How High Will It Go?

Monday, September 20, 2021 at 10:56 AM ET

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The FAA's Equip 2020 Team is hosting a live Twitter chat to address general aviation questions and concerns over the deadline for ADS-B. FAA

Key Takeaways:

The accident was primarily caused by the flight instructor's decision to conduct and continue a VFR flight into instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) with a known unreliable attitude indicator, leading to spatial disorientation and loss of airplane control.
Operating at altitudes up to 19,400 feet without supplemental oxygen contributed significantly, as hypoxia impaired the CFI's decision-making and ability to control the aircraft and respond to ATC instructions.
Key contributing factors included the CFI's lack of recent instrument flight experience, failure to obtain a preflight weather briefing, and a history of regulatory violations, including past certificate revocation for falsifying logbooks.

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I’m a firm believer in using supplemental oxygen; there’s a portable O2 tank in my airplane right now. For a variety of reasons, I usually go on oxygen when I’m going to be at 10,000 feet or higher for any length of time. I typically fly long legs, and when I use oxygen, I’m not as fatigued as I might have been after the same amount of time at, say, 7500 feet. But higher usually is better for long flights, and O2 is part of my plan.

And there really needs to be a plan for any flight out of the local area. With the tools we have these days, there’s no excuse not to get a full preflight briefing, even if you don’t read or understand it. If you don’t get one before launching on a three-plus-hour flight with passengers, you’re not treating the situation or the passengers with respect.