CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 27

Safety Spotlight
THE 70-YEAR-OLD CFI'S LOGBOOKS DIDN'T CARRY FORWARD HIS
CUMULATIVE FLIGHT TIMES, BUT A 2006 MEDICAL APPLICATION CLAIMED
4,750 HOURS. AS FAR AS COULD BE DETERMINED, HE HAD NO PRIOR
EXPERIENCE IN THE T-18 AND HAD NEVER FLOWN WITH ITS OWNER. HIS
PERSONAL AIRPLANE WAS A 180-HORSEPOWER PIPER ARROW.
airplane during the 6 month period preceding the accident." The 70-yearold CFI's logbooks didn't carry forward his cumulative ﬂight times,
but a 2006 medical application claimed 4,750 hours. As far as could be
determined, he had no prior experience in the T-18 and had never ﬂown
with its owner. His personal airplane was a 180-horsepower Piper Arrow.
Another pilot taxiing for departure saw the Thorp take off from Runway
31. Skies were clear, with a six-knot wind down the runway. After it turned
downwind, a "calm and professional" voice announced his intention to do
touch-and-goes. The taxiing pilot saw the Thorp complete the turn from
base to ﬁnal in position to "easily make the runway" if the engine quit. In
fact, "... he was noticeably too high and at a slow airspeed. It would have
been a 30-degree glide slope, not a 3-degree." Its pilot attempted a forward
slip to the left. "The wings mushed back and forth;" then it broke into a spin
to the right, clipping the corner of a house before hitting the ground. Both
pilots were dead by the time ﬁrst responders arrived.

Owners know the 180-hp Arrow as an exceptionally docile airplane,
capable of very steep descents and so reluctant to stall that it can
be slipped hard. The T-18 is higher-performance and less forgiving.
The FAQ page on an owners' group Web site (http://thorp18.com/)
cautions that "...the Thorp is deﬁnitely not a trainer.... [It is] a high
performance airplane that must be treated as such, 'low and slow'
is a situation no Thorp driver should ﬁnd himself in, period." It's
impossible to know whether the owner wanted to show off his skill
or the CFI tried to demonstrate a technique better suited to his
own airplane than the student's. Either way, the combination of an
inexperienced owner, an unusual aircraft, and an instructor with no
time in type proved a recipe for disaster.
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.

http://thorp18.com/

CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2

CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Vol. 5, Issue 2
Arrival & Approach Briefings
Safety Seminar: Real World Weather
CFI Commentary: Talking to ATC
CFI Tips: Density Altitude - An Experiment
ASI Message: Landing Attitude
Real Pilot Story: Fire in the Cockpit
Safety Spotlight: Into the Unknown
ASI Online: In Review - Storm Week
Safety Quiz: Non-Precision Approach at CEC
CFI Tools: Passenger Safety Briefing
Chief's Corner: Flying is as Safe as You Make It
Pilot Safety Announcement: School Daze
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Vol. 5, Issue 2
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 2
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - Arrival & Approach Briefings
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 4
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 5
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 6
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 7
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 8
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 9
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - Safety Seminar: Real World Weather
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - CFI Commentary: Talking to ATC
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 12
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 13
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 14
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 15
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 16
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - CFI Tips: Density Altitude - An Experiment
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 18
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 19
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - ASI Message: Landing Attitude
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 21
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - Real Pilot Story: Fire in the Cockpit
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 23
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - Safety Spotlight: Into the Unknown
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 25
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 26
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 27
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - ASI Online: In Review - Storm Week
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 29
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - Safety Quiz: Non-Precision Approach at CEC
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 31
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - CFI Tools: Passenger Safety Briefing
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - Chief's Corner: Flying is as Safe as You Make It
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 34
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 35
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - 36
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 2 - Pilot Safety Announcement: School Daze
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