By Howard Deevers
Sure, we see it every day. Not so much in our airplanes, but definitely in our cars; drivers going well over the speed limit, cutting from lane to lane, trying to “beat the light,” and many other ways that drivers push the limits. With over 40,000 traffic deaths per year in this country, you have to wonder if trying to save those few minutes on a single trip is really worth it.
The public has accepted the 40,000+ deaths as the standard for automobile travel, but certainly not anything like that for air travel. Fortunately for us, Commercial Air travel has become very safe, and General Aviation fatal accidents have come down to about 500 fatalities per year across the country. Fifty years ago, the numbers were much higher, but increased training and regulations are credited for the improvements. Still, every loss is a sad loss.
Is it possible to get to ZERO fatalities in aviation? We would hope so. But not all fatal accidents are the fault of the pilot. Some are mechanical and unexpected, like the wing failure in an airplane in Florida a few years ago. Not only do we improve safety by training, but airplanes have become safer also. The same is true for automobiles, but drivers have not become safer.
If we flew our airplanes like many of the aggressive drivers we see every day, the accident rate would be much higher. The temptations are there for us; rush through the pre-flight; get a weather briefing later; checklist? What checklist? Gear down? Oops, I forgot! Flying in weather that you know you should not be in...
We, as pilots, love to go to air shows where there are aerial demonstrations. These are fun to watch, but would I really like to fly my airplane up-side-down? Not in a Piper Warrior for sure!
Those may be extreme examples of “Pushing the Envelope” that very few of us would do. Other things are not so obvious, such as flying when we are really tired after a long day of work. Or, flying IFR when we are not as “current” as we should be. Flying with low fuel reserves, thinking that I can make it to my destination; not a good idea at all.
The famous line from TOP GUN when the Commander was chewing out the pilots: “Your ego is writing checks that your body can't cash.” I call that “Thinking that we are better than we really are.” I have never read that in an NTSB accident report, but if you read enough of them, you will guess that the pilot thought that he was better than he really was. Unfortunately, in many of those accident reports, the pilot is no longer available for an interview to ask him, “What were you thinking?”
We all make mistakes, and I have made my share. We should learn from those mistakes and adjust our flying to improve, rather than seeing how far we can go. Eventually you will find out how far you can really go, and you won't be able to tell anyone exactly where that limit was.
Fly safely and come to a Safety Seminar sponsored by ARIZONA PILOTS ASSICIATION. They are free, and don't forget to “Bring your wingman!”