CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 12 Issue 1 - 38

CHIEF'S CORNER
take the rest of the week off. My wife's comment
was that I wouldn't immediately walk on a
sprained ankle, so why would I think I could
stare at a computer screen for eight hours and
feel okay after a closed head injury? Because
I think I'm tougher than I am? So, I called my
boss to let him know I needed to take time off
and that I was grounding myself from flying
until I would feel better. He agreed with both
my decisions. I also called my student to let her
know we wouldn't be flying that week and that
I'd grounded myself.
I was feeling better the following week and could
make it through the days with only an occasional
minor headache that ibuprofen easily handled. I
had an already scheduled appointment with my
primary care physician, so I waited to talk to him
about resuming flying and any long-term effects
of the head injury. During that visit he told me
that the headaches may continue for a while and
then he asked me what I would do about flying if I
didn't have a head injury but did have a headache.
I replied that I would evaluate my condition on
the day of the flight and if it was affecting me, I
wouldn't fly. He doesn't know about the IMSAFE
checklist but basically told me that common
sense should govern my return to flight. The

headaches have subsided, and I feel good enough
to fly. Now if only the weather would cooperate...
There are two points that I want to relate to
flying in this story. The first is using effective
risk mitigation. Had I chosen to mark the
farthest point and then return to the throwing
line, I would not have been injured. Instead
I thought I was far enough away and had
made a good decision to be off to one side of
the throwing area-but I conned myself into
thinking it was okay when it wasn't. Had I
stopped to think it through a bit more, asked
myself the question if it made sense to be
downrange, and answered with the answer
I know to be right- " no, it doesn't " -again,
we'd be talking about something else. Taking
the extra step to assess the risk and properly
mitigate it is important whether in flying and
teaching or enjoying a fun activity with others.
Slipshod assessment and poor mitigation will
get people hurt.
Second, IMSAFE is a good tool to use. Sure,
I should know that I shouldn't fly with a
headache or taking medication that makes
me drowsy, but going through the acronym
and calling out each point with a realistic

assessment makes it that much easier to answer
yes or no to the question, " Am I fit to fly? " It's on
our Personal Minimums Contracts for a reason
and we teach it to our students and remind our
flight review and IPC clients of that as well.
Be honest with the assessment: If you're not
feeling well enough to fly, don't try to tough it
out. I felt pretty good the Tuesday morning after
the injury but by the afternoon I was ready to
crawl into a hole and pull it in after me. Had I
tried to fly that day, I'm sure I would have had
issues in the air. I'm glad I didn't fly.
And that Scout who threw the log? He went
back and got the log he threw. I'm hoping it's
bound for our next outing and this time will go
into the fire!

John Collins is the AOPA Air Safety Institute's
chief flight instructor and manager of aviation
safety programs. Before joining ASI, John was
AOPA's manager of airport policy. He earned his
flight instructor certificate in 1996 and enjoys
seeing students light up when they put it all
together and nail a maneuver.
Email: john.collins@aopa.org
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 12 Issue 1

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