Flight Training - August 2024 - 50

ADVANCED PILOT CAREER PILOT
IT TAKES TWO
ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO PILOTS
BY PETER A. BEDELL
In the case of the flap failure, the pilot
not flying can dive into the manual and
work the problem while the second pilot
flies or manipulates the autopilot and
speaks to ATC. In between those duties,
it's critical to keep each other in the loop.
In the case of the medical emergency, I
passed the controls over to my first officer
to take care of the airplane and radios
while I consulted with flight attendants,
dispatch, and MedLink, our in-flight medical
consultants. These medical situations
can be time consuming, distracting, and
if serious, time critical. I couldn't imagine
being solo and managing such an event.
On a recent flight in my family's Baron
FOR DECADES, THERE'S BEEN AN
argument regarding the value of twinengine
airplanes versus single-engine
airplanes. As co-owner of one of each, I
agree that both designs have their virtues
and drawbacks. While I appreciate our
Cessna 172's simplicity and affordability,
I lament its sole vacuum pump that, by
my choosing, limits me from flying in low
IFR. Then there's that lone powerplant
that keeps my head on a swivel always
looking for places to land-just in case.
Flight at night or over vast stretches of
water, mountains, or trees? Not ideal.
With 600 horsepower and a 1,900pound
useful load, our family's Beechcraft
Baron is a no-compromises, haul-anything,
200-knot traveling machine. But a 56-yearold
twin is a challenge to maintain, and it
never misses an opportunity to guzzle from
the fuel pump. Where it shines, however,
is having two of everything: two vacuum
pumps, two alternators, two engines. The
adage " The second engine gets you to the
scene of the crash " can be true in cases of
poor piloting, overloading, or in twins with
such low power that the loss of an engine
simply means you're going down-albeit
slower. Champion's Lancer and Piper's
early Apache come to mind.
50 FLIGHT TRAINING AUGUST 2024
Truth is, a well-maintained twin
flown by a well-trained pilot within the
airplane's certification limits is a safer
mode of travel than the single. Then
there's the psychological factor. A pilot
who has all this power and redundancy
may acquire a superiority complex and
push his or her limits when it comes
to weather, for example. Bad idea. A
light piston twin isn't an airliner. The
same could be said when the Cirrus
was introduced with its whole-airplane
parachute. Having an out in the form of
a second engine, redundant systems, or a
parachute should be treated as just that-
another tool to be used when the chips
are down, not as an excuse to launch in
horrid conditions.
At my airline job, a few recent incidents
have driven home the benefit of the
best redundancy there is: a second pilot.
In the final moments of a transcontinental
flight from Baltimore to San Francisco, we
had a flap failure requiring the declaration
of my first emergency ( " My First Emergency, "
March/April 2024 Flight Training)
and a more recent incident involving a
passenger illness. During both incidents, I
became acutely aware of the advantage of
having a second pilot.
from Boston to Maryland's Eastern Shore,
I sorely missed having a second pilot.
Anyone who's flown IFR in the Northeast
knows that reroutes are very common and
often occur multiple times during a flight.
In this case, the first reroute came soon
after takeoff, while being vectored to an
airway and climbing in IMC. First, ATC
gave me direct to a fix that I didn't have on
my route. I'd love to get the autopilot on to
reduce my workload, but I needed to enter
the fix in my route on the GPS navigator. I
requested and received an initial heading
to buy time. After ATC gave me the
phonetic spelling, I twisted the knobs on
the Garmin GNS 430W, punched Direct,
and got the autopilot on to relieve some of
the workload. While I'm pretty good with
the Garmin 430 in our airplane, I loathe
having to put airways into it. Typically, I
just load the points that involve a course
change. Well, the new route had lots of
course changes requiring lots of twists and
pushes on the navigator.
After finally inputting everything and
nearing the top of climb, I got another full
reroute. Ugh. As I listened to the route, I
was incredulous at what corrupt system or
human came up with such a solution. DCA
VOR? Really? Not only was that 50 miles
past my destination, I'm also quite sure I'd
be intercepted if I actually flew over it.
" It's the only route the computer will
allow, " answered ATC. Not surprised. It's
just par for the course when flying in the
Northeast. Sure enough, later on another
reroute came, but at least it made sense
and didn't require a trip through the most
restrictive airspace in the country. FT
PETER A. BEDELL is a pilot for a major
airline and is co-owner of a Cessna 172 and
Beechcraft Baron.
MIKE FIZER
Flight Training - August 2024

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