The Tragic Day When a Pilot Was Literally Flying Blind

Oregon incident can teach us all an important lesson in being honest with yourself.

Friday, December 10, 2021 at 09:59 AM ET

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A pilot wasn't honest about his medical status before flying. As a result, his vision may have been impaired or lost. Credit: Adobe Stock

Key Takeaways:

An elderly pilot with an unreported medical condition causing vision loss and lapsed flying proficiency crashed fatally after experiencing vision problems mid-flight.
The accident underscores how pilots, particularly aging ones, often conceal disqualifying medical issues from the FAA because flying is deeply intertwined with their sense of identity.
The article highlights the significant difficulty for aging pilots to make the ultimate "no-go" decision to stop flying, and for their friends and family to intervene, especially when the perceived danger is primarily to the pilot themselves.

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“You’ve got to know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ’em.”

The pilot was 79 years old. He had 1,300 hours, a private certificate, and an instrument rating, but seldom flew. He kept his airplane, a Piper Dakota, hangared at North Bend, Oregon, and would take it out from time to time to fly up and down the nearby Pacific coast. He had logged only 31 hours during the past five years, and he had not had a recent flight review or renewed his medical.