Aviation Safety

Practical energy management is a critical skill used for each landing. How to put it on the numbers every time.

Instead of those pesky mechanics screwing up, it was a pilot rushing through a checklist and allowing himself to get distracted.

Everyone has an idea of what the word risk means. But connecting its definition with a real-world event is like nailing jelly to the wall, as Teddy Roosevelt once famously said. One mans idea of acceptable risk is anothers sweat-soaked nightmare. It has always been that way and, the truth is, it will probably always be that way.

One of the things we do in Aviation Safety is to illuminate the varying perceptions of what people call risky. For example, a few readers expressed dismay that we would advocate intentionally overloading an airplane. We didnt. What we did say is, Putting more stuff aboard than the airplane can legally carry happens more than anyone likes to admit. As long…

The following information is derived from the FAAs Service Difficulty Reports and Aviation Maintenance Alerts.

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Various The New Piper Aircraft Models
Control Yoke Attachment
The FAA has published a new Airworthiness Directive (AD 2004-14-12) for certain models manufactured by The New Piper Aircraft, Inc. (Piper). The models affected are PA-28-161, PA-28-181, PA-28R-201, PA-32R-301 (HP), PA-32R-301T, PA-32-301FT, PA-32-301XTC, PA-34-220T, PA-44-180, PA-46-350P, and PA-46-500TP airplanes. According to the FAA, the screw used to attach the control wheel to the control column is too short in some installations and the nut-plate does not have adequate locking featu…

Readers sound off on recent articles involving traffic patterns and aircraft loading while finding a few mistakes.

At about 2108 local time, the Mooney was substantially damaged during an ILS Runway 36 approach to the Waterbury-Oxford Airport; the Private pilot was fatally injured. Night IMC prevailed for the flight, which originated in Burlington, Vt. The accident site was about mile from Runway 36 and 1000 feet east of its extended runway centerline. A witness heard a low flying airplane, with the engine running continuously; just prior to the accident, the engine revved to high power and he observed lights over the treetops. He then heard the sound of impact as the airplane came to rest at an adjacent residence. The reported weather included a broken ceiling at 200 feet AGL….

Selected recent general aviation and airline accidents

The Cessna was destroyed during a late-night forced landing following a loss of power, although the solo pilot was uninjured. The flight originated in Coleman, Texas, about midnight with Llano, Texas, as its intended destination. Subsequently, the pilot reported a loss of engine power during cruise flight. The pilot elected to land in a pasture and, during the landing roll, the airplane impacted a tree with the left wing, spun around and collided with a fence. Examination of the wreckage revealed gallon of fuel in the left tank; the right fuel tank was found empty. The pilot reported that he had flown the airplane about 4.3 hours since its last refueling….

At about 1430 local time, the Piper Arrow hit a runway construction barricade during a simulated forced landing at the DeKalb Taylor Municipal Airport (DKB)and was substantially damaged. The pilot and flight instructor were practicing a simulated forced landing to a runway with its threshold displaced 600 feet for construction. Both the first 600 feet of the existing runway surface and the new pavement were marked with yellow painted chevrons, indicating those portions of pavement were closed for landing, takeoff and taxiing. There were four construction barricades positioned at the intersection of the existing and new pavement sections. During the simulated forced landing, the pilot felt th…

At 1710 local time, the DA-40 the homebuilt Giles 202 collided on final approach to Runway 18 at Georgetown Municipal Airport (GTU). Both airplanes were substantially damaged with the DA-40 pilot sustaining minor injuries; The Giles 202 pilot was seriously injured. A witness located at the self-serve refueling area, reported seeing the DA-40 on final approach when he noticed the Giles 202 on a very high short left base, with a relatively high sink rate. The witness stated that the DA-40 was on final at an approximate altitude of 200 feet AGL, with the Giles 202 overtaking the DA-40 quickly. Subsequently, the Giles 202 collided with the DA-40 approximately 50 feet AGL. Another witness, ta…