Accident Probes

At 14:00 EST, a Cessna 152 and a Cessna 140A collided during landing on runway 16 at the Clearwater Air Park. None of the three occupants was injured. The 152, which held a flight instructor and a student pilot, landed on runway 16 and was about 1,500 feet down the runway when the Cessna 140 landed on top of it….

At 09:50 PST, an amateur-built Questair Venture and a Bellanca 8GCBC collided near Sylmar, The Questair was maneuvering to land at Van Nuys, and the Bellanca was operating as a pipeline patrol flight and was orbiting over a construction site near the point of the collision. Both aircraft were in contact with the Van Nuys Air Traffic Control Tower. The pilot and passenger on each plane were killed. The Bellanca pilot contacted the Van Nuys control tower at 09:42, saying, Newhall Pass. Well be here for about five minutes. The tower approved the request and assigned a transponder code, which the pilot verified. The airplane was orbiting in left turns at 2,000 feet msl over a construction sit…

At about 14:30 EST, a Piper PA-28-236 and a Cessna 172M collided near Parkertown. None of the three occupants was injured. The pilot of the Piper said he was level at 3,300 feet and flying north when he felt a bump. He thought he hit a bird and returned to his departure airport, Lorain County Regional Airport. The airplane had a tire mark on top of the fuselage and damage to the vertical stabilizer. The pilot did not recall seeing the Cessna at all. The Cessna pilot said he departed from Sandusky, Ohio, and was climbing through 3,300 feet for 3,500 feet when he noticed a vertical fin just slightly to the right of the airplane. The pilot said there was no time to take evasive action. After im…

At 17:29 PST, a Cessna 172N and a Piper PA-28-140 collided in mid-air while in the traffic pattern at Palm Springs. The two instructors and three students involved were not injured. The Cessna had been cleared for closed right traffic on runway 31R and was in a turn from crosswind to downwind. The Piper had been cleared into the airport traffic area and told to report two miles out on a 45-degree entry to the downwind for runway 31R. The tower controller had advised the Cessna of a Piper inbound from the northwest, and the Piper had been told of two Cessnas in right closed traffic. The Piper failed to make a position report as instructed. The airplanes collided at about 1,500 feet msl opposi…

At 07:48 CST, a Cessna 182M and a Cessna 208B collided in mid-air near McAlester Regional Airport. The pilot of the 182 was killed but the pilot of the Caravan was not injured. The pilot of the 182 had elected to divert to McAlester after getting an in-flight weather report that called for icing along his route of flight. The Caravan was departing when the pilot heard the 182 pilot call Unicom for an airport advisory. The Caravan pilot gave him the winds and active runway and heard no further transmissions. The Caravan was departing the pattern on an extended downwind when he saw the 182 making what appeared to be a normal crosswind to downwind turn. The Caravan pilot rolled right and descen…

The world of charter pilots is different from that inhabited by those who fly for fun, people who use their planes for business travel, or even airline pilots.

Many are contract pilots who get paid when they make a trip, putting pressure on them to complete trips under almost any conditions. They may fly a variety of equipment in varying condition, despite Part 135 rules that may say otherwise.

Charter customers are a demanding lot. They expect airline-style performance with private plane-style convenience. They want to be on time, and they vote with their checkbooks.

With that kind of environment, the safety record of Part 135 passenger flights borders on remarkable. But like any o…

Pilots are a self-sufficient lot. The pilot in command has ultimate authority for the safety of the flight, and there are few pilots who can resist the slight smirk that comes with ultimate authority.

A skilled pilot has confidence in his or her ability to fly the airplane, certainly, but also to make the judgment calls that ensure the flight ends safely. But as experience increases, sometimes the judgment gets harder.

An interesting thing happens with a lot of pilots. As their skill improves, so does their equipment. A young pilot may think a set of wings, an engine and a fuselage just dandy. But as the logbook grows, so does the desire for more capability. For a pilot who likes to…

Sidle up to any pilot you see at the airport. Ask about his or her attitude toward safety. Whether flying the latest and greatest corporate jet or propping the most tired tube-and-fabric antique, that pilot will give the same answer.

Sure, Im a safe pilot. After all, its my behind thats riding just aft of the instrument panel.

Few people like to admit that they have shortcomings as pilots. And when they do, its usually tempered with some mitigating circumstance that demonstrates that bad things only happen to the other guy.

They dont fly instruments, but theyre conservative about the weather. They dont fly often, but when they do theyre extra careful. They skimp on mainte…

Not many people would justify the time and expense involved in being a proficient general aviation pilot without their spouse supporting the activity. While many spouses are pilots themselves, a great number are merely participants who enjoy the travel and other benefits of flying, without having been bitten by the flying bug itself.

These preferred passengers share a few traits. Theyre usually willing and able to help with some of the housekeeping chores like folding maps, watching for traffic and looking up frequencies. Some may take a pinch-hitter course or a bit of flight instruction in case the pilot someday gets a bad batch of oysters. Virtually all describe their pilot-in-command…

Although pilots do their best to minimize the risk they assume every time they switch on the magnetos, somewhere in the back of most pilots heads is a tiny voice urging them to watch out for the unexpected. Some may consider this self-doubt and banish it from their consciousness. Others embark on a near-manic attempt to silence it through endless training, hardware and conservative decision-making.

Though most pilots generally fall somewhere in the middle, there are those occasional flights where almost anyone may be tempted to shout down the doubt or defer the flight because something doesnt feel right. Usually those flights pass without incident. Occasionally they dont.

The voic…