CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 23
Safety Spotlight
no mAtter how well you know the Student,
keep both eyeS open. See for yourSelf thAt All
SAfety-criticAl itemS Are in order.
“OFF” position, located between the “ON”
and “CROSSFEED” settings. The taxi checklist calls for checking the fuel selector crossfeed, and speculation is that the student failed
to return that selector to the full-forward
position afterward. Both throttles were open,
neither propeller was feathered, and the landing gear was still down.
This tragedy has at least three crucial
lessons to teach:
Distraction—Checking the fuel selectors are
in the “ON” position is on the before-takeoff
checklist. So why was it missed? We don’t
know that the conversation between four
friends at the end of a pleasant day’s flying
disrupted the pilot’s focus, but it’s hard to
think of a more convincing explanation. All
four knew the importance of maintaining a
sterile cockpit from the first item on the pretakeoff checklist until the airplane reaches a
safe altitude. If the student failed to enforce
it, his instructor should have.
Distrust—No matter how well you know the
student, keep both eyes open. See for yourself
that all safety-critical items are in order.
Discipline—If an engine fails with the gear
still down, the Seminole’s emergency checklist calls for closing the throttles and landing
straight ahead. Sidestepping to the parallel
runway might also have been an option once
the asymmetric thrust and accompanying
yaw were removed. Trying to keep flying
was probably the worst choice, and the only
chance of pulling it off required cleaning up
the airplane—retracting the gear, feathering the inoperative prop—pitching for its best single-engine rate
of climb, and reaching a safe altitude before attempting to turn. In the excitement of losing an engine at
the worst possible moment, these pilots seem to have
forgotten the absolute necessity of rigorous adherence
to emergency procedures.
At maximum gross, the best possible single-engine rate
of climb was only about 180 fpm. Three hundred pounds
lighter, it would have been more like 270, a 50 percent
improvement—and the airplane would have been higher
when the left engine quit. That’s another factor to consider if you’re contemplating carrying observers.
David Jack Kenny is manager of aviation safety
analysis for the Air Safety Institute, an instrument-rated
commercial pilot, and owner of a Piper Arrow.
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1
Professionalism
Safety Quiz: Are You Ready to Fly Rogue?
ASI Online: Heads Up! Improving Runway Safety
CFI Tips: The Power of Questions
ASI Message: Airline of One
ASI Note: ASI's Flight Assist Commendations
Did You Know? AOPA Fying Club Network
Chart Challenge—Live Safety Seminar
Safety Spotlight: Four's a Crowd
Real Pilot Story: Underwater Escape
CFI Tools: ASI at Your Service
Chief’s Corner: Save a Life
Ask ATC: Flight Following & Airspace
Pilot Safety Announcement: Would You Fly This Airline?
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 2
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - Professionalism
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 4
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 5
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 6
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 7
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - Safety Quiz: Are You Ready to Fly Rogue?
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - ASI Online: Heads Up! Improving Runway Safety
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 10
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 11
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - CFI Tips: The Power of Questions
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 13
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 14
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 15
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - ASI Message: Airline of One
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - ASI Note: ASI's Flight Assist Commendations
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - Did You Know? AOPA Fying Club Network
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - Chart Challenge—Live Safety Seminar
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - Safety Spotlight: Four's a Crowd
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 21
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 22
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 23
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - Real Pilot Story: Underwater Escape
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - CFI Tools: ASI at Your Service
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - Chief’s Corner: Save a Life
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 27
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 28
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - 29
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 4, Issue 1 - Pilot Safety Announcement: Would You Fly This Airline?
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