For now this is a great idea

(Written on 04/03/2020)(Permalink)

Remember the Eastern 1011 that lost Or shut down 2 of 3 engines due to loss of oil pressure? Turned out the mechanic didn’t install a necessary seal. If one engine fails get it on the ground and then trouble shoot. Even on a 4-engine plane you don’t know if there’s a common problem.

(Written on 08/30/2019)(Permalink)

Same same as People Express and Braniff - over expansion into markets with no feed, borrowing, and feeding from the same trough as the big digs. QED.

(Written on 12/21/2018)(Permalink)

Apparently the decision making brass didn’t do a personal Beta check ... or maybe they did but since they would travel positive space First Class it wouldn’t be s problem for them.

(Written on 06/08/2018)(Permalink)

FAA - why the stonewall? Did the investigation get slowed by missing emails?

(Written on 09/30/2016)(Permalink)

According to USA Today Delta last fall cancelled it's interline agreement with American, thus no help to be had when they needed it.

(Written on 08/12/2016)(Permalink)

This accident was of intense interest to me. I'd worked for Braniff for a number of years flying the South American routes. When Eastern bought them from Braniff we thought Eastern would hire Braniff pilots to fly the route, however Eastern's ALPA said "we don't need any Braniff pilots." Shortly after that Braniff went into bankruptcy and shut down. In the process of looking for a new job I wrote Frank Bormann (then president of Eastern) a letter proposing that since I was familiar with the routes his company should hire me to teach his pilots how to fly in South America, keep anyone from getting hurt, and learn the routes they could fly VFR. Bear in mind at this point Braniff had never lost an airplane in the Latin American Division. To my surprise he wrote back "good idea" and forwarded my thoughts to his VP in charge of the route startup. A week later I got a letter from said VP saying "no thanks, we have all the written notes we need from your ex-Chief Pilot." Within a year E

(Written on 06/10/2016)(Permalink)

Boeing will surely weigh in on this but I wonder if the PF engaged the autopilot during the missed approach (the article says both approaches were flown A/P off) and while the A/P tried to trim the horizontal stabilizer the PF disconnected same causing mis-trim confusion.

(Written on 04/15/2016)(Permalink)

Reminds me of a DC-8 simulator check ride I might have failed but for advance warning. The guy before me busted because he took off on a simulated runway when the vis. was below takeoff minimums. After airborne the fed failed an engine and when the checkee asked to go back to his departure point the fed advised him the field was below landing and takeoff mins. "just as it was when you took off." After that the check ride went downhill fast. Knowing what was coming I was able to refuse the takeoff for my check ride until the vis. came up... then asked for a takeoff alternate. In a simulator you really don't expect to see much so I can see how my predecessor got taken. All that said, just assume everything and everybody is trying to kill you (motto of we helicopter pilots) whether you're in the sim or real life.

(Written on 01/01/2016)(Permalink)

Although not directly related to your question about what to do I would like to weigh in on the 1500 hour rule. As stated that was because of the "inexperience" of the Colgan pilots in reacting incorrectly to a wing stall. I disagree with the NTSB finding and believe they reacted correctly to what they thought was a tail plane stall due to icing rather than what really happened which was a wing stall due to slow speed. I believe they reacted improperly because 1) they were tired, 2) they lacked cockpit discipline perhaps because of the airline's culture, and 3) the airline let a marginal pilot go on the line. Flight time had nothing to do with the errors made in my opinion.

(Written on 09/04/2015)(Permalink)