There are many things about flying that pilots and aircraft owners can control. They choose their own training and qualifications, how well the aircraft is equipped and maintained, and where, how and when it is flown. In fact, it’s been said that pilots are just control freaks acting out in all three dimensions. While there may be an element of truth to that sentiment, there are some things remaining completely out of a pilot’s control.
Weather is the chief item; with no way to control the weather, the industry has evolved a quite safe system of navigation and operation that considers all kinds of weather and all times of day. Still, there are weather conditions in which no aircraft should be flying. And there are pilots who shouldn’t be flying in certain kinds of weather.
That same need for and feeling of being in control of an aircraft can work against us. We become accustomed to going where we want, whenever we want. The utility and freedom a personal aircraft affords can be addicting. So, when we have plans to be somewhere else on a bad-weather day, we might be tempted to cut a corner or two, thinking we’re the ones in control, not the weather. Sadly, the aircraft may be capable of handling the bad weather, but without the training and experience required to use all of its capabilities, our desire to exert control over the elements ironically means we’ve lost control.
If we climb into the airplane anyway, it’s often only the first of at least two times we’ll lose control that day. It’s a sad, repeatable outcome, made all the worse by full knowledge it didn’t have to come out the way it did. Here’s a good, recent example.
Background
On March 2, 2012, at about 1340 Eastern time, a Cessna LC42-550FG (350 Corvalis) was destroyed upon colliding with a lake near Salisbury, N.C. The private pilot and passenger were fatally injured. Marginal VFR (MVFR) conditions prevailed. The flight originated from the Davison County Airport (KEXX) in Lexington, N.C., at about 1310.
A lineman at KEXX spoke to the pilot prior to takeoff, learning the flight’s destination was Florida. When the lineman queried the pilot about weather conditions, the pilot responded he was going to stay below 1900 feet and should be fine. Soon, the lineman heard the pilot announce on the CTAF that he was departing Runway 24. The lineman watched the airplane use approximately 2000 feet of runway and climb out normally. The lineman recalled checking the AWOS monitor, which was reporting 1800-foot ceilings and 10 miles of visibility. Light rain was falling.
About 30 minutes later, witnesses heard the airplane flying overhead but did not see it due to heavy fog. Shortly thereafter, they heard a loud splash in the lake and saw a large spray of water and debris. They called local authorities to report the crash. The airplane was not captured on radar, and the pilot was not in radio contact with air traffic control.
Investigation
The non-instrument-rated private pilot had logged some 290 hours of experience, including 174.9 hours of cross-country time. He had 136.1 hours in the Cessna 350 Corvalis. The pilot’s last recorded simulated instrument time was on April 18, 2009; no actual instrument flight time was recorded. There also was no record of the pilot obtaining an official pre-flight weather briefing.
According to the National Weather Service (NWS), there was a large area of MVFR conditions over the Carolinas, with instrument conditions (IMC) over southeastern North Carolina. The IMC was forecast to expand into the southeast coastal plains of North Carolina immediately south of the accident site. The NWS data indicated VFR would not have been recommended over the region.
The accident site was about nine nm south of KEXX. The wreckage exhibited severe fragmentation, giving witness to the airplane’s high speed at impact. According to the NTSB, “Sections of the wreckage recovered included fragments of the flight control surfaces and the empennage. Sections of the left and right wings, fuselage, main landing gear assembly, engine and instrument panel were also recovered. The cockpit and sections of the center fuselage around the center wing spar were recovered in fragments. Various control tubes were recovered, and they were bent and broken.”
The cockpit and cabin were fragmented and the firewall was separated from the main fuselage. The flight controls were impact damaged and the fuel selector handle was positioned on the right tank. Only fragments of the left wing remained.
The vertical stabilizer remained attached to the empennage but had separated from the fuselage. Control cables were still attached to the rudder horn, but were separated from the rudder pedal control tubes. The right wing also was separated from the fuselage, with its outboard 10 feet as split along the trailing edge. The right wing spar was intact to the wing root.
None of the aircraft instruments exhibited reliable information. The propeller was not attached to the engine, although propeller hub studs remained in the engine crankshaft flange. The threads were stripped. At the conclusion of the engine examination, no anomalies were noted precluding normal operation.
The airplane’s Garmin G1000 integrated flight instrument system was destroyed in the crash, but one data card was retrieved and read. It did not reveal any information pertinent to the investigation, according to the the NTSB.
There are many things about flying that pilots and aircraft owners can control. They choose their own training and qualifications, how well the aircraft is equipped and maintained, and where, how and when it is flown. In fact, it’s been said that pilots are just control freaks acting out in all three dimensions. While there may be an element of truth to that sentiment, there are some things remaining completely out of a pilot’s control.
Weather is the chief item; with no way to control the weather, the industry has evolved a quite safe system of navigation and operation that considers all kinds of weather and all times of day. Still, there are weather conditions in which no aircraft should be flying. And there are pilots who shouldn’t be flying in certain kinds of weather.
