MAX SPEED: MACh 0.88 MAX RANGE: 4,350 NM MAX ALTITUDE: 45,000 FT Large-Cabin | Long-Range
E XCEL
BoRN To
The Gulfstream G450® has been the overwhelming choice of discriminating travelers for nearly a decade. Not surprising, since it’s the direct descendant of the world’s best-selling GIV series. Like its legendary predecessor, the G450 delivers high-cruise speeds, intercontinental range, and unsurpassed reliability – all complemented by a worldwide product support network. Success. It drives us.
SCoTT NEAL | +1 912 965 6023 | scott.neal@gulfstream.com | GULFSTREAMG450.com Range shown is based on NBAA IFR theoretical range at Mach 0.80 with eight passengers. Actual range will be affected by ATC routing, operating speed, weather, outfitting options and other factors.
CONTENTS FEATURES
O C T O B E R
2 0 1 3
|
V O L U M E
1 4 0
|
I S S U E
ON THE COVER
JIM KOEPNICK PHOTOGRAPHED THE P-51 MUSTANG SWEET & LOVELY AT WITTMAN FIELD IN OSHKOSH, WISCONSIN, DURING EAA’S 2013 AIRVENTURE OSHKOSH.
1 0
AIRVENTURE
OSHKOSH
2013
p.
36
2013
AIRVENTURE
LEGACY AN D I N N O V AT I O N BY PIA BERGQVIST
44
DIESEL REVOLUTION
GET READY AMERICA. DIESELS ARE COMING. BY STEPHEN POPE
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 1 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
52
WRECK HUNTERS
UNCOVERING THE HISTORY OF UNLUCKY AVIATORS BY GERI SILVEIRA
PHOTO BY JIM KOEPNICK
OSHKOSH
60
UNUSUAL ATTITUDES ARE WE REALLY “THE BAD GUYS”? BY MARTHA LUNKEN
CONTENTS 64
GEAR UP A SUPRISE DIAGNOSIS BY DICK KARL
ON THE WEB
AN AIRPLANE WITH DIRECTIONS FLYINGMAG.COM/REDHAWK101
21 NATURAL GAS-POWERED HUSKY
FLYING NEWS & NOTES
FLYING SAFELY
FLYING OPINION
10 GOING DIRECT
24 THE HUMAN FACTOR
60 UNUSUAL ATTITUDES
FAREWELL TO A LEGEND
A DIFFERENT APPROACH
ARE WE REALLY “THE BAD GUYS”?
BY ROBERT GOYER
BY JAY HOPKINS
BY MARTHA LUNKEN
28 AFTERMATH
64 GEAR UP
NOTHING OVER MY HEAD
A SURPRISE DIAGNOSIS
BY PETER GARRISON
BY DICK KARL
STUNNING AIRVENTURE PHOTO GALLERIES FLYINGMAG.COM/AIRVENTURE2013
10
32 ON THE RECORD BRIEF ACCIDENT REPORTS FROM THE NTSB
68 TECHNICALITIES CLOUDY CONDITIONS ON THE AVGAS FRONT BY PETER GARRISON
14 FLYING MAIL
34 I LEARNED ABOUT FLYING FROM THAT
72 JUMPSEAT SPECULATION FASCINATION
51 HEROES OF AVIATION
FEEDBACK FROM OUR READERS
TAKE SOME HOME FOR MOM
BY LES ABEND
FLYINGMAG.COM/AVIATIONHEROES
READER LETTERS
BY ROB MIXON
16 AIRWAYS THE LATEST IN AVIATION NEWS
80 FLASHBACKS
50 AND 25 YEARS AGO IN FLYING BY BETHANY WHITFIELD
EDITED BY PIA BERGQVIST PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40612608 (CANADIAN REGISTRATION NUMBER 126018209RT0001) RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO: PITNEY BOWES, P.O. BOX 25542; LONDON, ON N6C 6B2
Flying (0015-4806) (USPS 504-930), October 2013, volume 140, issue 10. Flying is published monthly by Bonnier Corporation, 460 N. Orlando Avenue, Suite 200, Winter Park, FL 32789. Periodicals postage paid at Winter Park, FL, and additional mailing offices. Authorized periodicals postage by the Post Office Department, Ottawa, Canada, and for payment in cash. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Flying, P.O. Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235; flyingmag.com/cs. If the postal service alerts us that your magazine is undeliverable, we have no further obligation unless we receive a corrected address within one year.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 2 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Bigger picture. Lighter workload. Higher confidence. Available today. No other glass solution in its price range can match the incredible reliability, cockpit integration/ connectivity, and growth capability of this all-Garmin combo. It features our dual-screen G500 flight display, teamed with the GTN™ 750/650 series of touchscreen avionics. With experience gained in thousands of glass installations – and millions of flight hours – Garmin’s GTN/G500 package brings you full LPV approach capability down to 200’ on more airports, as well as optional SVT™ synthetic vision in virtual 3-D. Electronic FliteCharts® and SafeTaxi® diagrams come preloaded1. Plus, there’s even a GTN Trainer app you can download to your iPad® for a hands-on preview2. To find out more, see your Garmin dealer or visit Garmin.com/aviation
©2013 Garmin Ltd. or its subsidiaries 1 2
Free initial U.S. FliteCharts® will disable when data is 6 months out-of-date. Updates on single-cycle or annual subscription basis are then required. GTN Trainer app available through the Apple App Store.
GTN/G500
F LY I N G M A G . C O M
Editor-in-Chief Robert Goyer
Managing Editor Bethany Whitfield Senior Editors Pia Bergqvist, Stephen Pope Director of Design Joe DeLeon Art Director Jarrod Glick Associate Art Director Manuel Alvarez Contributing Editors Les Abend, Peter Garrison, Jay Hopkins, Dick Karl, Martha Lunken Copy Editor Corinne Schuler Adams Web Editor Shayla Silva
Editorial Offices edit@flyingmag.com
Subscriptions Go to flyingmag.com/cs if you have a subscription question, or write to Flying, P.O. Box 420235, Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235. One-year subscription rate (12 issues) for United States and possessions, $15; two-year subscription rate (24 issues), $30; threeyear subscription rate (36 issues), $45. One-year subscription rate (12 issues) for Canada, $34; foreign, $34. Cash orders only, payable in U.S. currency.
Back Issues
For Warbirds, Classics, and Modern Military Aircraft... Flight Journal is Your Destination! Subscribe to Flight Journal and receive one year (six issues) for only $19.95 — that’s 52% off the newsstand price! You’ll also get immediate digital access across PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone, and Android at no extra cost!
Chairman: Jonas Bonnier Chief Executive Officer: Dave Freygang Executive Vice President: Eric Zinczenko Chief Content Officer: David Ritchie Chief Financial Officer: Randall Koubek Chief Brand Development Officer: Sean Holzman Vice President, Consumer Marketing: Bruce Miller Vice President, Production: Lisa Earlywine Vice President, Corporate Communications: Dean Turcol General Counsel: Jeremy Thompson
®
Save 52%
Order online today at FlightJournal.com/fm Please allow 4-6 weeks delivery of the first print issue in the U.S. and Canada. Upon processing, an email will be sent to you giving you immediate access to Flight Journal’s digital edition. All international orders must be prepaid in U.S. funds. Canada: 1 year, 6 issues $23.95 USD including GST; elsewhere: 1 year, 6 issues, $28.95 USD. U.S. cover price: $6.99. Order online for immediate access to digital editions.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 4 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Go to zinio.com/flying-issues to get digital back issues immediately for only 99¢. For content re-use and permissions, please e-mail reprints@bonniercorp.com.
For Customer Service and Subscription Questions, such as renewals, address changes, e-mail preferences, billing and account status, go to: flyingmag.com/cs. You can also write to Flying, P.O. Box 420235 Palm Coast, FL 32142-0235. Copyright 2013, Bonnier Corporation. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part of any text, photograph or illustration without written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Phone: 212-779-5000; fax: 212-779-5577. Send all subscription correspondence to Palm Coast address. Please allow at least eight weeks for the change of address to become effective. Include both your old and your new addresses and, if possible, an address label from a recent issue. Occasionally we share our information with other reputable companies whose products and services might interest you. If you prefer not to participate in this opportunity, please visit flyingmag.com/cs. Flying is a registered trademark of Bonnier Corporation. Printed in the USA.
The Best Pilot Supplies for Over 50 Years • Over 500 exclusive products • Same day express shipping • Every order enters you to win a new airplane Sporty’s Learn To Fly Course
Stratus Second Generation 8217A $899.00
Smith & Wesson Captain’s Flashlight 6010A $39.95
iPad Mini Slimline Kneeboard 2231A $15.95
Original Flight Gear Bag 5013A $69.95
GoPro Hero3 Black Edition 7374A $399.99
Nflightcam iPhone Kit B2000A $129.99
Bose A20 Headset 1631A $1095.00
VFR Tri-fold Kneeboard 2375A $27.95
• Includes Sport, Recreational and Private licenses • Available on DVD, online or app • Over 20 hours of exciting video • Interactive test prep program
Sporty’s New E6B Flight Computer 7095A $59.95
Learn To Fly Course Item #7310A $199.99 Sectional Plotter 5302A $5.95
Garmin aera 796 1602A $1999.00
Saitek Flight Simulator Yoke 9900A $149.95
Handheld NAV/COM SP-400A $369.00
ACR ResQLink PLB 3047A $299.00
Instant IFR Training Glasses 1743A $15.95
Oxi-Plus Pro Oximeter 2541A $49.95
Sigtronics S-20 5121A $144.00
Garmin GDL 39 for iPad 9277A $699.00
Flight Review (DVD and MP3) D408A $34.95
Free demo at sportys.com/courses
Flight Gear® Mission Bag 5516A $62.95
Lightspeed Zulu.2 1711A $900.00
1.800.SPORTYS (776.7897) SPORTYS.COM ©2013 Sportsman’s Market, Inc.
Dual Electronics iPad GPS 9044A $99.95
Flight Gear® iPad Kneeboard 7951A $39.95
FL1310A
Sporty’s E6B App $9.99 Sportys.com/iPad
Visit our Fly-in store Clermont Co. Airport (I69) Cincinnati, Ohio
F LY I N G M A G . C O M
Publisher Dick Koenig dick.koenig@bonniercorp.com 2 Park Avenue, 9th Floor, New York, NY 10016 212-779-5413 / Fax 212-779-5577
Brand Director Glenn Sandridge 407-571-4747 glenn.sandridge@bonniercorp.com Advertising/Marketing Coordinator Marli Kaufmann 212-779-5415 marli.kaufmann@bonniercorp.com Executive Assistant to the Publisher Eva Joyce 212-779-5412 eva.joyce@bonniercorp.com 2 Park Avenue, 9th Floor, New York, NY 10016 Fax 212-779-5577
ADVERTISING SALES OFFICES
Eastern/Midwest/International Sales Lisa DeFrees ldefrees@earthlink.net Sales Support Coordinator Holly Bogacz hbogacz@earthlink.net 2322 Genesee Street Utica, NY 13502 315-624-3670 / Fax 315-624-3674 Western/Central Sales Jim Van Gilder II jim@jvgco.com Sales Support Coordinator Taylor Magness taylor@jvgco.com 5930 Royal Lane, Suite E, P.O. Box 329 Dallas, TX 75230 972-392-1892 / Fax 972-392-1893
Direct Response/ClassiďŹ ed Advertising Dan Rabaja dan.rabaja@bonniercorp.com 407-571-4625 / Fax 407-637-3549
VP, Director of Brand Strategies Matt Hickman VP, Digital Operations David Butler Creative Director Jerry Pomales Consumer Marketing Director Robin Michaels Digital Sales Manager Mike Staley Group Marketing Director Haley Bischof Marketing Manager David Carr Group Production Director Jeff Cassell Production Manager Stephanie Northcutt Human Resources Director Sheri Bass
This product is from sustainably managed forests and controlled sources.
Š2013 CIRRUS DESIGN CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
introducing
get the whole story Brian Wilson Engineer-SF50 Avionics Systems
cirrusaircraft.com/innovation Learn about this ffth generation Cirrus from the engineering team that took the compromise out of fying.
Aerospace
Multifunction titanium chronograph
Exclusive SuperQuartzTM movement
OfďŹ cially chronometer-certiďŹ ed
Water-resistant to 100 m / 330 ft
YOUR FLIGHT IS OUR MISSION™
GOING DIRECT
A Bold And Independent look At AvIAtIon’s BIggest Issues
F LY I N G N E W S & N O T E S | B Y r O b E r T g O y E r
Farewell to a legend on the legAcy of PAul Poberezny The aviation world lost a giant in late August with the passing of Paul Poberezny, who founded the Experimental Aircraft Association, or EAA as it’s most commonly called today. Poberezny died at 91 of natural causes after a long illness. He will be sorely missed but surely not forgotten. I frst met Poberezny, whom I had known about since I was a child, at my frst Oshkosh fy-in back in 1991 — I know, I’m a newbie by Oshkosh standards. Paul was in his signature Volkswagen Bug, Red One, driving round the grounds apparently for no other reason than to say hi to anyone who wanted to say hi back. I was a new associate editor writing for a small homebuilding magazine. He had no idea who I was, but that didn’t stop me from going up to him and introducing myself. “Hi, I’m Robert Goyer,” I said. “You don’t know me, but I know you, and I’d just like to say that it’s an honor to meet you and thank you for all you’ve done for aviation.” I’m sure he’d heard it a thousand times, but he looked me in the eye, told me how nice it was to meet me, good luck with the work and thanks for coming to the show. He meant every word. This was his dream, and he was welcoming me to it. I was speechless. The rise of homebuilding
is a uniquely American phenomenon, though it has spread to all corners of the globe. Like so many cultural and scientifc revolutions in our short national history, Poberezny’s revolution started in his garage with no exact plan but with an abundance of passion. When it came to the passion, it turned out, he had a lifetime supply. Other pilots’ passions would help take care of the plan, which would turn into a great organization, steered expertly by Poberezny and, later, by his son, Tom. It would also give rise to the greatest airshow on the planet, which today takes place in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and is known as AirVenture.
But before the shows and organizations the EAA would eventually demand, Poberezny, a 30-year military pilot, had a simple dream, a dream that many readers of Flying and everyone who works at our magazine shares: the dream of an affordable airplane that just about any working person could afford to build and fy. That airplane was featured in a series of articles in Mechanix Illustrated magazine in the early 1950s. It quickly became one of the most popular series the title ever published, and Poberezny’s dream turned into a revolution almost overnight. By the 1980s and the early 1990s, when all the World War II vets like Poberezny
Paul Poberezny Founded the exPerimental aircraFt association, which has as many as 170,000 members today. started the annual eaa Fly-in, today known as airVenture oshkosh, which is attended by almost halF a million aViation enthusiasts eVery summer. Flew as a military Fighter Pilot, test Pilot and combat Pilot For 30 years. Flew more than 400 diFFerent kinds oF airPlanes, including more than 200 diFFerent homebuilts. designed 15 homebuilts, including the Pober Pixie, acro sPort and Pober Jr. ace. built many homebuilts himselF and had actiVe homebuilt ProJects at the time oF his death.
