Risk Management

Much has been written about the frailties of the vacuum pumps that power our crucial flight control instruments. Most recently, AVweb published the first article in this series (“How Can I Fail Thee? Let Me Count the Ways“), which took a close look at some of the weak links in vacuum systems and components installed […]

As AVweb recently reported, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued a Safety Recommendation to FAA Administrator Jane Garvey on September 24 suggesting that action be taken to address inadequate responses by air traffic controllers to emergencies relating to VFR flight into IMC and instrument or vacuum system failures. Although it is clear from the […]

Buzzing and hot-dogging are the leading spin scenarios, often by highly qualified pilots who ought to know better. As Pat Veillette recently reported in Aviation Safety, the solution may not be more spin training, but more training in good judgement. This article appears in the May 2002 edition of Aviation Safety and is reprinted here […]

Familiarity can breed confusion when a procedure that you have flown before has been revised and you don’t brief for the approach. Even in a single-pilot situation, an approach briefing will ensure you have everything set up properly. Recently in IFR Refresher, Brian Jacobson followed the chain of events that led to an accident during […]

What would you do if you thought that you had an electrical system failure and a vacuum system failure at the same time in a single-engine airplane? The chances of that happening are pretty slim, but the pilot of a Cessna T210 was convinced that he had both failures at the same time while flying […]

Part of the initial improvements to airline security following September 11 was to upgrade cockpit doors. Ultimately, cockpits will have Kevlar reinforced bulkheads, doors and reinforced door jambs, hinges and locks. However, as an interim measure and to comply with FAA directives, airlines fitted a variety of deadbolts and reinforcing panels to their cockpit doors. […]

Dear Pete: We met before we met. Around the gliderport, there’s a sort of “Pete wave” that washes around. There’s a little bit of you in the eye of every line boy, and an ounce of you on everyone’s tongue. You are beloved for your dry, gentle humor, and respected for your skill. Whether you […]

Just when we thought we had a handle on all the possible threats to the safe operation of our flights, along comes another facet of madness: air rage to the Nth degree. Cases of enraged passengers crashing through the cockpit door, assaulting pilots and trying to interfere with control of the airplane had been increasing […]

I was on an airliner flying over the Midwest on my way to a business appointment in June and it struck me that I had forgotten just how green it is in the middle of the country in the summertime. Southern California is a lot of things, but green in the summer is not one […]

This article appeared in the February 2001 edition of IFR Refresher and is reprinted here by permission. From the very first day of our instrument training, we are taught never to descend below decision height (DH) or minimum descent altitude (MDA) unless the runway environment is in sight. It is a basic concept of instrument […]