That same need for and feeling of being in control of an aircraft can work against us. We become accustomed to going where we want, whenever we want. The utility and freedom a personal aircraft affords can be addicting. So, when we have plans to be somewhere else on a bad-weather day, we might be tempted to cut a corner or two, thinking we’re the ones in control, not the weather. Sadly, the aircraft may be capable of handling the bad weather, but without the training and experience required to use all of its capabilities, our desire to exert control over the elements ironically means we’ve lost control.
If we climb into the airplane anyway, it’s often only the first of at least two times we’ll lose control that day. It’s a sad, repeatable outcome, made all the worse by full knowledge it didn’t have to come out the way it did. Here’s a good, recent example.
Background
On March 2, 2012, at about 1340 Eastern time, a Cessna LC42-550FG (350 Corvalis) was destroyed upon colliding with a lake near Salisbury, N.C. The private pilot and passenger were fatally injured. Marginal VFR (MVFR) conditions prevailed. The flight originated from the Davison County Airport (KEXX) in Lexington, N.C., at about 1310.
A lineman at KEXX spoke to the pilot prior to takeoff, learning the flight’s destination was Florida. When the lineman queried the pilot about weather conditions, the pilot responded he was going to stay below 1900 feet and should be fine. Soon, the lineman heard the pilot announce on the CTAF that he was departing Runway 24. The lineman watched the airplane use approximately 2000 feet of runway and climb out normally. The lineman recalled checking the AWOS monitor, which was reporting 1800-foot ceilings and 10 miles of visibility. Light rain was falling.
About 30 minutes later, witnesses heard the airplane flying overhead but did not see it due to heavy fog. Shortly thereafter, they heard a loud splash in the lake and saw a large spray of water and debris. They called local authorities to report the crash. The airplane was not captured on radar, and the pilot was not in radio contact with air traffic control.
Investigation
The non-instrument-rated private pilot had logged some 290 hours of experience, including 174.9 hours of cross-country time. He had 136.1 hours in the Cessna 350 Corvalis. The pilot’s last recorded simulated instrument time was on April 18, 2009; no actual instrument flight time was recorded. There also was no record of the pilot obtaining an official pre-flight weather briefing.
According to the National Weather Service (NWS), there was a large area of MVFR conditions over the Carolinas, with instrument conditions (IMC) over southeastern North Carolina. The IMC was forecast to expand into the southeast coastal plains of North Carolina immediately south of the accident site. The NWS data indicated VFR would not have been recommended over the region.
The accident site was about nine nm south of KEXX. The wreckage exhibited severe fragmentation, giving witness to the airplane’s high speed at impact. According to the NTSB, “Sections of the wreckage recovered included fragments of the flight control surfaces and the empennage. Sections of the left and right wings, fuselage, main landing gear assembly, engine and instrument panel were also recovered. The cockpit and sections of the center fuselage around the center wing spar were recovered in fragments. Various control tubes were recovered, and they were bent and broken.”
The cockpit and cabin were fragmented and the firewall was separated from the main fuselage. The flight controls were impact damaged and the fuel selector handle was positioned on the right tank. Only fragments of the left wing remained.
The vertical stabilizer remained attached to the empennage but had separated from the fuselage. Control cables were still attached to the rudder horn, but were separated from the rudder pedal control tubes. The right wing also was separated from the fuselage, with its outboard 10 feet as split along the trailing edge. The right wing spar was intact to the wing root.
None of the aircraft instruments exhibited reliable information. The propeller was not attached to the engine, although propeller hub studs remained in the engine crankshaft flange. The threads were stripped. At the conclusion of the engine examination, no anomalies were noted precluding normal operation.
The airplane’s Garmin G1000 integrated flight instrument system was destroyed in the crash, but one data card was retrieved and read. It did not reveal any information pertinent to the investigation, according to the the NTSB.
Probable Cause
The NTSB determined the probable cause(s) of this accident to include: “The non-instrument-rated pilot’s decision to continue flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in spatial disorientation and a loss of control.” There’s nothing we can add to the NTSB’s verdict.
We can, however, once again bemoan the fact too many pilots think it can’t happen to them. Perhaps they also think the state-of-the art panel in their top-of-the-line piston single gives them immunity from the factors affecting the rest of us. Perhaps they think their professional success or their personal need to get to Florida is stronger than the possibility they’ll simply lose control and crash before they get very far south.
This pilot spent some 30 minutes trying to coax his airplane to Florida. We can only wonder what went through his mind during that time, and what occurred in the cockpit. In the end, he wound up crashing, out of control, only nine miles from his departure airport.
The NTSB determined the probable cause(s) of this accident to include: “The non-instrument-rated pilot’s decision to continue flight into instrument meteorological conditions, which resulted in spatial disorientation and a loss of control.” There’s nothing we can add to the NTSB’s verdict.
We can, however, once again bemoan the fact too many pilots think it can’t happen to them. Perhaps they also think the state-of-the art panel in their top-of-the-line piston single gives them immunity from the factors affecting the rest of us. Perhaps they think their professional success or their personal need to get to Florida is stronger than the possibility they’ll simply lose control and crash before they get very far south.
This pilot spent some 30 minutes trying to coax his airplane to Florida. We can only wonder what went through his mind during that time, and what occurred in the cockpit. In the end, he wound up crashing, out of control, only nine miles from his departure airport.