An AviAtion giAnt ThE FOuNdER OF EAA ANd ThE FAThER OF whAT Is NOw kNOwN As AIRVENTuRE OshkOsh, PAuL POBEREzNY wAs IN hIs hEART A PAssIONATE PILOT, AIRPLANE dEsIGNER ANd hOMEBuILdER.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 1 0 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Airlines have selected ATP as a preferred training provider to build their pilot pipelines with the best training in the fastest time frame possible. In the Airline Career Pilot Program, your airline interview takes place during the commercial phase of training. Successful applicants will receive a conditional offer of employment from one or more of ATP’s airline alliances, plus a guaranteed instructor job with ATP or a designated flight school to build flight experience. Only ATP gives you this level of confidence in your flight training investment.
AIRLINES
Demand for airline pilots and ATP graduates is soaring, with the “1500 hour rule” and retirements at the majors.
Private, Instrument, Commercial Multi & CFIs 100 Hours Multi-Engine Experience Guaranteed Flight Instructor Job
Airline conditional offer of employment at commercial phase of training, based on building flight experience to 1500 hours in your guaranteed CFI job. See website for participating airlines, admissions, eligibility, and performance requirements.
Intro
Tr a i n i n g F l i g h t Multi-Engine Training Nation’s leader in multi-engine flight training with over 100 Piper Seminoles! More training programs at:
ATPFlightSchool.com
N EW LOCATIONS –
NOW OPEN: MCKINNEY, TX; ST. LOUIS; & HOUSTON SOUTHWEST OCT: PORTLAND, OR & SEATTLE All prices offered through October 31, 2013. Check ATPFlightSchool.com for details.
ATPFlightSchool.com/intro
g o i N g d i r e c t | F ly i N g N E W S & N O T E S
were older and had a little money, homebuilding and sport aviation exploded. Companies like Kitfox,
to fle and get into the system easily. As it turned out, IFR was a good way to be fying, as a low broken deck forced
At heArt, PAul Poberezny wAs A Pilot. simPly sAid, flying wAs his joy. Avid Aircraft and Glasair were turning out thousands of kits a year among them, so many in fact that manufacturers of light general aviation airplanes could only shake their head in wonder at the passion of those builders. Homebuilders know, as Poberezny knew, that they are doing something special, building with their own hands an airplane they fully intend to fy once they’re done, an activity that effectively closes the circle between pilot and aircraft in deeply compelling way. At heart, Poberezny was a pilot. He few many hundreds of different models of airplanes, including the hottest military fghters of the pre-jet era. Simply said, fying was his joy, and his goal in life was to share that joy with as many others as he possibly could. That number, surely, has reached the hundreds of thousands and continues to grow. That is the most ftting legacy imaginable for such a pioneer and aviation giant. August ice Flying into Wisconsin for the annual AirVenture Oshkosh airshow on the day before the start of festivities, I encountered, along with a few thousand other folks, weather issues. In my case, I was fying IFR into Green Bay, Wisconsin, so I was able
all the traffc funneling into Oshkosh into the same sliver of airspace. I was able to zip along through the clouds with nary a care in the world, that is until Center advised me that I would have to cancel and go VFR. When I advised them I was IMC and unable to comply, they said they could accommodate me, but only if I could climb to 15,000 feet. The way they told me, it sounded like a dare. So I said I could. I donned the cannula as Center gave me the climb to 15,000. Through 13,000 feet, I started to pick up ice. I set the FIKI system on the SR22 to low and watched it disappear. The bigger problem was getting slam-dunked going into Green Bay. Still at 13,000 feet and 10 miles from the airport, the approach controller asked if I’d be able to make it down in time. I chuckled and said I couldn’t. Controllers sometimes forget that not every high-fying airplane is pressurized. He gave me a lengthy vector to lose altitude, and then cleared me for the approach to the north runway. My landing, even with a bit of a tailwind, was uneventful. But my arrival into the greater OSH area at show time was once again an adventure, even though I did everything in my power to make it as uneventful as possible.
FArewell, JAy, Hello ... ? This month marks the fnal column for longtime columnist Jay Hopkins and his authorship of The Human Factor column. For two decades, Jay has focused on what used to be referred to as cockpit resource management or CRM. Today, we refer to it as human factors. Jay’s readers will know that in addition to his work in the aviation safety industry, Jay has worked with corporations around the world to help them improve safety and workplace effciency by applying many of the same principals he has espoused in his column. After 20 years, Jay has made the decision to retire from the pages of Flying. We wish him nothing but the best.
passion in a way that resonates with readers. Sorry for the suspense, but you’ll have to wait until next month to meet the mystery man.
Jay’s column was a part of our broad coverage of human factor issues, and you can look forward to new and familiar expert voices continuing the conversation about this most critical safety subject. Jay’s departure signals the arrival of a new columnist at Flying, someone who brings a wealth of experience in a number of different segments of aviation and has shown a gift for communicating that experience and
popular departments, like I Learned about Flying from That and On the Record; and all of the great photography you’ve come to look forward to in Flying. Perhaps most importantly, we have preserved our fercely independent voice, something you’ll fnd in no other large general aviation magazine. For decades, Flying has been the largest and most infuential newsstand aviation magazine in the world — now with a great new look.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 1 2 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Bold New look, sAme greAt coNteNt As you might have noticed already, Flying has a new look, our frst major update to the design and feel of the magazine in more than a decade. The redesign is the result of a project with the goal of taking our great content and presenting it in a way that is cleaner, more modern and more engaging. My personal goal was to preserve every ounce of content, all of our columnists, from Peter Garrison to Martha Lunken; all of our
FLYING MAIL
HAvE A suBsCRIpTION quEsTION? GO TO FLYINGMAG.COM/Cs
F LY I N G N E W S & N O T E S | F E E D B A C K F R O M O U R R E A D E R S
RaRe finds Flying’s article on rare airplanes is a great read, kindling emotions about great aircraft I have been fortunate to see and others I have only read and dreamed about [“Rare Airplanes,” August 2013]. I will never forget the ever-so-distinctive, high-pitched tone of the Beech 2000A Starship. There is something about hearing those rear-facing turboprop engines, then looking up and seeing that beautiful composite canard shape cutting through the blue sky. James McCartney San Antonio, Texas
I thoroughly enjoyed the “Rare Airplanes” feature but was befuddled: How is it that the jet age can be so thoroughly ignored? I believe it was a mistake not to at least mention Saha Air’s 707-3J9C, the last fying example of a passengermodel 707. That being said, I commend Flying for remembering that for every newfangled light sport aircraft, there is an old bird that is just as enchanting. Russell Irwin Helotes, Texas
Oh, my, what a cover photo! I’m glad to see that one of the Mosquitoes is still fying and wonder whether any of its little brothers are capable of fight. I refer, of course, to the de Havilland DH.103 Hornet/Sea Hornet, a scaled-down version of the Mosquito as a single-seat fghter. As gorgeous as the Mosquito is, the Hornet might give it a run for the loving cup. I never saw a Mosquito in the fesh — worst luck — but I saw many Hornets in Bahrain while I was in Arabia for a year, fying the Grumman Albatross for USAF Rescue. Robert J. Powers Shreveport, Louisiana
Calling it quits Dick Karl’s article “The End” [Gear Up, August 2013] resonates with my experience. I too am a “senior” surgeon but have spent my career in a dusty little desert hospital where the surgeons are few and the workload backbreaking. After years of being
on call, I found that my decision making was harder, although my hands seemed to work just fne. Dr. Karl is fortunate since his hearing is good, while mine is not. In the mad house SoCal fying environment where the controllers talk so fast their lips occasionally catch fre, I can hear the words, but they are sometimes hard to interpret. Time to hang up the headset next to the scalpel. I agree with Dr. Karl; it is important to know when to quit, but it isn’t easy to do. Good luck and Godspeed with your fying career, Dick. You deserve it. Norman Baron Brawley, California
seCuRity woes Thank you for your “Security, Freedom and Flying” article [Going Direct, August 2013]. It’s a shame that our elected offcials and those chosen to uphold the law don’t see that we’re circling the drain on civil liberties. The bottom line is they go after what they can in order to justify their existence. They create laws so they can puff their chests out come re-election time, touting that they did this or that. In the end, the only people paying the price are those of us who strive to live the American dream without government intrusion. Please keep up the work of exposing these examples of violations to our rights. Zac Noble Via email
As a retired police sergeant, I read Robert Goyer’s article in the August issue with great interest. Local law enforcement is experienced and trained at greatly different levels. Pulling guns on honest citizens sooner or later is going to result in an accidental shooting of an innocent pilot. If you read Terry v. Ohio, the case on which a Terry stop is based, the behavior that resulted in the stop was very suspicious and two illegally possessed guns were found. It is a vast leap to project this onto general aviation aircraft that fit some mysterious and secret profile. Albert Johnson Via email
the BRazilian shuttle Reading Les Abend’s article about the Brazilian shuttle [Jumpseat, August 2013] brought back fond memories. As a young kid back in the early ’70s, I lived in São Paulo and used to make my dad take me out to the Congonhas Airport to watch airplanes on a regular basis. I also flew in and out of Congonhas several times back in the day before jetways, when you had to walk across the ramp to get to the plane. Thanks, Les, for bringing back great memories! Jeff A. Matson Milford, Michigan
Send mail to: edit@flyingmag.com or P.o. Box 8500, Winter Park, fl 32789 F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 14 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Two Heads are Safer Than One. The cornerstone of aviation safety is redundancy. Aspen’s trailblazing Evolution 2000 is the only GA EFIS display that provides total system redundancy – at less fly-away cost than any competing system. Evolution 2000’s safety architecture delivers an exclusive total backup ability that steam gauges and competing glass can’t match. With full PFD capability built into the MFD and dual redundant backup batteries, Evolution offers the only glass panel that can effectively eliminate heavy, unreliable steam instruments. Aspen’s unique PFD/MFD window layout flexibility allows you to configure displays to prioritize critical flight data. Multiple views at your command significantly enhance situational awareness.
Dual Independent LCD Displays • Redundant Attitude Heading Reference Systems with Independent Gyro, Accelerometer and Magnetic Sensors • Redundant Air Data Computers with Independent Airspeed & Altitude Pressure Transducers • Redundant Emergency Batteries [30 Minutes Runtime or 2 Hours with Optional External Battery] • Redundant Emergency GPS Receivers [Optional] • Dual Sixpack Displays • Dual HSIs • Dual GPSS Computers
Evolution 2000: Unrivaled Safety & Versatility, by Design. GET CONNECTED Aspen’s Connected Panel technology connects your smart portable device with your Evolution MFD-equipped instrument panel
connectedpanel.com aspenavionics.com/evolution2000 Copyright 2012 Aspen Avionics Inc. ”Aspen Avionics,” “Evolution Flight Display System,” “Connected Panel,” and the Aspen Avionics aircraft logo are trademarks of Aspen Avionics Inc. All rights reserved. U.S. Patent No. 8,085,168, and additional patents pending.
BENDIX KING AOA INDICATOR
18
AIRWAYS
F Ly i N G N E W S & N O T E S | E D i T E D B y P I A B E R G Q V I S T
plus $1 PER GALLON AVGAS — TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE? p. 18
According to icon, An AdVAnced Airfoil design is the secret Behind the A5’s spin resistAnce. KeY ModificAtions Also included the incorporAtion of A lArger wing, A Bigger tAil And AdditionAl structure to support theM. ESTIMATED PRICE $189,000 SEATS 2
Faa Grants iCon a5 weiGht inCrease
after 14 Months, Manufacturer gets good neWs The FAA has granted California-based Icon Aircraft a max takeoff weight increase for the A5 light-sport amphibian to accommodate wing and airframe changes designed to meet Part 23 spin resistance standards. The FAA will allow Icon to increase the A5’s weight by 250 pounds above LSA limits. Icon believes it will need just 80 pounds of this total, but the exemption means
cocKpit vieW ICON’s dEsIGNERs BUCKEd ThE FLATPANEL TRENd, INsTEAd GOING WITh MANY sEPARATE INsTRUMENTs IN A LOOK MORE REMINIsCENT OF A CAR ThAN A MOdERN AIRCRAFT.
the company can increase the A5’s MTOW to as high as 1,510 pounds if needed. Other safety enhancements that the FAA considered in granting Icon’s petition included the A5’s optional BRS ballistic parachute, angle of attack indicator and Rotax 912iS fuel-injected engine. All of these added to the fnal weight of the A5, and predictably, they also will result in a higher price. Icon now
says the A5’s base price is $189,000 in 2013 dollars, versus $139,000 when the airplane was frst announced. Icon has secured $60 million in additional funding from a Chinese investor. Icon says the amount will be suffcient to launch production at some point next year. Testing of four productionconforming airplanes will start next spring, with frst deliveries to begin soon after. — Stephen Pope
rotax 912is
ThE ICON A5 Is POWEREd BY A 100 hP ROTAX 912Is ENGINE. ThE ENGINE Is 15 POUNds hEAvIER ThAN ITs CARBURETEd COUNTERPART BUT BURNs LEss FUEL ANd PROvIdEs ThE sAFETY BENEFITs OF FUEL INJECTION. F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 1 6 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
HORSEPOWER 100 USEFUL LOAD 450 POUNDS MAX SPEED 105 KNOTS WINGSPAN 34 FEET COCKPIT WIDTH 46 INCHES LANDING GEAR RETRACTABLE
the A5 MAKes use of the fAA’s AllowAnce for reconfigurABle lAnding geAr.
a i r w a y s | F Ly i N G N E W S & N O T E S
Continental’s Chinese owner aCquires thielert neWLy estaBLished technify Motors WiLL focus on dieseL production
n
obody would blame you if you thought that bankrupt diesel engine maker Thielert was fnished. After all, the German company had been declared insolvent, its founder is facing a lengthy prison sentence, and its name still elicits anger among those who owned airplanes with Thielert engines. But aero diesel engines capable of burning jet fuel are hot right now. It stood to reason that somebody would scoop up Thielert and try to resurrect it under new ownership. That somebody turns out to be AVIC International, the Chinese company that also owns Continental Motors. AVIC acquired all the assets of Thielert Aircraft Engines GmbH and has formed a new company called Technify Motors to produce the Centurion line of engines in Germany. Technify will work closely with Alabama-based Continental to produce, sell and service a full line of jet-A-burning piston engines. (For more on exactly what the deal means and the state of aero diesel technology, check out “Diesel Revolution” on page 44.) The acquisition adds the 135 hp and 155 hp Centurion 2.0-liter series, as well as a certifed but not-yet-produced 350 hp 4.0-liter diesel engine. All burn jet-A, a capability seen as a vital component for worldwide operation, especially in China, where AVIC hopes to expand the market for piston airplanes. Thielert founder and former CEO Frank Thielert was arrested this summer and is being held in jail as a fight risk. A German bankruptcy court has charged him with fraud in misrepresenting the value and fnancial assets of his company while seeking new investors. He could face several years in prison. In 2008, he lost control of the company, which was administered by a court-appointed asset manager before the AVIC acquisition. Formed in 2002, Thielert developed diesel engines that performed well, but the company was never able to expand the time between overhauls beyond 1,500 hours. In addition, a recurring 300-hour gearbox inspection was costly and inconvenient. Thielert was unable to establish an effective and responsive service network, and the costs of parts grew to unsustainable levels. A Continental spokesman said all gasoline piston engine products will be grouped under the Continental brand while diesel engines will all fall under the Technify banner. Eventually, he said, diesels for the Chinese market will likely be produced there. — S.P.
