Reading Between the Lines

Here it is just before Thanksgiving that I write this editorial for AgAir Update’s December English edition. Inside this edition you will read an article, “A Memorial Tribute to 13 pilots”. I find it a bit odd that the number 13 comes up for this series of tragic and fatal events. In writing the article, I tried to keep it on par for memorializing 13 U.S. pilots and how they came about their ill fate.

There is an adage that says, “Read between the lines.” That’s something to think about when you read the article. With no more information than the NTSB reports and what I could find in news articles, I’m willing to take a risk and say at least two of these 13 fatalities did not have to happen. I’m also willing to say that nearly all of us have done what these two did, but if you are reading this you got away with it. They did not.

If there is any good that can come from a fatality, it would be a learning exercise. For those of us that can read about their deaths, we should take a solemn oath to not allow ourselves to get into these positions. I once had an operator tell me that more often than not, more ag-pilots are killed close to home or the airstrip than anywhere else. I know this operator did not have data to support his claim over 46 years ago, but I don’t doubt his intentions. He was telling this first year pilot the dangers of flying ag around people you know. We are all subject to it; just a little tighter turn or pull up, or aerobatics on the deck, no less.

For those pilots that have attended Wayne Handley’s ag-pilot’s aerobatic course, they know firsthand when an aircraft stalls in a turn, that amounts to an unusual attitude at low altitude, is unrecoverable. The horror of it is the aircraft typically rolls with a too-late warning and points its nose straight at the ground. When in a high, slow wingover turn, the pilot is betting his life that everything will work out perfectly, no turbulence, no engine failure. And, he’s doing this betting multiple times, all day long. That’s the problem. The pilot becomes really good at these dangerous turns. So good, there’s a degree of complacency. No matter how good the pilot is, he cannot safely recover from a full stall at 300-500 feet. Those are terrible betting odds.

Over the years, I had met most of these 13 pilots. I find it difficult to imagine not meeting them again, ever. My difficulty is nothing compared to the unimaginable difficulty their families are going through. Yes, they are still going through the grieving. You don’t get over the loss of a loved one that is often the breadwinner for the family.

On a much brighter note, if Covid doesn’t kick Georgia in the butt, I hope to see you at AgAir Update’s booth at the NAAA Ag-Aviation Expo in Savannah, December 6-11. I’m not certain, as Graham handles all the coordinating of AgAir Update these days, but I believe there will be a bar between the AgAir Update and Lane Aviation booth. So, there is a good reason to visit since you will be standing in the bar line anyway!

In closing, I’m wishing all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Many of us are ready to see 2020 come to an end. I kind of take it as it comes. Just because 2020 ends, doesn’t mean the struggles of 2020 are over. For those of you still flying, especially those south of the Equator and in full swing for your spray season, take a break. Think about why you are doing what you do. Professionalism comes at a price. Sometimes in the immediate future, it is not efficient. However in the overall picture, it is always the best route to take.

Until next month, Keep Turning…(But, safely)