I Learned About Flying From That: Engine Failure With an "Eye in the Sky"

I Learned About Flying From That: Engine Failure With an “Eye in the Sky”

Keith Connes

Wednesday, February 17, 2010 at 03:16 AM ET

Verified

Illustrated by Barry Ross

Key Takeaways:

An aviation journalist recounts a harrowing flight with an air traffic reporter (Terry) that began with a rushed, inadequate fuel check and the pilot's admitted knowledge of faulty fuel gauges.
Mid-flight, the engine failed due to bone-dry fuel tanks, leading to an emergency landing where the journalist had to take charge of communication and guide the panicking pilot.
As a consequence of the incident and her admission of flying with faulty equipment, Terry lost her job and had her pilot's license suspended, while the journalist expressed deep embarrassment for not overriding the pilot's flawed judgment during pre-flight.

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This engine failure did not occur in my airplane, and I wasn’t the pilot. Nevertheless, I was personally and embarrassingly involved in the process that led to the incident.

It all started when I, as an aviation journalist, embarked on a series titled “Careers in Aviation” and arranged to write about a day in the life of an air traffic reporter — you know, one of those eye-in-the-sky folks who describe how traffic is moving, or, in the case of the Los Angeles area, not moving.