Beechcraft Lands $1.4 BiLLion King air deaL air traveL cLuB WheeLs up pLaces BLocKBuster order Beechcraft’s strategy for reinventing itself after emerging from bankruptcy earlier this year is starting to look like a display of pure genius. The Hawker business jet line that had weighed on the company’s bottom line is gone, and the piston and turboprop models that remain are selling well. Really well, it turns out. Kenny Dichter, the former vice chairman of NetJets and creator of the jet card concept as the founder of Marquis Jet, has created a new private aviation company called Wheels Up that will be based exclusively on a feet of brand new Beechcraft King Air 350i twin turboprops. Dichter has placed an order with Beech for 105 airplanes, including full maintenance in a historymaking deal valued at $1.4 billion. Billed as the next revolution in private air travel, Wheels Up will launch next month in the Northeast before expanding to other parts of the country. Dichter told Flying the concept is a membership-based air travel club that will charge clients annual dues of $7,250 and a per-hour rate of $3,950 in the specially branded Wheels Up King Airs. The frst year’s dues
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 17 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
are $15,750, and the company predicts members will fy 20 to 30 hours a year. A companion concierge service called Wheels Down will provide members with perks, such as access to tickets to the Super Bowl, PGA events, concerts and more. The deal includes a comprehensive maintenance contract with Beechcraft valued at $600 million, with the remaining $788 million going toward the airplanes. That puts their price at around $7.5 million apiece and makes the deal potentially the largest ever for general aviation propeller airplanes. The Wheels Up King Airs will seat eight passengers and have more than double the full-fuel payload capability of light jets like the Cessna Citation CJ2+. They will link dozens of popular city pairs with a range of more than 1,700 nm. Shawn Vick, executive vice president for sales and marketing at Beechcraft, says the frst nine airplanes for the Wheels Up program will be delivered soon. Another 26 will join the feet over the next year, with the remainder of the King Airs planned for delivery through 2018. — S.P.
a i r w a y s | F Ly i N G N E W S & N O T E S
Bendix King surprises with Angle of AttAcK indicAtor WITh ThE KLR 10, FORMER AvIONICs GIANT sIGNALs IT’s REAdY FOR A coMeBacK
Avionics powerhouse Bendix King has been mostly dormant for the last several years, as nimble competitors like Garmin, Avidyne and Aspen Avionics have stolen market share by employing a strategy that is neither novel nor surprising. These newer players have out-innovated Bendix King at every turn, stealing customers in the process. Now it appears that the sleeping giant is on the verge of doing some innovating of its own. At EAA’s AirVenture Oshkosh, Bendix King announced a few brand new products, the centerpiece of which is the KLR 10
Lift Reserve Indicator, a refreshingly simple (and inexpensive) angle of attack indicator for light airplanes that is the first of its kind from any of the major GA avionics manufacturers. The unit, which carries a price of $1,600, is for experimental airplanes only for now, but Bendix King says it is already working to expand the approval status to cover certified airplanes too. We were given a demo of the unit at Oshkosh and liked what we saw. The KLR 10 provides a compact and easy-to-read AOA indicator that is designed for installation in the pilot’s forward line of sight. It includes audio annunciation that warns pilots when their angle of attack gets close to the danger zone. Can Bendix King stage a comeback? It’s too early to say, but it appears the Honeywell subsidiary is ready to make a serious effort to become relevant once again. — S.P.
$1 Per Gallon avGas
in octoBer, fueL up for aLMost nothing
F
or the month of October, Skyport FBO in San Marcos, Texas, will sell avgas for the unbelievable price of $1 per gallon. Again, that is $1 per gallon, no strings attached. Buy as much or as little as you’d like. Skyport, which is the FBO/fight school arm of Redbird Flight Simulations, normally sells avgas for good prices, but in the range of $5.50 to $6 per gallon, not $1. The questions are: How can they do it? Are they going to go broke? And, again, what’s the catch? A number of companies and organizations, including Garmin, Aspen Avionics, King Schools, ForeFlight, Bendix King, GAMA, AOPA, Piper Aircraft, Sennheiser, Hartzell, Bad Elf, Flying magazine, and Brown Leasing, along with the City of San Marcos, have all teamed
MyGoFliGht FliGht BaG PlC Pro a great piLot’s BacKpacK A couple of months ago, Flying gave a glowing review of MyGoFlight’s high-end iPad case/kneeboard. This month, the praise continues for the Flight Bag PLC Pro. The bag is made of
heavy-duty nylon and has a number of compartments, all of which are sized just right, it seems. There’s one for your laptop and iPad and one for a headset or two. There’s a little eyebrow zip compartment
to underwrite the experiment — and in this case, it’s an actual experiment — so Skyport won’t be going broke. Redbird chairman Jerry Gregoire said the idea is to see exactly how much current fuel prices are to blame for the greatly reduced activity in the gas-piston GA sector over the past several years. Redbird number crunchers will look to see how much the low-price avgas will boost activity during and even after the low-price month of October. Skyport chose the month purposely. Not only is October traditionally a great weather month for fying in central Texas, it’s also the month when AOPA has its annual Summit fy-in, held this year in Fort Worth, Texas. Similarly, Redbird has its annual customer Migration in October in San Marcos. — Robert Goyer
for a key ring, wallet and cellphone, and a larger front section for pens, notepads, cords and other gadgets. Easily converted with either a shoulder strap or a super comfortable backpackstyle strap, the bag is easy to carry for a few steps or across terminals. You can even get a baggage dolly for it too. The bag goes for about $200 with a couple of popular accessories. — R.G.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 1 8 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
OUR FAMILY OF CUStOMeRS | A LetteR SeRIeS
“FlightSafety staff has improved the careers of countless pilots. I’m proud to say I’m one of them.”
James Moore Senior Vice President/ Director of Flight Operations
to fnd out about the many benefts of being a FlightSafety Customer, please call Scott Fera, Senior Vice President, Marketing, at 718.565.4774. sales@fightsafety.com • fightsafety.com • A Berkshire Hathaway company
a i r w a y s | F Ly i N G N E W S & N O T E S
university oF north dakota’s aviation ProGraM John d. odegard schooL of aerospace sciences stays on the forefront of aviation education North Dakota is known for its extreme winters — a climate in which it seems to make no real sense to start a fight school. But despite the weather challenges, the John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks has developed a highly successful and progressive aviation program. The success can mostly be credited to a man with a vision, John D. Odegard. Odegard, who founded the aviation program in 1968, was not only an excellent businessman who knew how to raise the money required to establish the school, he was also instrumental in incorporating unique equipment into the program to stay on the forefront of new technologies and provide students more than most aeronautical universities were able to offer. What started as a program with a dozen students and two Cessna 150s has grown into a fight school empire, encompassing about 125 aircraft, about a dozen fight simulators including a CRJ200 sim, several air traffc control simulators and 2,000 students, if you include all aviation-related programs. Other simulators and labs at the school are
in Addition to seVerAl doZen singleengine cessnAs, hAlf A doZen piper Arrows And ABout 15 piper seMinole twins, und hAs two AMericAn chAMpion decAthlons, A top cuB on floAts, two King Airs, A citAtion ii And seVerAl helicopters. designed for air traffc control, unmanned aircraft and fight physiology. The fight physiology program was established in the 1980s and is led by professor Warren Jensen, a former Air Force fight surgeon who also trained with NASA. The heritage of Odegard’s focus on excellence is evident at the school. The facilities are very well maintained, and you could eat off the foor of the 10 heated hangars that house the school’s airplanes and helicopters at Grand Forks International Airport. There is also a dedicated safety program, with an online reporting system, strict procedures and a 20-member safety council that meets quarterly to ensure proper procedures. UND’s fight
students are on track to collectively fy about 116,000 hours this year, director of aviation safety Dana Siewer says. So safety is a major concern. The safety program has been so effective at UND that the FAA asked the school to develop a safety management system that can be adopted by the other 141 schools around the country. Despite the sometimes inhospitable weather, the school has a tendency to keep its faculty members long term. The passion they have for their school is palpable, and that same passion runs deep in the veins of the current dean, Bruce Smith, whose leadership is likely to continue the school’s success for decades to come. — Pia Bergqvist
aLtitude chaMBer
toWer LaB
UNd ACQUIREd ITs hIGhALTITUdE ChAMBER IN 1988 FROM ThE U.s. AIR FORCE. FLIGhT sTUdENTs EXPERIENCE ThE sYMPTOMs OF hYPOXIA ThREE TIMEs BEFORE ThEY GRAdUATE.
A 360-dEGREE CONTROL TOWER sIMULATOR PROvIdEs A vERY REALIsTIC BUT sAFE ENvIRONMENT FOR AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL sTUdENTs TO PRACTICE PROPER ATC COMMUNICATION ANd PROCEdUREs. F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 2 0 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
A full-Motion spAtiAl disorientAtion trAiner exposes students to the dAngers of spAtiAl And VisuAl illusions, such As the grAVeYArd spirAl And AutoKinesis.
a i r w a y s | F Ly i N G N E W S & N O T E S
AviAt tests NAturAl GAs-Powered Husky
Dual-fuel airplane excels in testing Aviat Aircraft has been testing a Husky with a Lycoming engine powered by both 100LL and compressed natural gas (CNG) with
compelling results. The idea came from Greg Herrick, the president of the Aviation Foundation of America out of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
After more than 20 hours of fight testing, the Husky CNG, a version of Aviat’s Husky A1-C, has seen better power output and lower exhaust and gas temperatures, improvements credited to an increase in the comparative octane rating, which Herrick claims is 138. One gas gallon equivalent of CNG costs about 85 cents, Aviat’s president Stu Horn says — much less than pilots are used to paying for 100LL. Horn also said the Husky has been more fuel effcient on CNG, burning about one gallon less per hour compared with 100LL. And the reduced environmental impact goes beyond the lower fuel burn. The gas itself burns cleaner, Herrick says, and there are no lead emissions as with 100LL.
Your CEO, stockholders and chief pilot will love it. Even if they all happen to be you. King Air 250. Step aboard the King Air 250 and know you’ve arrived. As you settle in, every sensation conveys this is the aircraft for you. Expansive interior. Winglets. Composite scimitar propellers. 1™ flight deck. Each detail, every amenity, combines to deliver the Rockwell Collins ® Pro Line 21 dependability, performance, technology and efficiency that today’s passengers and pilots demand. For more info, contact: U.S. and the Americas +1.316.676.0800 EMEA +44(0) 1244.523.803 | Asia-Pacific +65.6423.0321 Visit us at Beechcraft.com. ©2013 Beechcraft Corporation. All rights reserved. Beechcraft and King Air are the registered trademarks of Beechcraft Corporation.
The pilot fying the dualfuel Husky can quickly switch the source of fuel in fight. As with the standard Husky, the 100LL is contained in two wing tanks. The CNG is contained within an external belly tank. As with any 100LL alternative, one of the biggest barriers to entry into the market will likely be the availability of the gas itself. While the CNG used in the Husky is widely available, the flling process is complex. At this stage, the Husky CNG is strictly a proof-ofconcept. Horn says the company is planning on exploring whether FAA certifcation of the airplane is viable. “The performance and ease of operation have exceeded our expectations,” Horn says. — P.B.
a i r w a y s | F Ly i N G N E W S & N O T E S
JePPesen launChes low-Cost vFr aPP
MoBiLe fLitedecK vfr provides data in a user-friendLy, affordaBLe pacKage
NOT ALL STALLS ARE THIS OBVIOUS. F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 2 2 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Knowing your lift can turn that around. With our KLR 10 Lift Reserve Indicator on your experimental aircraftÕs glare shield, total lift reserve awareness is just a heads-up glance away. Keeping you solidly in the zone. And out of danger. Because the easiest stall to recover from is the one that never happens. Learn more at KnowYourLift.com
ning, airport information, navigation capabilities and weather. The moving map display is easier to read than the sectional chart imagery used by some other aviation app providers. As you zoom in on the moving map, more data appears, such as runway numbers and taxiways. The app even displays useful airport information, including airport elevation, runway length and frequencies, right on the moving map. — P.B.
KLR 10 Lift Reserve Indicator
Flight chart giant Jeppesen launched a VFRonly version of its Mobile FliteDeck iPad app at AirVenture Oshkosh. The price for an annual subscription is $49. Yes, that’s right, it’s $49 annually, not monthly. Jeppesen keeps the cost low by eliminating IFR charts for the app, so the subscriber only pays for the data he or she needs. With an intuitive layout, the app includes capabilities pilots have come to expect, such as fight plan-
F LY I N G s a f e ly | B Y J a y H O P K I N s
a dIfferent approach WHY SMART PILOTS DO DUMB THINGS There has been considerable consternation in the aviation media recently about the lack of progress in improving the general aviation accident rate. National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Deborah Hersman recently expressed her frustration that the general aviation accident rate in the United States has essentially plateaued at around 1,500 accidents every year, emphasizing
that the board sees the same types of accidents over and over again and that many of the accidents are “entirely preventable.” Hersman proposed three steps to reduce the GA accident rate: 1. Understand what is causing the accidents. 2. Identify preventive strategies. 3. Get the word out to the GA community.
While I have always admired Hersman’s insight into accidents, especially her emphasis on fatigue as a factor that is often ignored or understated, I don’t have much hope for any amazing new insights into what is causing GA accidents. As Hersman herself said, we are seeing the same kinds of accidents year after year, so the likelihood of coming up with any startling new information at this point is very
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 2 4 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
small. In fact, my November 1999 article titled “Is General Aviation Safe?” stated that “many professionals involved in aviation training are very frustrated by our lack of success in making a dramatic impact on the accident and fatality rates,” so we haven’t made much progress over the past 14 years. On the other hand, it may be possible to come up with some new preventive strategies for specifc weaknesses in the system. For example, the focus on runway incursions has resulted in hardware fxes, such as the fashing yellow lights across the entrance to the active runway at major airports; procedural fxes, such as a change in how clearances are issued; and a major education program about the importance of avoiding incursions. Most of the successful fxes have been focused on this type of clearly defned problem that lends itself to hardware, procedural and educational improvements. There is, however, no silver bullet — that one signifcant change that will result in major improvements across the GA community. Robert Goyer said in his December 2012 Going Direct column that many accidents in GA are the result of the vagaries of human nature, suggesting that it was time to try a different approach. It just so happens that I have been trying a different approach for the last 23 years. Shortly before I started writing for Flying in September 1992, I founded the Error Prevention Institute and began teaching
ILLUSTRATION BY TIM EGGERT
THE H U M A N FACT O R
EXAMINING AVIATION SAFETY FROM EVERY POTENTIAL ANGLE
The rugged, reliable KODIAK is built to take you anywhere you want to go! With superior STOL performance and high useful load, the KODIAK can take off in under 1,000 feet at full gross weight and climb at over 1,300 feet per minute. Featuring the dependable Pratt and Whitney PT6A engine and Garmin G1000 avionics suite, the KODIAK is the right choice for your mission. Your KODIAK can be outfitted with a variety of options, including air-conditioning, an External Cargo Compartment and a Certified Flight Into Known Ice (FIKI) TKS ice protection system. Customers can choose their interior package and additional cabin accessories and refinements, making the KODIAK perfect for comfortably transporting passengers or as a versatile workhorse.
