Declaring an emergency apparently isnt what it used to be. Recently, an airline crews uncertainty about their available fuel led them to declare, but thats when events got murky (see sidebar on page 6). Since then, a lot of people have gotten into the act of discussing this event, including the controllers union. All of which has led many of us to think about the process and ramifications of declaring an emergency.
The best way to fully understand hypoxias effects is in an altitude chamber. But theres more to high-altitude flight than just being able to breathe.
How to develop a healthy understanding and respect for weight and balance limitations.
The pilot reported for work as scheduled at 2 a.m. for a Part 135 light cargo flight, flying a Piper Lance from Burbank, Calif., to Phoenix, Ariz. He arrived at Phoenix and managed to get about five hours of sleep, waking at about noon local time.
On the next leg of the flight – the return to Burbank – he took off at 20:55 local. Several hours later, while maintaining a constant altitude, heading and airspeed, he collided with a mountain near Palm Springs -about 10 nautical miles south of his usual course. The investigators could find no evidence that indicated that the pilot had attempted to avoid the collision.
Investigators could find no mechanical reasons for the crash. After exam…
At a recent international symposium on aviation human factors, one of the interesting sessions described an FAA study attempting to answer what traits might predict accident prone pilots.
A number of large aviation organizations – airframe manufacturers, airlines, pilot organizations and the NASA Ames human factors directorate – sent representatives to engage in what turned out to be a lively and interesting discussion. In the study, more than 4,000 pilots were asked to answer various questions about their background, training and attitudes. Among those who answered the survey, about half had experienced an official accident. The survey was structured to obtain a fairly representative s…
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