CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 26
Safety Spotlight
...ThE nTSb ConCLudEd ThaT ThEy'd STaLLEd ThE aIRpLanE
aT an aLTITudE Low Enough To makE RECovERy unLIkELy.
pREoCCupaTIon wITh CompLETIng ThE appRoaCh may havE
pLayEd a RoLE, aS mIghT dISComFoRT wITh Low-aLTITudE
manEuvERIng ovER a daRk Ramp aT nIghT.
needed to descend to 800 feet agl by the base key position, about 270
degrees through the turn, and on down to the runway.
After a brief delay to conduct a runway sweep, the controller instructed the
Sierra to "report high key." A minute and a half later, the CFI did, adding
that they'd be making right turns. Just over a minute after that, he reported,
"Student training in progress. I guess we're in a right base...for the option."
Radar track data showed that the airplane passed through the downwind
key position at about 1,600 feet, some 400 to 600 feet higher than intended,
and was still 400 feet high when the instructor made his base call. It turned
final 1,100 feet above the runway and about 1,500 feet beyond the threshold.
With the approach clearly coming up long, a go-around would have been
the most obvious choice (though since that runway measures more than
10,000 feet, they might still have made it down using nothing more exotic
than a forward slip). Instead, the instructor radioed that they'd be doing
"another three-sixty for Runway 01." The Sierra continued in a tightening
right bank as its descent rate began to increase. The last radar return was
recorded a little past 90 degrees into the turn at an altitude of 600 feet.
Five witnesses heard the engine rev to full power just before the
airplane crashed into the ramp angled 45 degrees nose-down,
bursting into flames. Neither pilot escaped.
Based on the ground scars and distribution of wreckage, the
NTSB concluded that they'd stalled the airplane at an altitude
low enough to make recovery unlikely. Preoccupation with
completing the approach may have played a role, as might
discomfort with low-altitude maneuvering over a dark ramp at
night. The club's Instructor Standardization Guide prohibits
"simulated emergency training, to include forced landings" at
night...except to lighted runways. That exception was satisfied
here. Still, even when obstacle clearance is not at issue,
the critical tasks of monitoring descent rate, airspeed, and
coordination won't get any easier in the dark.
David Jack Kenny is the Air Safety Institute's statistician. He is a
fixed-wing ATP with private pilot privileges for helicopters and the
owner of a Piper Arrow.
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Vol. 5, Issue 4
Deciding to Go Around
Safety Seminar: After the Crash: Surviving an Aircraft Accident
CFI Commentary: Touch & Goes
CFI Tips: Who is Flying this Airplane?
ASI Message: Controlled Flight into Terrain
Real Pilot Story: Icing Encounter
Safety Spotlight: First Things First
ASI Online: Learn and Earn Safety Challenge
Safety Quiz: Fly the Boardwalk Approach
CFI Tools: Help Your Students Learn
Chief's Corner: What's On Your Mind?
Pilot Safety Announcement: It's a Drag
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Vol. 5, Issue 4
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 2
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - Deciding to Go Around
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 4
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 5
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 6
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 7
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 8
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - Safety Seminar: After the Crash: Surviving an Aircraft Accident
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 10
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - CFI Commentary: Touch & Goes
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 12
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 13
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 14
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 15
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - CFI Tips: Who is Flying this Airplane?
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 17
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 18
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - ASI Message: Controlled Flight into Terrain
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - Real Pilot Story: Icing Encounter
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 21
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 22
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 23
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - Safety Spotlight: First Things First
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 25
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 26
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - ASI Online: Learn and Earn Safety Challenge
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 28
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - Safety Quiz: Fly the Boardwalk Approach
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - CFI Tools: Help Your Students Learn
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - Chief's Corner: What's On Your Mind?
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 32
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 33
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 34
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - 35
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 5, Issue 4 - Pilot Safety Announcement: It's a Drag
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