Stupid Pilot Tricks

If youve been with us a while, youll recognize our yearly foray into the bent and bizarre culled from a years worth of NTSB accident summaries (all non-fatal, of course). Not all are actually stupid. Some are just plain, er, strange. But all, we think, are worthy of note. Each year offers up those who think too much, those who think too little and those who dont think at all.

Editorial Staff

Monday, December 01, 2014 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Many accidents in 2006 stemmed from pilot negligence, such as ignoring critical maintenance warnings, flying without proper certification, or making poor operational decisions and taking shortcuts.
Other incidents involved pilots attempting maneuvers or flying aircraft beyond their skill level, including maiden jet flights without prior experience or instructors creating overly complex simulated emergencies.
Several bizarre and unusual accidents occurred, ranging from encounters with wildlife and ground equipment errors to an unattended aircraft "chasing" its pilot.
The collection also featured a poignant farewell to a historic DC-3 that successfully ditched after more than 60 years of active commercial service.

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If you’ve been with us a while, you’ll recognize our yearly foray into the bent and bizarre culled from a year’s worth of NTSB accident summaries (all non-fatal, of course). Not all are actually stupid. Some are just plain, er, strange. But all, we think, are worthy of note. Each year offers up those who think too much, those who think too little and those who don’t think at all.

This installment is from accidents reported in the year 2006.