One Aircraft...Many Missions.
208.263.1111 www.questaircraft.com
T h e h U M A N F A C T O R | F LY I N G s a f e ly
our Preventing Human Error seminar. It is based on the very simple premise that nobody wants to make a mistake, but there are traps of human nature that lead to human factor mistakes, incidents and accidents. We call them traps because we typically are not aware of them when they are working. If we were, we wouldn’t do the stupid things we seem to do all too often. While we will never be able to avoid all errors, I have found it is possible to teach people about these traps and to set warning alarms in their heads to go off whenever one or more of the traps are working. I also provide practical tools people can use to successfully avoid or deal with these traps. Because they are a function of human nature, these traps and tools are the same for everyone. Other than incorporating client-specifc examples and case studies, I presented the same four-hour seminar to more than 100 organizations, including fight departments, fre and police departments, major aerospace corporations, hospitals, military units and even a large metropolitan parks and recreation department. Of course the most important question is: Does it work? The answer has been overwhelmingly positive. In one typical case, a major aerospace corporation with 15,000 employees across the country experienced an 80-percent decrease in signifcant incidents and accidents during the frst two years after they started requiring their employees to take error-prevention training. Fifteen years later, error prevention continues to be a foundation of their corporate culture. The statistical results are backed up by exciting stories of specifc situations
in which error prevention was credited with avoiding a serious incident or accident, as well as helping to achieve the best possible results. Employees tell us that the error-prevention training has also helped them to avoid mistakes and to be more effective in their personal lives. So while the aviation industry and the NTSB should continue looking for systemic weaknesses that can be strengthened through technological or procedural improvements, I agree with Robert that it is time we take a different approach to the human factor accidents that result from poor judgment and decision making. The simple fact is that the same traps of human nature can lead to: • A pilot fying low over a friend’s house. • The captain of a large ship passing close to an island at high speed. • The engineer of a train going twice the allowed speed. • Two teenagers racing each other down a city street. The people involved in these acts did not need training on the dangers of fying low, of passing close to an island, of going too fast or of racing on city streets. All of these people were well aware that they were taking risks and breaking the rules. What they needed was an understanding of the traps of human nature that can lead us to break the rules and take unnecessary risks that can result in devastating consequences, along with simple, practical tools they could have used to avoid or deal with those traps. The challenge is how to provide this training to general aviation pilots. The material in our Preventing
Human Error seminar was inspired by the cockpit resource management training I was involved with in the 1980s. When I frst contacted Mac McClellan 21 years ago, I was hoping to write one article about applying CRM principles to general aviation. Instead, he surprised me by asking if I would like to write a monthly article. Over the past 21 years, I have covered many of the traps and tools of error prevention in my articles in Flying. However, this is not an effcient way to provide this information, as probably
to the general public. The website provides a searchable library of error-prevention articles related to many different felds, including all the articles I have written for Flying. It is my hope that this website will develop into a commun-ity of concerned individuals and organizations who will share stories about their own successes and mistakes, allowing everyone to learn from each other and encourage each other in our efforts to reduce errors and operate more effectively in everything we do.
It Is tIme we take a dIfferent approach to human factor accIdents. very few pilots have carefully studied and learned each trap and tool and many recently licensed pilots were not even born when I started writing these Human Factor articles. (Yes — that does make me feel old!) There is now another approach to providing errorprevention training to the GA community that should be much more effective. At the request of one of our corporate clients, I developed a three-hour e-learning errorprevention course titled “Why Smart People Do Dumb Things and How to Avoid the Same Mistakes.” This course presents the traps and tools of error prevention in six 30-minute modules that can be completed at the convenience of the person taking the course. I have also developed a new website (smart peopledumbthings.com) to make the e-learning errorprevention course available
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 2 6 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
In order to focus my full attention on reducing mistakes, incidents and accidents through the website and the e-learning error prevention course, this will be my last article in Flying. When I contacted Mac about writing an article for Flying, I never imagined I would write 254 of them over the next 21 years. Writing for Flying has been an amazing experience. I especially appreciate the positive feedback I have received from many readers and have enjoyed getting to know some of you through correspondence and occasionally in person. I hope to continue that relationship through the website and e-learning course and plan to work with aviation organizations to make this training available to as wide a population as possible in the hope that it can contribute to a signifcant decrease in aviation accidents.
VISIT US AT AOPA AVIATION SUMMIT BOOTH #1433
BAD DAY? WE GET YOU BACK IN THE AIR FAST. Ask anyone who is insured with Avemco Insurance Company and they’ll tell you one of the things they like best is that we handle claims quickly, fairly and painlessly. In fact, last year 93% of our customers were so happy with us they renewed their policies.* • Only Avemco® pays your covered claim even if your medical accidentally expires mid-term. • Only Avemco pays your covered claim even if your annual accidentally expires mid-term.
• Only Avemco pays your covered claim even if your flight review accidentally expires mid-term. • Only Avemco connects you directly with a decision-maker empowered to solve problems in one call.
Get a free quote and get a free hat. Call (800) 276 5209 or visit avemco.com/FLYING *Not all coverages or products may be available in all jurisdictions. The description of coverage in these pages is for information purposes only. Actual coverages will vary based on local law requirements and the terms and conditions of the policy issued. The information described herein does not amend, or otherwise affect, the terms and conditions ® of any insurance policy issued by Avemco . In the event that a policy is inconsistent with the information described herein, the language of the policy will take precedence. 93% customer retention based on average 2011 monthly renewal data for the Direct Approach Aircraft Insurance Policy. Free hat offer not available in New Mexico. A subsidiary of HCC Insurance Holdings, Inc.
ADS0104 (11/12)
avemco.com/FLYING
AFTERMATH
accident analysis that goes behind and beyond the ntsb report
F LY I N G s a f e ly | B Y P e T e R G a R R I s O N
NothiNg over My head Thy sea so greaT, my boaT so small In March 2012 in southern Georgia, a hot-air balloon was sucked into a thunderstorm. Carried to 17,000 feet in an updraft, battered by 1-inch hail, its fabric envelope tore open and collapsed. Only four days later did searchers fnally locate it in a forested area miles from the launch point. Large clumps of compacted hail were still enfolded among the ruins of the envelope. Though the open wicker gondola was practically undamaged, the pilot in it was dead. News media, as well as the balloonist’s many friends and admirers, adopted an heroic scenario in which the balloonist, who was carrying seven skydivers, climbed to an altitude from which he was certain they could jump safely, then told them to jump, sacrifcing himself to save them. The National Transportation Safety Board took a somewhat more dry-eyed view of the accident. The cause, it declared, was “the pilot’s intentional fight into adverse weather. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s failure to obtain a weather briefing and his failure to follow the balloon manufacturer’s published emergency procedure for weather deterioration during fight.” The manufacturer’s emergency procedure alluded to is colorfully phrased: “Land immediately rather than fy into severe atmospheric turmoil.” Neither view, in my opinion, captures the nuances of this accident. The “hero saves parachutists,
sacrifces self” version doesn’t make much sense. The standard minimum altitude for deploying a sport parachute is 2,000 feet. The frst group of three jumpers left the gondola at above 5,000 feet, the rest above 6,000. The jumpers were never in danger. Clearly, if it had been purely a matter of ensuring everyone’s safety, the pilot could have sent them out much earlier or could simply have aborted the mission when it became apparent that a thunderstorm was building nearby and the balloon was heading toward it. The NTSB’s fnding that the pilot failed to obtain a weather briefng is probably misleading. To begin with, balloons are fown only in a very limited range of conditions, light surface winds being a basic requirement for getting infated and airborne in the frst place. Furthermore, a balloon fight with skydivers is not like a cross-country fight in an airplane. The balloonist is concerned with weather in his immediate vicinity — in other words, with what he can see with his own eyes. The information that the NTSB apparently supposes the pilot overlooked or ignored was a convective sigmet covering a long, narrow quadrilateral with the launch site in the acute angle of its extreme southwest corner. But a sigmet merely warns of possible conditions over a large region; one frequently fies through sigmet areas, circumnavigating isolated storms. The pilot had
already made several previous fights that day and was quite aware of the local conditions. As practitioners of extreme sports often do, the seven skydivers had brought along their video cameras, and the entire fnal fight, until the departure of the last jumper, was covered with a thoroughness that would have done credit to Cecil B. DeMille. Some of the footage, edited into a tribute to the late pilot, may be found on YouTube (www.youtube .com/watch?v=Vd5VLWIxBAE). The storm that would swallow the balloon is glimpsed at the start of the video as a gleaming
the storM that would swallow the ballooN is gliMpsed at the start of the video. tower of white cumulus against the background of a benign blue sky. In the jolly chaos of launching in a freshening breeze, its portentous presence is seemingly ignored. The red, white and black balloon, 67 feet high and levitated by 105,000 cubic feet of heated air, then rises obliquely toward the cloud. Between the drift of the balloon and the expansion of the storm, by the time the balloon had reached 5,380 feet it was foating
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 2 8 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Mobile FliteDeck VFR the only planning and navigation app designed for VFR pilots. Download it now for a 30-day free trial.
For the iPad® on the App Store
Jeppesen.com/flitedeck-vfr70
iPad® is a trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.
A F T E R M A T H | F LY I N G S A F E LY
19th Annual
CLASSIC CONVEYANCE. TIMELESS ELEGANCE. AND YOUR INVITATION TO VISIT A LEGENDARY PRIVATE CLUB. OCEAN REEF CLUB
THE VINTAGE WEEKEND Thursday, December 5 – Sunday, December 8, 2013
An extraordinary gathering of those who share a passion for vintage vehicles, yachts and planes in a community as exceptional and rare as the conveyances it honors. For information and reservations: 305.367.5874 OceanReef.com/VintageWeekend VintageWeekend@OceanReef.com
35 Ocean Reef Drive • Suite 200, Key Largo, Florida
close beneath a shelf of gray cloud. The pilot was aware of the nearby storm; a warning had been relayed to him by the ground crew. Besides, it looked somewhat menacing: In the video, one helmet camera repeatedly swings aside to settle for a moment upon gray columns of rain and shadow. Though the altitude is lower than originally planned, a cameraman pushes off on his back, facing the gondola, followed by two jumpers. A moment later the pilot is heard asking his ground crew whether the storm is building or dissipating; they tell him it is growing rapidly. The balloon continues to ascend. Two more jumpers go out at 6,280 feet, now in cloud. On footage recorded by the camera of one of the last two jumpers, the pilot is seen gesturing impatiently; he seems to be telling them to go without further delay. That is the last we see of the pilot and the gondola. All of the jumpers reach the landing zone safely. One says to another, “It was choppy up there, huh?” “Yeah,” the other replies. “That was sick. In a storm.” “Sick” means “great” when you’ve gotten tired of saying “awesome.” According to the crew chief, while the balloon was still visible from the ground the pilot radioed that he would try to climb above the storm, whose size and power he clearly underestimated; its towering core was hidden from his view. After the balloon disappeared into the cloud base, the ground crew headed in the general direction that the storm was moving while receiving continuous updates from the pilot. Attempting to top the storm, the pilot reported from 8,000 feet that the winds were strong and swirling and “this [is] not going to be good.” At 12,000 feet he had given up hope of climbing over. He was in heavy hail and rising rapidly in an updraft. “He went from 15,000 to 17,000 much quicker,” the crew chief later reported, “than he had been calling out 1,000-foot increments.” Then the pilot’s voice altered. The balloon had collapsed and was falling now, and again and again, as he called out his altitude, he said, “I’ve got nothing over my head.” He did not release the transmit key. The crew chief listened helplessly to the litany of diminishing altitudes until at last the pilot said, “I am at 2,000 feet I see trees I’m
in the trees I am at 1,000 feet I am not gonna make it I’m sorry.” Desperately pursuing the balloon through torrents of rain and hail, the chase car crashed into a ditch. Four inches of hailstones the size of walnuts accumulated on the ground in two minutes. In the half-hour bracketing the accident, meteorological recording equipment tallied over 1,000 lighting strikes beneath the storm, which rapidly reached Level 5 or 6 intensity — severe to extreme — with tops at 37,000 feet. The storm then dissipated just as quickly. There is nothing in the video to suggest that the jumpers had any inkling that their fight would put the pilot at risk. The pilot, evidently reluctant to disappoint his excited passengers, kept
Then The piloT’s voice alTered. The balloon had collapsed and was falling. the knowledge of the danger to himself. The risk was all his. He did not deliberately sacrifce himself to save them; he optimistically and generously miscalculated the risk he was running in providing them with the jumps they had anticipated. The image of a single man in an open wicker basket at 17,000 feet in a thunderstorm is hard to get out of one’s mind. It is the quintessence of tragic solitude, like a sailor lost overboard in a raging sea or a space explorer marooned on a receding asteroid. No longer merely a man, he is a metaphor for our worst fears of defeat and abandonment. There is an epic grandeur in that, but still — poor guy! This article is based on the NTSB’s report of the accident and is intended to bring the issues raised to our readers’ attention. It is not intended to judge or to reach any defnitive conclusions about the ability or capacity of any person, living or dead, or any aircraft or accessory.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 3 0 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
ON THE RECORD
ThE FOLLOwING ARE ExCERpTs FROM NTsB REpORTs OF GENERAL AvIATION ACCIdENTs
F LY I N G s a f e ly
SAFE ®
SOCIETY OF AVIATION AND FLIGHT EDUCATORS
RAISING THE BAR IN AVIATION EDUCATION!
Resources Mentoring Insurance Benefits
www.safepilots.org
“We’re all about our members”
cessna t182
Ludlow, California/INJURIES: 1 Fatal After departing on a cross-country flight in night visual meteorological conditions, the pilot requested flight following from air traffic control. According to radar data, about 11 minutes after takeoff, the airplane leveled off at 14,800 feet mean sea level (msl). About 30 minutes later, when the airplane was still about 150 miles from its destination, air traffic controllers observed the airplane beginning to descend. When air traffic controllers subsequently questioned the pilot as to his intensions, the pilot’s responses were garbled and unintelligible. Radar data indicated that the airplane continued a meandering descent until it descended through about 11,000 feet msl and radar contact was lost. The airplane impacted terrain in a rightwing-low attitude, and the debris field extended about 830 feet. Postaccident examination revealed no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures that would have precluded normal operation. The investigation revealed that the pilot had flown for about 40 minutes at altitudes exceeding 12,500 feet msl, with much of that time spent at 14,600 feet msl. At these altitudes, without the use of supplemental oxygen, the pilot would have
become hypoxic (insufficient brain oxygen). Although the pilot’s wife indicated that he typically used supplemental oxygen when operating above 11,000 feet msl and supplemental oxygen was available to the pilot during the flight, postaccident investigation indicated that no cockpit oxygen ports were in use when the accident occurred. The degree of hypoxia experienced by the pilot would have severely degraded his performance. Both the garbled transmissions to air traffic controllers and the airplane’s meandering flight path are consistent with the pilot experiencing symptomatic hypoxia. As the airplane descended during the last few minutes of the flight, the pilot’s oxygen saturation would have slowly improved; however, the rate of descent was likely too rapid to allow the pilot to recover his vision and judgment in time to prevent the accident.
