you have a number of things to consider.
Are we always within gliding distance of a safe place to land?
When you take off do you transition to a Vy climb to get a fast climb
rate? If you are IFR in a single engine, do you check your route
for high ceilings so that you would be able to break out at high enough
altitude to react? Do you use all available navigational
resources in the cockpit so that you always know where an airport
is? Have you performed a very thorough preflight? Have you
considered where you'll go if the engine quits on the departure
leg? Have you even practiced a 180 degree turn back to the
airport (at altitude)? Do you perform a takeoff
briefing to review the options should the takeoff not go as
planned? When you do an IFR approach briefing do you review the
likely failures and your reaction to each?
If you create a readiness mindset, you will be in a position to create
the maximum amount of free time to think through an emergency and react
appropriately. This eliminates mistakes and allows the pilot to
process more variables and options.
7. Willingness to abort.
The old adage "its easier to be on the ground wishing you were airborne
than to be in the air wishing you were on the ground" is true
today as it ever was. We often get caught up in the moment with
get-there-itis or the 'lets get it done" mindsets. Stop and
consider how willing and prepared you are to abort your next takeoff 2
knots short of rotation speed. Are you always prepared to return
to your departure airport in case you find something you dont
like? Do you have the approach plate ready and briefed?
Encountering icing conditions on
a departure, have you ever requested a
climbing hold to see if conditions improve in the climb (remaining
close to your departure airport with known weather)? Are you
willing to make an enroute precautionary landing? Did you already
listen to the ATIS when you got in range so you already know the
weather and approach in use? Do you have the approach plate
ready? What about your alternate approach plate?
8. Are you current and
proficient?
- IFR skills:
How does a 5000 hour pilot in a Piper
Navajo stall spin into a house on a 1/3 mile short final for a
runway? Was this pilot spring-loaded for a missed approach? The
final report on the accident suggests he wasn't. Even a 5000
hour pilot should have the mindset: "I
need to go practice more instrument approaches in different
places" and should consider a refresher program such as the 3
day IFR
Adventure.
- Aeronautical
knowledge: How does a 3000 hour CFI and
aviation safety counselor take a plane load of people down in icing
conditions after passing a VFR airport 10 minutes back? Not only
should we consider taking review and recurrency training, we should
attend aviation safety
meetings and expose ourselves to ideas from other pilots.
Because you are reading this, I know you have made a good start.
Start connecting with other people and sources of information on a
regular basis.
- Night current:
How does a private pilot flying his
helicopter hit a well lit tower at night? If we don't keep our
night skills current, we miss the subtle cues that night flying
provides and what we can't see we can't avoid. What is your
percentage of night VFR to day VFR? For the professional
helicopter pilot, how much NOE and NVG time have you logged lately?
- Technology:
With all the latest equipment installed
in the newest aircraft, its easy to find equipment rich, skill
deficient pilots at your local airport. We've all heard the
phrase "more money than common sense" and it will be quickly applied to
the pilot who had every tool to conduct a safe flight but still somehow
failed. Do you know how to use all that stuff? Are you
'techno-current'?
Additional Safety Resources
IFR
Risk Management
Things
Your Flight Instructor Wish You Knew - or
Helicopter
15
Things Pilots Must Learn - or
Helicopter
Flying Discipline
Things
Your Flight Instructor Worries About
Aviation Safety Programs
Flight Profile Flying - how to improve
safety flying the profile
Personal
Minimums Checklist(download)
Introduction
to Aeronautical Decision Making - Hazardous
Attitudes
Information on the
FAA
Pilot Proficiency Program "Wings"
FAA
Pilot Education Pamphlet Reprints
FAA
Publications
Preventing
Your Aircraft from Coming Apart in Flight
Characteristics of Successful
Pilots
Ten
Commandments for Safe Flight
What's Killing Pilots - What to
do to save your life
Bending Metal - the most
common causes of non-fatal accidents
Flight Profile Flying - how to improve
safety flying the profile
CFI Liability
Your Thoughts...
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