Unsecured Cargo

One of the things primary students learn early during their ground-school training-perhaps before they ever get into an airplane-is that the items loaded into it can weigh no more than a certain amount, and have to go in certain places. Overloading the aircraft, and/or placing heavy items far from its nominal center of gravity, is bad, theyre told. Somewhere along the way, it might also be explained that those items need to be secured. But the common way we load airplanes-especially those in which the passenger cabin and the cockpit are the same space-is to throw some soft-sided luggage in the baggage compartment, maybe throw some heavy things in the back seats or the floorboard behind the front seats, and light the fires. Little thought usually is given to whether those items should be secured, or how. Thats in sharp contrast to how we treat the passengers.

Joseph E. (Jeb) Burnside

Thursday, June 16, 2016 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Airlines around the world have activated mitigation strategies in a constantly changing environment brought about by the Coronavirus pandemic. Pixabay

Key Takeaways:

The article highlights a common oversight among pilots: the failure to properly secure cargo in small aircraft, despite understanding the importance of weight and balance.
A fatal Piper Saratoga accident occurred when unsecured and overweight porcelain tiles shifted during a go-around attempt, causing the aircraft's center of gravity (CG) to exceed its aft limit.
This critical CG shift led to an aerodynamic stall and crash, with the NTSB citing the pilot's failure to secure cargo, inadequate preflight, and exceeding weight limits as probable causes.

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One of the things primary students learn early during their ground-school training—perhaps before they ever get into an airplane—is that the items loaded into it can weigh no more than a certain amount, and have to go in certain places. Overloading the aircraft, and/or placing heavy items far from its nominal center of gravity, is bad, they’re told. Somewhere along the way, it might also be explained that those items need to be secured.

But the common way we load airplanes—especially those in which the passenger cabin and the cockpit are the same space—is to throw some soft-sided luggage in the baggage compartment, maybe throw some heavy things in the back seats or the floorboard behind the front seats, and light the fires. Little thought usually is given to whether those items should be secured, or how. That’s in sharp contrast to how we treat the passengers.