PROBaBLe caUse(s):
ThE IN-FLIGhT LOss OF CONTROL duE TO ThE pILOT’s IMpAIRMENT As A REsuLT OF hYpOxIA. CONTRIBuTING TO ThE ACCIdENT wAs ThE pILOT’s OpERATION OF ThE AIRpLANE ABOvE 12,500 FEET wIThOuT ThE AId OF suppLEMENTAL OxYGEN.
qUicksiLveR mxL ii
Ellenboro, North Carolina/INJURIES: 1 Fatal The pilot had just purchased the unregistered, uncertifcated, experimental, amateur-built airplane. He began taxiing it around the airport, and then taxied to Runway 14. Shortly thereafter he departed, making a hard left bank turn. He few between two airport hangars, struck a power line, and collided with the ground. The pilot’s wife stated that he had less than 1 hour of fight time in the accident airplane. Examination
of the wreckage did not reveal any preimpact mechanical malfunctions.
PROBaBLe caUse(s):
ThE pILOT’s FAILuRE TO MAINTAIN CONTROL OF ThE AIRpLANE duRING CLIMBOuT. CONTRIBuTING TO ThE ACCIdENT wAs ThE pILOT’s LACk OF ExpERIENCE IN ThE MAkE ANd MOdEL OF ThE AIRpLANE.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 3 2 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Rediscover the joy of flying.
Pro Line Fusion® from Rockwell Collins gives pilots a simplified, head-up and eyesforward flight experience. A rich, intuitive touch-screen interface – with graphical flight planning and customizable menus – makes managing each phase of flight as simple as using your personal device. The industry’s only compact head-up display ensures critical information is right in front of you. Making it easier to keep your focus outside – the way flying was meant to be.
rockwellcollins.com/prolinefusion © 2013 Rockwell Collins. All rights reserved.
Eyes-forward intuitive touch-screen interface Compact, head-up display Globally networked, mission-critical information through Ascend
I LEARNED ABOUT
FLYING
FROM THAT
F LY I N G S A F E LY | B Y R O B M I X O N | N O . 8 7 2
TAKE SOME HOME FOR MOM AN INFLIGHT EMERGENCY TRIGGERS THE NEED FOR SKILLS LEARNED LONG AGO Burr’s Berry Farm is well known for its famous strawberry milkshakes. Tourists and locals line up around the small berry stand where Mrs. Burr keeps the tradition of the farm alive. In back of the stand are rows of hydroponically grown strawberry plants elevated so that customers can pick their own strawberries without even having to bend over. The elevated hydroponic plants are at the south end of what was once a north/south grass runway. The sounds of radial engine biplanes and gentle Cubs, Chiefs and Champs that once lived on Burr’s Berry Farm are no more. Homes now surround the farm where aviation once thrived in South Florida near Homestead and the Florida Keys. One of the two grass runways at Burr’s ran east and west, with the other running north and south. The east runway approach was over tall pine trees, with telephone poles on the opposite end of the runway. From our home a few blocks away, I would watch as the bright colors of yellow and blue silhouetted the shapes of Cubs and Stearmans on
their final approach to Burr’s. They would approach the short grass runway, go into a sideslip and then disappear behind the tall pines. It was no secret that I took every chance I had to hang around the open wooden hangar at Burr’s or by the runway watching wings take flight into the sky as if by magic. Charlie Burr was a gentle man and a great role model for a 16-year-old who marveled at the old airplanes that always surrounded him. One of those airplanes was the yellow J-3 Cub he kept on his farm. I would watch and listen as fellow crop-duster and pilot friend Randy Brown would stand next to his Stearman and talk about “when pilots were pilots and their planes were glad.” Although not a certified flight instructor, Mr. Burr often took me up in the J-3. One day, we were flying his Cub out of his small grass airstrip. I was in the back seat, “where the pilot sits.” We were flying over the green and brown farm fields in a blue Florida sky with detached, puffy cumulus clouds. Mr. Burr turned F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 3 4 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
FLYING READERS SHARE LASTING LESSONS FROM CLOSE CALLS AND NEAR DISASTERS
I L E A R N E D A B O U T F LY I N G F R O M T H A T | F LY I N G S A F E LY
around in the front seat of the Cub to look at me. “Do you like tomatoes?” he shouted above the sound of the engine and wind coming in from the Cub’s open fold-down door. As much as a 16-year-old cares about tomatoes, I shouted back, “Sure!” I felt the signal — we did not have an intercom — of the control stick wiggling from side to side, indicating that he had the controls. Power was reduced to idle, and a gentle descending turn had us lined up with two dirt tractor tracks as red tomatoes on green vines flashed by the open Cub door. There we sat in the middle of a tomato field with the little 65 hp
TO SEE MORE OF BARRY ROSS’ AVIATION ART, GO TO BARRYROSSART.COM.
Continental gently clicking over at idle. Mr. Burr smiled as he turned to look at me, “This is my friend’s field. Get out and get a few for your mom.” With tomatoes stored in the Cub’s baggage compartment, the wind once again rushed through the open door as the Cub’s tail gently lifted and the airplane elegantly, but slowly, rose into the air. Below, the field once again retreated into a carpet of dark green as our environment of farm fields was exchanged for clear South Florida sky. Mr. Burr was still flying the airplane as we leveled off at 1,500 feet, arriving overhead of “Burr’s International,” as we called the narrow, short farm airstrip. “Ever fly a glider?” came the question from the front seat. “Nope.” “Do you want to?” “Sure.” Mr. Burr reached over and turned the magneto switch from both to off. The nose of the Cub came up until the relative wind stopped wind-milling the propeller. It all seemed surreal as we hung in the air in total silence. Then came a surprise. “Your airplane!” he called out just above the whisper of air rushing outside. I took the controls and did exactly as he instructed. “Keep your approach high until you are sure you can make the field,” he said. “Once over the pine trees at the end of the strip, put her into a sideslip to lose altitude and control your speed to landing.” I followed his instructions, and we made a dead-stick landing. Years after that, I was flying with a student out of Richards Field, still in South Florida, in my Citabria. After the flight, we walked
into the hangar where I kept my red Pitts Special with its standard white Pitts stripe down the side. The singleplace Pitts was equipped with 150 hp. My student said he had never seen a Pitts fly. That was all of the encouragement I needed. Opening the fuel cap during preflight in the dim hangar light, I rocked the airplane to visually check the fuel for my short 15 minutes of fame and aerobatic flight. The small plastic sight gauge for fuel showed that it was full as it curved back into the bottom of the tank. I pushed the Pitts out of the hangar, and soon the roar of the
field. Richard’s Field was absolutely and definitely out of range. A steep half circle had me lined up into the wind, high between the small rows of tomato plants that were just showing above the ground. A voice from my past told me to keep the approach high until I was sure I could reach the field. Then a slip would dissipate altitude and control airspeed. As the small plants passed by during the landing flare, I reached up and slid the Pitt’s canopy open. Again, a voice seemed to come from nowhere, saying, “Take some home for your mom.” There was no damage.
SUDDENLY, THE ROAR OF THE 150 HORSEPOWER TURNED INTO DEAD SILENCE. engine shot the airplane into an almost vertical climb. Leveling off at 3,000 feet the aerobatics began — the sequence of a loop, roll, Cuban eight and vertical reverse to head back for landing. Suddenly, the roar of the 150 hp turned into dead silence, leaving me with only the whisper of the wind. I rocked the wings, suspecting a fuel problem. There was a short burst of power as the remaining fuel in the tanks made it to the engine. Then, once again, only the silence of the wind. The Pitts Special is a wonderful airplane capable of many things, but with biplane wings, bracing wires and small lifting surfaces, gliding is not one of them! Looking below from 1,000 feet, I saw a smooth
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 3 5 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
My student had seen me go down and was running across the field to meet me. We put the tail of the Pitts in the bed of my truck and sheepishly towed it out of the field, down the street and to Richard’s Field’s gas pump. Charlie Burr’s lessons of a dead-stick, high approach and slip to landing were good lessons indeed. The lesson relearned was never to rely on fuel gauges or even sight looking into the tank. Always use a fuel dipstick, even for a 15-minute flight! Perhaps there is another lesson to be learned from my experience. That lesson, taught by Charlie Burr, is to take care in how you affect the lives of others so that what you have taught will live on from generation to generation.
dueLing duo In an entertaining coordinated show, Melissa Pemberton few her Edge 540 and Skip Stewart his highly modifed Pitts biplane, seemingly attempting a duel for the spectators.
Airventure OshkOsh
BY PiA BerGQvist / PhOtOGrAPhY BY JiM kOePniCk
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 3 6 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
2013
Despite FAA fees threatening to cancel the show and sequestration eliminating popular military acts, the EAA pulled off a quality show. Here’s a look at what AirVenture Oshkosh 2013 had to offer hundreds of thousands of aviation enthusiasts.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 3 7 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Airventure
OshkOsh
2013
aerosheLL aeroBatic teaM A four-ship formation display of North American AT-6 Texans, the AeroShell Aerobatic Team has performed for more than a quarter century at AirVenture. From early morning promotion fights to its terrifc day and night airshows, the team is hard to miss with its gaggle of noisy Pratt & Whitney radial engines. But that is a good thing, because with their tight, beautiful formation patterns, the red-and-white, smoke-trailing airplanes are well worth watching.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 3 8 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
strong attendance Outside the vendor displays and airshow performer airplanes, the grounds at AirVenture were flled with privately owned airplanes small and large, new and old, rare and commonplace. The show itself had 2,341 homebuilt, vintage, warbird, ultralight, seaplane, aerobatic and other aircraft on display. EAA estimates that more than 500,000 people attended the show, many of whom camped with their airplanes, and more than 10,000 airplanes descended on Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and the surrounding area during the week.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 3 9 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Airventure
OshkOsh
2013
warBirds gaLore Many warbird owners took the opportunity to show off their prized possessions at the AirVenture show grounds. They were generally grouped according to type, making for an impressive display. These teeth-baring Curtiss P-40 Warhawks created an intimidating line for spectators walking by. F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 4 0 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
tora! tora! tora! Rich’s Incredible Pyro provided the massive walls of fre and explosions that rocked the showgrounds far beyond the fight line during the Tora! Tora! Tora! re-enactment of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Those brave enough to stand along the show center got a close look at the airplanes provided for the show by the Commemorative Air Force.
Yves “JetMan” rossY The biggest buzz for this year’s edition of AirVenture surrounded Yves Rossy, also known as Jetman, the Swiss daredevil, skydiver and pilot who has achieved personal fight with a jet-powered miniwing that he straps on, fies and even performs aerobatic maneuvers with.
DaviD Martin In his Breitling-branded CAP 232, David Martin completed seemingly impossible aerobatic maneuvers, tumbling his airplane nose over tail and ending in a perfect inverted line. F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 4 1 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Airventure
OshkOsh
2013
gene soucY and teresa stokes Gene Soucy performed aerobatic maneuvers with wing walker Teresa Stokes strapped to the top of Showcat. Gene Soucy claims his Grumman biplane is the frst agricultural airplane to be used in the show environment. F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 4 2 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
night airshow This year is just the third year that AirVenture offered a night airshow, but the event has become so popular that the EAA decided to offer a second show. In addition to a spectacular freworks display, the shows offered formation aerobatics by the AeroShell team and the Aerostars, a wild freworks extravaganza from Otto the Helicopter and a graceful performance by Bob Carlton fying his jet-powered sailplane.
sean tucker Once again, Sean Tucker provided an amazing show, partially narrated by himself while doing high-G maneuvers in the bright red Oraclebranded biplane. Tucker now hopes to pass on his enthusiasm to the next generation as the new Young Eagles chairman. F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 4 3 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 4 4 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Diesel
Revo lution Get ready, america. diesels are cominG. by stephen pope
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 4 5 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
cessna is betting big on a four-cylinder engine from sma for the new 182 jt-a, pictured here and on the previous pages.
They no longer spew toxic soot or rattle at idle like a coffee can full of marbles. They also deliver impressive power, and as experience is gained with these newer technology engines, we’re seeing time between overhalls (TBOs) stretch to 1,500 or 2,000 hours and beyond. Eventually, TBOs for diesels could be longer than gasoline engines.
An image Problem
they’re more efficient, run on cheaper fuel, and the epa isn’t threateninG to
reGulate them out of existence. With so much GoinG for them, are Jet fuel-burninG diesels ready to take over? What pilots in Europe, Africa, South America and Asia already know about aviation diesels — or, to use the more technically precise term, compression-ignition engines — we’re slowly learning for ourselves here in America. And the more we learn, the more we’re starting to think we could get used to the smell of jet fuel powering our piston airplanes. As you may know, diesels offer some compelling economic advantages over gasoline engines. An important one is better specifc fuel consumption — the measure of power output for each pound of fuel consumed. Another beneft of diesels, which run perfectly well on jet-A, centers on the rising price and uncertain future of avgas. In some
parts of the world, 100 low lead can cost more than $20 a gallon — if it’s even available. Here in America, the Environmental Protection Agency has set a goal of outlawing leaded aviation gasoline before the decade is out. The FAA is preparing for tests of replacement fuels, but what it will cost to fll up our tanks is a big unknown. “More than today” is our best guess. So has the aero diesel’s time fnally arrived? Outside North America, turbocharged diesel aircraft engines are in high demand, and that trend will only accelerate. Here in the United States, there is a growing fascination with diesels, but it’s too soon to say we’ve embraced them as the answer to our woes. After all, diesels are heavier, they usually
require liquid cooling, they’re often limited by certifcation in how high they can operate, and they cost more to build. The success of diesels in America, if it happens, will be rooted in the cost-beneft analysis — and right now the math doesn’t favor diesels over a good-old Lycoming or Continental piston gasoline engine. But that could change in a hurry depending on what happens with avgas. One thing is certain: The days of 100LL aviation gasoline powering the general aviation feet are numbered. Maybe that’s OK. If you’ve been following diesel developments lately, you know today’s diesel-cycle engines are really nothing like the dirty and noisy ones many of us remember from diesel cars of the 1970s and 1980s.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 4 6 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Still, no matter how good the technology becomes, diesels won’t supplant gasoline engines in America anytime soon. One reason is the sheer number of gasoline piston engines out there, fying in everything from aging Cessna 150s to brand new Cirrus SR22s — around 225,000 of them in all. Another is the continuing dominance of gasoline engines in nearly every production piston single and twin sold today. And many smaller general aviation airports throughout the United States sell only 100LL avgas, limiting where you can fy a jet-A-burning airplane. Also, because they lack an ignition source to keep their fres lit, diesels are restricted in how high they can fy, even with twin turbochargers and hot glow plugs — although this too could be a temporary issue that goes away as diesel experience is gained. The latest Diamond DA42-VI with its twin Austro diesels and supplemental oxygen is a prime example. It has a service ceiling of just 18,000 feet — which also happens to be the singleengine ceiling for the
airplane. Diamond says it has flown the DA42’s Mercedes-Benz-produced Austro engine to 30,000 feet without ill effect, but for now they are limited by certifcation from venturing into the rarefed air of the fight levels. Diesels can be prone to faming out at high altitude where the air is less dense — if it’s cold enough and the air is thin enough, a successful restart could be in doubt. Diamond Aircraft is staking its future on diesel technology. After the messy insolvency of Thielert a few years back, Diamond decided to create Austro Engine GmbH, its own company in Germany that buys small and effcient Mercedes A-class diesel engines, pulls off the automotive parts that aren’t needed, bolts on the aviation parts that are and installs them in brand new DA40 and DA42 models built at the Diamond factory in Austria. Diamond’s North American production facility in London, Ontario, is still turning out a fair number of DA40s, but they’re all built with Lycoming gasoline engines. As of this writing, there’s just one diesel-powered DA40NG in the United States. Diamond’s Austrian owners aren’t convinced we’re ready for diesel singles. Diesel twins are another matter. The latest DA42-VI with twin Austros is being promoted heavily here. Still, Thielert’s troubles probably set the diesel movement back by at least a decade in America. Company founder Frank Thielert is now in jail awaiting trial on fraud charges and could face many years behind bars after being accused of misrepresenting the value of the bankrupt company and its fnancial position. The problems started when Thielert ran low on cash and stopped honoring warranties for engines installed in Diamond DA42s while jacking
up parts prices. Making matters worse was a recurring 300-hour gearbox inspection requirement. Cessna had just announced a new version of the Skyhawk to be certifed with the Thielert engine when the company entered insolvency and the business unraveled. Diamond’s reputation also took a hit as customers blamed it for the Thielert debacle. But the Thielert story, as bad as it was, looks as though it might have a happy ending after all. The company was successfully restructured in 2009 and renamed Centurion Aircraft Engines. Its frst goal was to lower its parts prices and improve customer support, which it did — and which led to growing profts. The resurrection of the company and predicted demand for diesels in Asia prompted China’s AVIC to buy the Centurion line a few months ago and roll it into its Alabama-based Continental Motors subsidiary (which has been developing a diesel, the TD-300, as well) under the name Technify Motors. The plan, according to insiders, is to brand gasoline engines under the Continental name and diesels under Technify. The 135 hp Centurion is the heart and soul of RedHawk from Redbird Flight Simulations, an intriguing airplane based on a plan to develop remanufactured Cessna Skyhawks for the fight-training market (see the story on page 49).
