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Giving Up Flying…Again

Martha Lunken makes friends with her favorite twin, one you’d never call “light.” Courtesy Martha Lunken
Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

  • Pilots should pre-plan emergency responses, choosing to accept controlled, less-than-ideal outcomes (e.g., landing ahead) over attempting risky "miracle saves" in critical situations.
  • A significant challenge for pilots is recognizing and accepting their own age-related decline, which often leads to continued unsafe flying and puts themselves and others at risk.
  • The article emphasizes the need for pilots and their communities to proactively address aging-related flight safety through honest conversations, proficiency checks, and implementing operational limitations.
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In “When to Give Up,” an article from several years ago, I recommended giving serious thought before every takeoff about how to handle an emergency. Rather than trying for a “miracle save,” it was usually better to accept the unpleasant certainty of bending some metal but probably surviving.

Martha Lunken

Martha Lunken is a lifelong pilot, former FAA inspector and defrocked pilot examiner. She flies a Cessna 180 and anything with a tailwheel, from Cubs to DC-3s.

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