License to learn” is the description often given to a freshly earned certificate or rating. The phrase describes a pilot’s new ability to get into conditions for which he or she has been trained but lack experience. Most of the time, we don’t read about what happened on a pilot’s first few forays with a new piece of paper. It’s a good idea if the first few flights during which we exercise our new certification are over familiar territory in relative benign conditions. The aircraft should be in good condition, as should the pilot.
But that’s apparently not what happened in the events leading up to this month’s Accident Probe. Although the pilot had a fresh instrument rating and a handful of hours at night, he had no experience in night IMC. He also had a medical condition that may have contributed to the flight’s outcome.