Growing Competition The shakeout in the aero diesel market has created some sorely needed competition that should drive innovation and beneft consumers. The Austro AE300 has been receiving rave reviews as a car engine that has made the successful leap to aviation. It is approved to use a variety of fuels including jet-A, jet-A-1 and even straight diesel fuel.
BECAusE ThEY’RE usuALLY LIquId-COOLEd, dIEsELs LIkE ThIs ONE IN A dIAMONd dA40 INCORpORATE uNusuAL GEOMETRY uNdER ThE COwLING TO FIT ExTRA COMpONENTs.
ThIs Is ACTuALLY A dIEsEL ENGINE FROM A MERCEdEs-BENz A-CLAss ECONOMY CAR. dIAMONd’s AusTRO ENGINE IN GERMANY MOdIFIEs IT FOR duTY IN ThE dA42 TwINsTAR.
ONE dIEsEL dANGER CENTERs ON ENsuRING ThE RIGhT FuEL GOEs INTO ThE TANks. A hANdFuL OF MIsFuELING INCIdENTs hAvE OCCuRREd wITh dEAdLY CONsEquENCEs.
Of course, when it’s cold, diesel fuel can turn to Jell-O. Without a fuel preheater or recirculation system, that could pose problems at extremely low temperatures. If you’re going to be fying where it’s really cold with an aero diesel, it’s probably best to go with jet-A mixed with
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 4 7 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Prist anti-ice additive — as long as it’s approved for use in your engine. In the AE300, it is. Besides Austro Engine and Continental/Technify, there are three other noteworthy players in the aviation diesel market. They are SMA, a division of France’s Safran that
WISCONSIN STARTUP ENGINEERED PROPULSION SYSTEMS IS TESTING A PROTOTYPE 350 HP, EIGHT-CYLINDER DIESEL ENGINE.
has partnered with Lycoming to bring diesel power to the latest Cessna 182 JT-A; Engineered Propulsion Systems, a Wisconsin startup that has begun testing a prototype 4.4-liter diesel with a target output of 350 hp; and DeltaHawk, another Wisconsin company that has developed a two-stroke, 200 hp diesel with firewall-forward kits available for a variety of homebuilt models including
the Van’s RV-7 and RV-10. One of the key features all of the engines from these manufacturers have in common is single-lever power control. At AirVenture Oshkosh, I had the chance to check out a newly delivered DA42-VI with Diamond distributor John Armstrong and the airplane’s new owner, Dave Passmore. As they explained, flying the latest generation DA42 is a simple affair thanks to its
full-authority digital-controlled diesels and singlepower levers, reminiscent of the condition levers in a jet. The start-up procedure couldn’t be easier: Hop in, flip the master, wait for the glow plug indicator to illuminate and turn the key. In flight, there are no mixture or prop controls and no need to adjust throttle or RPM settings. Simply select economy or highspeed settings and let the
TECHNOLOGY SHOWDOWN: DIESEL VS. GASOLINE 1. Because they lack an ignition source
2. Diesels must use high-pressure fuel
5. It takes less refining to produce jet
(i.e. magnetos and spark plugs), diesels incorporate glow plugs for cold starting. Heat from compressed air ignites the fuel-air mixture.
injector nozzles to pump fuel directly into the cylinders. The injector has to be able to withstand the temperature and pressure inside the cylinder and still deliver the fuel in a fine mist.
fuel compared with gasoline. That’s one reason jet-A costs less than avgas.
1
3. Diesels deliver slightly less horsepower than gasoline engines of the same displacement but three to four times the torque.
3
2
4 8
5 6 7
6. Because diesels have higher compression ratios that require heavier casting, they weigh more than gasoline engines.
7. Diesel fuel has a higher energy density
4. Diesels emit less carbon monoxide,
than gasoline. This, combined with improved efficiency, explains why diesels are more economical.
hydrocarbons and carbon dioxide, emissions that lead to global warming.
8. Biodiesel use is increasing in the United States and could be a viable future fuel for aviation.
computers do the rest as they maintain all engine parameters automatically. When Diamond founder Christian Dries created the DA42, he promised to deliver a 200-knot airplane — and he failed. The original Lycoming-powered DA42 cruises at about 162 knots. Thanks to the 168 hp Austro diesels and a number of aerodynamic improvements in the latest VI version, the max cruise speed is right around 190 knots. That’s still short of the original target, but it will get you to your destination surprisingly fast while burning surprisingly little fuel. Even with the power levers shoved forward for high-speed cruise, fuel burn is an economical 18 gallons per hour total.
Power Struggle So far, the choices for aero diesels are limited to engines producing less than 200 hp. But that’s about to change. Engineered Propulsion Systems of New Richmond, Wisconsin, is developing the Vision 350, a liquid-cooled diesel that will be compatible with a number of highperformance light GA airframes and will deliver 350 hp. The eight-cylinder flat-V engine weighs about 50 pounds more than a conventional gas-piston six-cylinder engine, such as the TSIO-550, but will provide far better specific fuel consumption, the company says. The design is EPS’s own, but is based on German automotive diesels. At 65 percent power, the Vision 350 will burn around 11 gph, according to EPS. The company has been performing ground runs of the engine since November 2011 and says it’s now ready to move on to its second prototype as it prepares to enter production. Perhaps the biggest question mark at this point is funding for the project,
although interest from investors is said to be high. If EPS can keep the 350 hp market to itself, it could be a runaway success. Of course, that will be tough. Technify and SMA Safran have already started discussing plans for larger engines. SMA is developing the 330 hp SRA460. For now, its lone product is the four-cylinder air-cooled SR305-230, a 227 hp version of which powers Cessna’s new 182 JT-A single. Designed to run on jet-A or jet-A-1 fuel but not straight diesel, the engine burns about 10 gallons an hour and has a certifed ceiling of 20,000 feet. Best of all, the SMA engine’s TBO is 2,400 hours, better than many gasoline engines. Eventually, SMA plans to expand into the 400 hp market, the company says. Technify, meanwhile, is working on a 350 hp, 4.0-liter turbodiesel. SMA, Technify and EPS likely will face plenty of com-
petition in the upper-market echelon if U.S. pilots ever fully embrace diesel-cycle engines. When Cessna introduced the 182 JT-A at Oshkosh in July 2012, markets outside North America fgured to account for the bulk of orders. Instead, Cessna now says the majority of 182 JT-A buyers are from the United States. Continental was so convinced that diesels have a place in its future that it rushed its TD-300 engine into the limelight by licensing technology from SMA. The question then becomes whether today’s diesel euphoria will lead to hangovers tomorrow as over-competition takes a toll on producers. Diesel makers will also need to rehab the market’s image to convince customers to trust in the technology, all while providing top-notch customer support and solving problems, such as low TBOs for some engines and maintenance headaches like 300- or
ReDhAwk We fly the neW diesel redhaWk from redbird fliGht simulations, a refurbished 172 equipped With a 135 hp centurion enGine. by robert Goyer
600-hour gearbox inspections. Still, there are so many benefts to modern diesel engines that it seems only a matter of time before America decides the time has come to replace
airports no matter how high the price of avgas climbs. As jet fuel-burning diesels start appearing on the ramps beside airplanes that run on avgas, it will give us choices in
All of the mAkeRs of AeRo Diesel enGines CAn Point to GReAtly imPRoveD fuel eConomy. our avgas-burning engines with something different. When we do, of course, we’ll want to make sure the placard on the wing that reads “Jet Fuel Only” is big enough for even the most farsighted FBO lineman to clearly see — and even then, we’ll probably want to stand close by to verify the correct fuel goes into the tanks. Still, gasoline engines aren’t going to disappear from U.S.
what we can fy. Of course, the pilot of the jet-A sipping airplane will know the truth: He can fy a lot farther on the same amount of fuel or, if he chooses, fy the same trip carrying less fuel while bringing aboard more passengers and payload. Once you start crunching the numbers this way, diesels start looking more and more like the smart choice for the future.
It’s been almost 20 years now that diesel technology has been a promising alternative for light general aviation, though the adoption of compression engines has taken longer and has suffered more teething pains than its proponents anticipated. I’ve had the chance to fy fve different airplanes with four different diesel engines — the original Thielert, the Centurion 2.0, the Austro AE300 and the SMA SR305 — and my experience in every case was good, if not ideal. Somewhat surprisingly, Redbird Flight Simulations has introduced a new dieselengine airplane refurbishment project it calls the RedHawk, based on an existing Cessna Skyhawk. We few the new airplane last week to see how well the concept works in the real world. Like Agent Mulder
in The X Files with his belief in alien life, we want to believe in diesels, but can we? As you likely know, Redbird has made a name for itself with its lineup of simulators, from high-quality desktop game-level models to fullmotion certifed training devices. It’s also a mover and shaker, no pun intended, in the fight-training game. At its Skyport FBO/laboratory in San Marcos, Texas, Redbird not only trains a lot of pilots, it also keeps track of every bit of data it can during the learning process, such as how long it takes each of its customers (not “students,” mind you) to reach every one of his or her milestones. The fight school opened for business just over 18 months ago, starting out with a feet of four brand new Cessna
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 4 9 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Skyhawks. Redbird founder and chairman Jerry Gregoire told me that he loves Skyhawks as training platforms, even though they’re pricey. Though the standard gas piston Skyhawk is no gas guzzler — burning well under 10 gph for most training missions — the higher fuel costs go, the bigger possibility there is of an improvement, especially on airplanes that might fly 100 hours per month. Skyport’s Skyhawks also suffered from nagging maintenance problems with their Lycoming engines. So Gregoire and his team at Redbird set out to see if they could reduce the impact of all three areas — purchase price, maintenance and fuel costs — not by finding a new airplane to rival the Skyhawk but by building an airplane of their own. The result is the RedHawk, a refurbished Skyhawk that features a 135 hp Centurion engine. The RedHawk I flew was a 2002 S-model, which is one of the new-production Skyhawks built in Independence, Kansas, after Cessna’s decade-long hiatus from the piston airplane game. When Redbird bought its S-model
reworking of a Mercedes automotive turbo-diesel with an aviation gearbox turning a three-blade composite prop, is a thing of beauty. Featuring single-lever power, advanced computerized engine control and turbocharging (which gives it excellent performance up into the low teens), the engine is in theory a godsend for GA. It’s hard to understate the advantages of jet-A, a fuel that
172 to rebuild, the airplane had steam gauges and a pair of Garmin GNS 430 navigators. The airplane was not in particularly bad shape, which meant it would be a good subject on which Redbird could cut its teeth. When it comes time to produce RedHawks for retail customers, however, Redbird won’t use later production Skyhawks but instead mid ’80s airplanes originally built by Cessna just before the hiatus. While I’m writing in terms of “producing” RedHawks, Redbird won’t actually be manufacturing the airplanes in any regulatory sense. It will, instead, extensively overhaul the original, stripping, corrosion-proofing, and adding a paint job and new interior. Everything will be done via STC, meaning the cost of getting into the RedHawk project will be workable, Gregoire says. Redbird hopes the end result will be an airplane that costs less to buy — the company is shooting for at least $100,000 less than a new Skyhawk, which goes for around $340,000 — while costing less to operate and maintain. The RedHawk’s engine, a
I GOT THE SUDDEN REALIZATION THAT THIS WASN’T ANY OLD SKYHAWK BUT SOMETHING DIFFERENT. costs about a buck a gallon less than 100LL. More importantly, the diesel burns very little fuel compared to a gas-piston engine, so the savings are compounded. On my test flight with Redbird’s FBO head Roger Sharp, we were seeing anywhere from around 2.5 gph at a reduced power setting to around 7.5 gph at 100 percent power. Speeds are typical of a Skyhawk or slightly better
1. On the proof-of-concept RedHawk, the team went with Aspen Evolution displays. Easy to install and competitively priced, they give students the flat-panel experience at a reasonable cost.
down low. As you climb, they get a lot better. We were seeing almost 130 knots true at 4,500 feet at 7.5 gph. The RedHawk will likely cut fuel consumption by around a third while adding in the lower-cost of jet-A compared to 100LL. Operators of the Centurion 2.0 rave about the fuel efficiency, while also railing against the engine’s maintenance issues, most notably the need to replace
1 3
2
the gearbox clutch plate with an overhauled unit every 300 hours or less. The plan these days is for Continental and its network of U.S.-based service centers to oversee maintenance of the engine, something that was done in Germany. The gearboxes, according to reports we’ve heard, will still need to be overhauled in Germany, though schools can stock
4. The power quadrant actually consists of the proverbial single lever. Response is smooth and linear, giving students a turbinelike experience in an entrylevel single.
2. A pair of Garmin GNS 430
5. The start sequence is very
navigators serve as the dual FMS units. Redbird is evaluating other options for the panel for customertargeted airplanes.
different from a gas-piston airplane. After start, which is accomplished with the flick of a switch, you test the two engine-control units by shutting them off and turning them back on alternately.
3. Steam gauges stay in to serve as required backups to the flat panels. Redbird is looking at digital standby options too.
5 6 4
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 5 0 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
6. While the power is all new, the Skyhawk remains an ideal training airplane, giving students a solid, dependable, safe and easy-to-fly platform.
FROM TOp: The RedHawk’s single power lever brings new levels of simplicity to student pilots just getting into the game. New synthetic material makes for seats that provide both comfort and utilitarian durability to ensure they will make it through rigorous years of training to come. The RedHawk’s three-blade constant-speed composite MT propeller is more vibration-resistant than the metal props on the original Cessna Skyhawks.
spare parts to cut the airplane’s downtime to a couple of days. Continental’s hope, Gregoire says, is for the TBO on the gearbox to eventually go up to 2,400 hours, an interval that will make the Thielert, unknown issues aside, a lot less expensive to operate than a Lycoming. Continental has already announced it is seeking to increase the frst inspection interval to 600 hours from the current 300. Another disadvantage is that the Thielert produces less power than the Lycoming — 135 hp compared to 160 hp for the vintage Skyhawks Redbird will be refurbishing. I few out of San Marcos with Sharp recently in the proof-of-concept bird. Starting the Centurion engine was beyond easy. Push a button, let it crank over — a couple of turns is all it seems to take — and then monitor the gauges — green is good. After that, you push and hold a test button that checks the health of the engine-control units, which are redundant computers that set all the parameters for you, except percentage of power, which you do with a single lever. In terms of engine operations, it’s a piece of cake, meaning student pilots will have one less thing to worry about while learning to fy the airplane. The airplane itself is more utilitarian than a newproduction Skyhawk, with its leather seats and big displays; Gregoire says the RedHawk will be intended specifcally for training. The seats and upholstery were all redone in nice but durable synthetic material. The overall effect was very impressive. It was hot out — at least 100 degrees on the ramp — and with full fuel, Sharp and myself on board, I wasn’t expecting a rocket ship. The RedHawk surprised me though with if not comparable then at least very
representative performance on a lot less horsepower. The avionics in the proofof-concept airplane were nice: dual GNS 430Ws with dual Aspen displays, the Evolution PFD and MFD. The panel also included a number of upgrades including the switches and controls necessary for the diesel operation. Gregoire tells me that his folks are evaluating a number of different avionics options still, and he, like many others in the manufacturing game, is intrigued by the possibilities of the new Part 23 regulations. Once out to Runway 13 at San Marcos Municipal, we got our takeoff clearance from the tower controller and rolled. When I advanced the power, I got the sudden realization that this wasn’t any old Skyhawk but something different. The sound, the feel of the engine — it’s smooth and quiet — and the quick acceleration all feel distinctly different from the venerable gas piston 172. Yes, I’m a fan. Still, the takeoff roll in the RedHawk was about what I’d expect from any Skyhawk on a hot day with two guys on board and full tanks. One thing I really liked about the RedHawk was the sound of the engine or the lack thereof. Several folks watching our departure from the ground said they couldn’t hear the airplane go out. We could hear the engine, but just barely above the wind noise of fying it. It’s a much quieter engine than the Lycoming, no doubt about it. At 2,000 feet, we were seeing around 120 knots at 100 percent power and 7 gph; bringing back the power to just over 5 gph saw a drop in true airspeed of about 12 knots. At 4,500 feet, as I said previously, we were getting nearly 130 knots at around 7.5 gph, a fgure Sharp later told me is good all the way up
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 5 1 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
to 9,000 feet, something that would not be the case in a conventional, normally aspirated Skyhawk. In the pattern, the RedHawk was great. Engine control is smooth and very precisely responsive, almost like a jet but without the spool-up time. It felt as though I needed to carry a little extra power on fnal, compared to the Lycpowered bird, but Sharp thought it was roughly comparable. My sense of more thrust required could be a function of the constant speed prop. After a touch-and-go, we climbed in a right-hand pattern to do a full-stop landing. The performance of the RedHawk was clearly affected by the heat and our relatively heavy weight. Still, climb performance seemed a little less than that of a 160 hp Skyhawk. Redbird plans to start manufacturing RedHawks at a new factory on the San Marcos airport, which is scheduled for completion by the second quarter of 2014. It will build the frst four Aspen-equipped RedHawks for use in its own school. After that, it will sell them to fight schools, though Gregoire says his company hasn’t yet determined a fnal price or equipment list. As with everything else Redbird does, the RedHawk is a learning experience. The fnal product will beneft from what it learns along the way, Gregoire says. As it is, the RedHawk is a satisfying product. There are questions about the operating costs associated with the former Thielert engines, but once they get straightened out, as Gregoire expects to happen over the next couple of years, the cost of operation of these airplanes could make the RedHawk an attractive alternative for fight schools looking to give students a combination of a proven airframe and an advanced engine.
ďƒť
B Y G E R I S I LV E I R A
WRECK huNTERs U N C o v E R i N G TH E H i STo RY o F U N LU C KY Av i ATo R S THE WRECKAGE oF LoST AiRCRAFT TELL THEIR OWN STORIES.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 5 2 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Climbing over large boulders blocking the mouth of a narrow, sandy canyon near Joshua Tree, California, I stopped to catch my breath. Somewhere on the steep, rock-strewn hills just ahead, the remains of a TA-4F Skyhawk lay undisturbed. At 3:07 p.m. on Oct. 23, 1969, the ill-fated jet on a training fight originating in Yuma, Arizona, spun in from 31,000 feet, exploding on impact. The 29-year-old pilot bailed out successfully and
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 5 3 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
hiked down this very canyon seeking assistance. His 24-year-old copilot wasn’t so lucky. His ejection seat malfunctioned, and he perished. No one had visited this crash site since its cleanup shortly after the crash. If our group could locate the site, we would be uncovering a story that had remained untold for 44 years.
THE HUNTERS AND THE HUNTED Ryan Gilmore is the leader of our group of seven. Ryan is a wreck hunter. Wreck hunters are also known as wreck fnders, aviation archeologists or aviation accident historians. Although popular in some circles, the name “wreck chaser” is considered a pejorative, sounding a bit too much like ambulance chaser. A few of the hunters are pilots, but many are not. Some specialize in a certain era, such as World War II or the Cold War, and only a small number have any formal archeological training. The wreck hunter’s mission is to fnd, document and preserve crash sites. They’re also interested in discovering and recounting the stories of the star-crossed pilots, their crews and passengers — those who perished and the lucky ones who survived. Wreck hunting is a worldwide avocation that started in post-World War II Europe with interest spreading to the United States in the 1960s and 1970s. With thousands of military and civilian crash reports on the books in the United States alone, wreck hunters won’t soon run out of sites. Just for the record, wreck hunting is not generally considered to include the recovery and restoration of vintage aircraft. To date, Ryan has 190 wrecks to his credit. He hopes that the Skyhawk will be number 191. Ryan, who has a degree in archeology and works as a consulting
biologist, started wreck hunting in high school. “I liked hiking, and I liked planes,” he says. When he was 16, Ryan hiked towering Mount Baldy in the San Gabriel Mountains of Southern California and found one wreck there. “I went back soon after and found another one, but I didn’t start seriously hunting until about fve or six years ago,” he says. Joining Ryan in the search are G. Pat Macha, a retired high school teacher and wellknown wreck hunter; his son and elementary school teacher Patric J. Macha; pilot Chris LeFave; retired park ranger Tom Maloney; myself; and one other searcher. Just three of us are pilots. All group members are based in Southern California, and all are experienced wreck hunters, except me — this is my frst search. A meticulous researcher, Ryan obtained the military crash report and the local sheriff’s report for the Skyhawk. By matching crash site photos with terrain and other data contained in the reports, he found the probable location of the aircraft, and he’s sure we are nearing it. After climbing over the boulders, we fan out over the terrain keeping our eyes out
“As A pILOT, I REspECT ThEsE GuYs. EspECIALLY ThE WORLd WAR II pILOTs ON TRAINING MIssIONs WhO FLEW FOR A GREAT CAusE BuT NEvER GOT ThE GLORY.” — ChRIs LEFAvE F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 5 4 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
lead wreck hunter ryan GIlMOre takes a phOtOGraph Of a pIece Of the ta-4f skyhawk fOund near the bOttOM Of the rOcky wash. nO artIfacts are ever taken frOM the sIte.
for anything that doesn’t seem to belong there. If Ryan is right about the location, we could expect to fnd small pieces of aluminum, possibly recognizable parts, fragments of personal items and maybe even larger parts that have washed down the hills or were left behind by the Marine Corps recovery team. A couple of us continue up the dry, rocky wash to climb a hill where you might expect debris, while others search the canyon walls toward the mouth of the wash. Alas, we fnd nothing.
KNoW BEFoRE YoU Go
after lOcatInG the cOckpIt IMpact area, pIlOt and wreck hunter chrIs lefave dIGs dOwn a few Inches IntO the dIrt and fInds a part Of the cOpIlOt’s watch. he cOMpares It wIth hIs Own.
chrIs fInds a larGe sectIOn Of the skyhawk’s 20-MIllIMeter cannOn. sInce nO One has vIsIted the sIte sInce 1969, there are nuMerOus pIeces Of the jet In the area.
Before lacing up your hiking shoes, Ryan suggests you get detailed information. “More than 90 percent of the job is research,” he says. “That means getting the crash report, a police or sheriff’s report, and sometimes, these documents aren’t worthwhile at all as far as locating the wreck. You can also look up newspaper articles, talk to people and consult books like Pat’s.” Ryan is talking about G. Pat Macha, search team member and the author of three books on aircraft wrecks. Fascinating reading for armchair wreck hunters, his books are often used as sources to fnd the locations of downed airplanes in Southern California. If you’re in another part of the country, you’ll fnd many other books and websites that describe crash locations. Pat has been an aviation accident historian — his preferred nomenclature — for more than 50 years, with the bulk of his about 1,000 fnds located in the mountains and deserts of Southern California. “My goal is to document every crash site on my list in California, including the Channel Islands,” he says. “I’m at about 80 percent now.” Since he retired from
his job as a high school teacher 10 years ago, Pat has been at it full time. A large map with pushpins showing the locations of wrecks he has found and other wrecks he hopes to fnd dominates his garage-based home offce. The map should be particularly interesting to pilots, since numerous crashes are near the tops of mountains and in mountain passes — telling the sad stories of those who almost made it. Once you know the approximate location of the crash site, find out if it is on private property. If so, you must get permission from the owner to access it. Our Skyhawk is on Bureau of Land Management land, but to get to it, we had to walk through private property. We got the owner’s permission to cross beforehand.
THE THRiLL oF THE HUNT From the side of the rocky hill I’m scaling, I hear the guys shouting and waving to come back. They have found the site. Ryan fnds the frst piece of twisted metal within arm’s reach near the entrance of the wash. Other wreckage is located farther up the adjacent desert canyon wall, including a piece of the aircraft’s 20-millimeter cannon. I fnd a fragment of a jet turbine blade. Chris is sorting through debris, which turns out to be the cockpit impact site. He fnds a piece of the headset cord. It’s an exciting moment for us, since we can be fairly certain this cord belonged to the copilot, and we are the frst to see it since 1969. Search team member Chris is a pilot and former rodeo rider, and he loves everything about aviation. He became interested in the hobby when he was in the Civil Air Patrol about 15 years ago and helped spot wrecks. “I wanted to see them on the ground,”
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 5 5 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
he says. “I like to hike, so I combine hiking with the excitement of the fnd.” Chris has found about 100 wrecks since he got the hunting bug. Like many wreck hunters, Chris favors World War II sites, but he also has visited civilian wrecks and the crash site of a C-130 resulting from the frst known wing failure of a fre-fghting airplane near Pearblossom, California. Finding the aircraft crash site in the frst place can be tough — even using modern tools like GPS and Google Earth. Despite all his research, Ryan was not sure we would fnd the Skyhawk. Vectors to crash sites noted on early military crash reports are not always accurate. At the site itself, the major parts of the wreck have often been removed, leaving only a debris feld that’s invisible on Google Earth and could easily be walked through without noticing it. Pete Noddin, a safety manager in the paper industry, hunts wrecks in northern Maine where dense woods present a unique challenge. “Unlike in the West, you can’t line up photos to match with terrain because of the trees,” he says. “I combine old-fashioned tracking and interviewing of locals with GPS to keep track of where I’ve searched — and to find my truck,” he laughs. “In Maine, it can take many years to find a crash site.” If you are tempted to pocket a souvenir or scavenge parts, they may not be yours for the taking. The Navy retains custody of all its ship and aircraft wrecks unless specific, formal action is taken to dispose of them. The Air Force considers aircraft that crashed before 1961 formally abandoned. However, there are also state and federal laws that determine ownership. We don’t have ownership concerns with the Skyhawk
wreckage, since we will not be removing any artifacts. Preservation of the site and respect for crash victims dictates that it’s best to leave the artifacts right where you found them. Besides, as Chris points out, “It’s easier to store photos than actual pieces of aircraft.”
THE HAZARDS oF THE HUNT While anyone can be a wreck hunter, reasonable physical condition is a must. Consider the strenuous 20-mile round trip hike to the location of an Air Force Douglas C-47B transport that crashed about 500 feet below the peak of San Gorgonio Mountain in 1952, killing 13 people. This was Pat’s frst fnd back in 1963, when there were no trails to it. Today, the trail goes right through the wreckage, but the hike is still a tough, two-day adventure in good weather. Dealing with snakes, bears, mountain lions, bees, poison oak, rough terrain and bad weather are other considerations. Pat lived to tell about meeting a bear face-to-face in the mountains of Mammoth Lakes, California. Also, hunters must be aware of tripping over marijuana growers and meth labs. The welcome mat is not out at those places. You can also get lost or fall and injure yourself. A GPS and personal locator device are must-haves if you get serious about wreck hunting. Your cell phone may not work in a remote canyon. Wreck hunting also requires patience. Ask Trey Brandt, a real estate professional and an avid wreck hunter with 23 years of experience and more than 400 fnds. Specializing in hard-to-fnd crash sites, Trey, who lives in Phoenix, spent 11 years and made 25 attempts before fnding a P-51 Mustang. “It’s about perseverance,” he says. “You can talk to landowners, research articles, and then it’s just boots on the ground.”
Wreck hunting can be expensive and timeconsuming. Purchasing crash reports, driving to the site, meals, gear, emergency equipment, etc., all add up — not to mention the hours of research you’ll be spending before you leave home.
“REMEMBERING ThAT WE ARE TOuChING ThE pAsT duRING CRAsh sITE vIsITATIONs Is AN IMpORTANT MEssAGE FOR ThOsE INTEREsTEd IN OuR AvOCATION.” — G. pAT MAChA SAviNG SiTES FoR THE FUTURE Back on our remote mountain in Yucca Valley, California, we were about to make a rare fnd. Digging in the cockpit impact area, Chris unearths the face of the copilot’s watch. It was an emotional moment for all of us and one more reason to approach all crash sites with respect. True to our way of thinking, we examined the watch, photographed it and then returned it to the site. While not adhered to by all wreck hunters, our preservation philosophy resonates with Craig Fuller of Phoenix. Craig is a former fight instructor with a background in aeronautical science and aviation safety accident investigation. These days, he’s a property manager who’s also working on a master’s degree in archeology. Craig is a well-known wreck hunter. While he doesn’t keep track of the number of wrecks he’s found, Craig F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 5 6 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
wreck hunter G. pat Macha (frOnt) and a frIend survey the wreckaGe Of a f4u cOrsaIr that Met Its fate In a MIdaIr cOllIsIOn near IrvIne, calIfOrnIa, In 1946. the pIlOt baIled Out successfully.
In thIs 2008 phOtO, wreck hunter Mark lIndeMann sIts aMOnG the reMaIns Of an aIr fOrce dOuGlas c-47b that crashed On san GOrGOnIO MOuntaIn In 1952, kIllInG 13 aIrMen.
estimates the total to be between 500 and 1,000. For anyone interested in fnding wreck sites, Craig is a man to know about. He has all the declassifed accident reports from the Army Air Forces, Air Force, Navy and government up to 1955 on microflm, housed on a mindboggling 3,000 reels. Deeply involved in wreck hunting since high school, Craig thinks it’s important to develop a code of ethics among those who fnd sites. “It’s up to us to preserve the sites,” he says. “These are historic sites that should remain available for future visitors.” Craig does not give out the locations of the sites he’s visited, believing that the hunt is more interesting if enthusiasts do their own research. The upside is that crash sites are getting easier to fnd with GPS, Google Earth, message boards, email and other readily available tools. The downside is they are more likely to be vandalized, with little left for future visitors to see. That’s why most wreck hunters do not reveal exact locations. Trey agrees with Craig. “If we share coordinates, they will be plundered, and the stories will be lost to future generations,” he says.
WiLL THEY EvER BE FoUND?
On a subseQuent search, the authOr fInds the wInG Of a saIlplane that crashed near the suMMIt Of MOunt baden-pOwell In sOuthern calIfOrnIa In 1971. the pIlOt dId nOt survIve.
Some crashes and their illfated pilots have captured the imagination of wreck fnders and the public. Arguably, the most famous of these is Amelia Earhart and navigator Fred Noonan, who disappeared in the vicinity of Howland Island on July 2, 1937, while attempting to circumnavigate the globe. Several highly publicized attempts have been made to fnd their Lockheed Electra, and stories abound about the fate of the famous pilot and navigator, but so far their fnal resting place remains a mystery. On October 26, 1944, Women Airforce Service Pilot
Gertrude Tompkins Silver vanished while ferrying a P-51D from Mines Field in California (now LAX) to Newark, New Jersey. Time, technology and luck may fnd her remains, which Pat and others believe lie under several feet of muck in Santa Monica Bay.
SEEKiNG CLoSURE Wreck hunters soon discover that the personal stories of the pilots, passengers and crew members are a part of what they uncover at a crash site. Often, family members wish to visit the crash site. Several years ago, Craig received a request from the husband of a woman whose father was killed in 1952 when she was just 3 years old. Her father was fying a Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star near Lake Mead, Nevada, and collided with another aircraft. With her 50th birthday nearing, she wanted to go to the crash site. Coincidentally, Craig had been at the site three or four weeks before. Craig took family members to the site of the crash on a tiny outcropping in Lake Mead. The group almost immediately found a cockpit rail, so they knew they were in the right spot. The husband found a small piece of glass and had it made into a teardrop necklace, so his wife would have a memory of her father close to her heart. “It was the most emotional moment I can ever recall,” Craig says. After visiting numerous crash sites, Pat developed Project Remembrance Team, a group of volunteers who give time and resources to grant the requests of next of kin. Requests include visiting the crash site, placing a memorial marker or sometimes even viewing the site from the air. Special consideration is given to family members of lost servicemen and women. When relatives wish to visit the crash site, Pat facilitates
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 5 7 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
their journey. “Sometimes, the family members stay with us the night before we go, so I can prepare them for what they’re about to see,” he says. “It can be very emotional.” Other wreck fnders take the direct approach and contact family members when they fnd personal items, such as dog tags or clothing. Because of the sensitive nature of crash sites, Pat cautions would-be wreck hunters. “Remembering that we are touching the past during crash site visitations is an important message for those interested in our avocation,” he says.
LESSoNS LEARNED Every crash tells a story that can help prevent another tragedy, and the Skyhawk is no exception. According to the aircraft accident report Ryan obtained, the cause of the stall/spin was unknown, but the pilot’s inability to recover is attributed to inadequate spin-recovery training and incomplete spin-recovery procedures in the fight manual. The accident investigation further revealed that the rear ejection seat failed mainly because of the design defciency of the installation. Numerous recommendations were made, including better pilot training, more fight tests, and additions to the fight manual based on the results of the fight tests. We ended our visit to the Skyhawk’s unplanned destination with a tribute to the copilot and by making a short video documenting the discovery of the crash site. Having accomplished our mission, we walked down the canyon, each with our own private thoughts. I was reminded about how a sophisticated fying machine can be turned into a debris feld in a matter of seconds. It’s something to think about when you’re trying to sneak through a cloud-shrouded mountain pass.
s p e c i a La a et r itsi e sm i neGn t section dd vv er
Aviation College & University Guide s ta r t y o u r pat h t o a c a r e e r i n av i at i o n t o d ay !
aviation colleges: W h e r e c a r e e r s g e t a f ly i n g s t a r t By Mark Phelps
W
ith the tumbling leaves comes the time for prospective college students to tour the campuses of their potential choices. It’s a great chance to begin looking forward to one of the most formative and exciting times of life. For many students, college is a beeline to their chosen career path. If you (or someone you know) have aspirations for a career in
aviation, opting for a college with aviation-specifc felds of study is not only smart, it also represents the best chance for success. There are some important checklist items in choosing the right institution. And success doesn’t necessarily mean a nonstop ticket to the left front seat of a jumbo jet. It’s true that pilot positions with major airlines are the most obvious of aviation Durant, OklahOma >
Flushing, new York >
Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology
Southeastern Oklahoma State University
Vaughn College has been preparing aviation professionals for 70 years. Regionally accredited and private with faculty experienced in all aviation disciplines, offering associate, bachelor’s and master’s degrees in aircraft operations, airport management, aviation maintenance, engineering and technology. Vaughn also offers one of the few master’s degrees in airport management in the Northeast and is one of three dozen schools nationwide selected to participate in the Air Traffic Control Collegiate Training Initiative.
Southeastern Oklahoma State University has a history of preparing aviation professionals to fulfill their dreams. The demand for professionals facilitated the BS degrees in Professional Pilot, Aviation Management and the popular MS degree in Aerospace Administration & Logistics. Southeastern provides top notch flight and management education along with professional development at affordable costs. An FAA Part 141 Certificated program, accredited by the Aviation Accreditation Board International as well as the Higher Learning Commission.
866-6VAUGHN vaughn.edu
800-435-1327 se.edu/aerospace F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 5 8 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
s p e c i a La d ad vr e tr itsi es m i neGn ts e c t i o n ve
Aviation College & University Guide s ta r t y o u r pat h t o a c a r e e r i n av i at i o n t o d ay !
career aspirations. But fying jobs are far from the only eggs in the basket. For those who are sure this is the life for them, however, what are the realistic chances of landing a job as an airline pilot? Plenty of experts are saying we face an imminent pilot shortage, and they can present solid evidence backing up the conjecture. In the past decade or so, the supply of pilots has far outweighed demand. Airlines have struggled with increased costs for fuel, security mandates and other fnancial challenges. So the path to the cockpit of a Boeing or Airbus has hardly been paved with gold. But if that’s the clear goal, there are some ways to maximize chances of having a positive college fight training experience. First, it’s smart to fnd out about the instructors’ credentials, what range of aircraft types are represented, and how current the avionics. Be sure to check on the percentage of fights that are canceled, not only due to maintenance, but also to weather, a dearth of instructors, etc. When it comes to opening up your career options, remember that the airlines aren’t the only ones who employ pilots. One important option to consider is the military, where many pilots enjoy the most exciting fying of their careers, and
go on to some of the more lucrative follow-on jobs. There are more opportunities in air cargo feld, corporate aviation, charter, aeromedical, sightseeing, agricultural fying; and more. Of course, there are plenty of students who start out with dreams of a fying job, only to shift gears after a semester or two. Opportunities in other career paths can be more stable, earn more money, and can be equally if not more enjoyable. There is always a need for trained experts in engineering; fnance; service; IT; maintenance; sales and marketing; communications; real estate; law; and other disciplines. And with plenty of these jobs, there’s ample opportunity to fy yourself – with someone else paying at least part of the tab. While you’re checking out the admissions offcers, be sure to touch on scholarships and other fnancial aid – especially with fight training. The University Aviation Association – an organization representing more than 100 colleges and universities that have specialty aviation programs – lists more than 700 aviation-specific scholarship programs totaling more than $1 million per year is aid. Amazingly, much of that opportunity goes unapplied for. For a full list of the scholarships, and much more information on aviation colleges and universities, go to the UAA website at www.UAA.aero. Phoenix, ArizonA >
Bayamón, Puerto rico >
Arizona State University with Flight Training by ATP
Inter American University of Puerto Rico Old San Juan Historic Site
Photograph by Jose Luis Marquez
An affordable alternative in the Caribbean for a career in aviation We offer two majors of study: • Aircraft Systems Management (Professional Pilot) under FAA Part 141. Accredited by Aviation Accreditation Board International (AABI) • Airways Sciences Management (Aviation Management) and a minor in Air Traffic Control sponsored by the FAA Air Traffic Collegiate Training Initiative Program (AT-CTI). Study in an environment that blends Hispanic Tradition with high standards of excellence in education in Puerto Rico and U.S.
1-787-279-1912, ext 2400 • www.interamerican.aero
Experience world class flight training by ATP Flight School in the professional pilot program at Arizona State University. With ASU academics and ATP’s airline-oriented flight training, students prepare for successful professional pilot careers. Arizona’s clear skies and ATP’s modern fleet keep your flight training on schedule. Other facilities, like full motion simulators, provide educational opportunities unique among collegiate aviation academic programs.
480-727-1021 technology.asu.edu/aviation
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 5 9 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
F LY I N G o p i n i o n | B Y m a r t h a l u n k e n
Are We reAlly “The BAd Guys”?
Has tHe game cHanged from good old cops and robbers to cops and pilots? Hearing about John and Martha King’s encounter with law enforcement and reading about similar horror stories, I adjusted my eye patch and was about to swing through the rigging, knife in teeth, in defense of pilots’ rights. Like Clark Kent, I would use my journalistic skills to battle the forces of evil — menacing cops stopping innocent pilots on taxiways and tossing them, cuffed and cowed, into the back of patrol cars while their airplanes are sniffed and slobbered over by dogs in search of ... whatever. Then I thought, “Wait a minute.” While these mostly third-hand tales of outrageous
actions by law enforcement are pretty scary, I haven’t actually experienced or heard of anything like this happening in my part of airplane world. The cops I worked with for years as an FAA inspector and those involved in my own scrapes and screw-ups have been professional, polite, reasonable and friendly. I still welcome a patrol car cruising the remote south line ramp at Cincinnati’s Lunken Airport when I’m alone, wrestling the 180 into the hangar on a dark night. And you have to admire the state police who respond to airplane accidents. These guys can secure a site, chase off
the media, assemble witnesses and document the scene of an accident more precisely and professionally than any FAA or NTSB investigator I’ve seen. (Please note: I have no experience with major accidents.) There’s the occasional, overzealous or downright nasty cop who fexes his muscles and inserts himself into a purely regulatory investigation, like the deputy who confscated a young pilot’s certifcate after he expertly landed a Super Cub in a bean feld when the engine quit. Trying to retrieve it, I was told, “That smartass kid can just cool his heels for a couple weeks
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 6 0 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
until the offcer gets back from vacation.” I reminded him, politely, that they had no authority to confscate a federally issued certifcate. Getting nowhere, I suggested, impolitely, that he was acting like a wienerhead. His reaction was interesting, and I declined an invitation to come to the post and pick it up. In fact, for several months I paid careful attention to my speed on I-75 when driving through Butler County, Ohio. Then there was the saga of Walter, a freshly minted private pilot who wreaked mild havoc with air traffc control and cops in two states. Flying his newly acquired Cessna 150 from southern Georgia to Portsmouth, Ohio, with a sick electrical system and poor visibility over the hills of Tennessee and Kentucky, he landed no-radio at an airport with a very long runway: Lexington, Kentucky’s Blue Grass Airport. I’d known Walter from some safety seminars in southeastern Ohio; he was a “fooler” — unusually intelligent and well-educated but shy. His halting, curious way of speaking in a unique back country dialect explained why the controller, talking to him on the phone, was concerned he was drunk or impaired. Airport security responded and when they were satisfed he was OK, Walter bought a new generator and departed on the next leg. Alas, even with a full complement of electrons, he didn’t understand ground control and surprised everybody (well, sort of) by taking off in the
illustration by CHris gall
UnUsUal attitUdes
A no-holds-bArred look At pilots, plAnes And life in the Air
Send in the Aquamarines Claim your share of the legendary “sailor’s gem” that was once considered more valuable than diamonds or gold!
W
hen the sun turns up the heat, you need a necklace that will make a splash. Ever since ancient times, sailors have sworn by aquamarine for protection on the open water. We guarantee it to turn heads, by land or by sea. And today you don’t have to leave shore to reap the benefits of this legendary blue gem, because your ship has come in. Today, you can wear this spectacular 300-carat Maré Aquamarine Necklace for only $99! Claim your “Mermaid’s Treasure.” On any vessel crossing the oceans, there was no more precious cargo than aquamarine. Sailors paid handsomely for its power, considering it their most valuable commodity. In scientific terms, the chemical composition of our Maré Necklace beads are cousins to precious emeralds. They begin life as geological twins underground, colorless until something sparks a change. Sprinkle in a dash of minerals and one becomes vivid green and the other becomes brilliant blue. That’s the beauty of chemistry. A legend among luxury jewelers. Named for the Latin words for “water of the sea,” aquamarine shines with all the colors of the ocean. Each bead is like a droplet of the sea frozen in space and time. Walk into the most exclusive retail jewelers and you’ll find aquamarine in a place of honor. Fifth Avenue thinks nothing of offering a strand of aquamarine “pebbles” for nearly $12,000. But with a color this captivating, you deserve more than a dollop. That’s why we collected the bluest stones from three continents, polished them to perfection and arranged them in this double-stranded, 300-carat masterpiece. Your satisfaction is 100% guaranteed. Try the Maré Necklace for 30 days. If you don’t fall in love, send it back for a complete refund of your purchase price. It’s that simple. But once your wear 300 carats of aquamrine, you’ll find that there’s no better way to make a splash without getting wet!
94% Less
than appraisal value!*
Yours for only $99!
—
Necklace Independently Appraised at $1,590*
This is how you make a splash... Maré Necklace (300 ctw) $179 Now Only $99 Save $80 Call now to take advantage of this fantastic offer.
1-888-373-0654 Promotional Code MAN273-06
Please mention this code when you call.
Stauer
®
14101 Southcross Drive W., Dept. MAN273-06, Burnsville, Minnesota 55337 www.stauer.com
* For more information concerning the appraisal, visit http://www.stauer.com/appraisedvalues.asp.
Rating of A+
U N U s U a L a t t I t U d e s | F LY I N G o p i n i o n
opposite direction on the active runway. Neither was Walter exactly Magellan when it came to navigating, and he wandered north into Cincinnati’s Class B airspace at the height of the Friday afternoon “push.” Although he was talking to a controller at the then-busy Delta
hub, Walter wasn’t complying with heading and altitude assignments. ATC gets touchy when they have to divert airline traffc, so things were rather chaotic until they got him on the ground. My cohort, an airworthiness (maintenance) inspector, and I found Walter
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 6 2 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
sitting forlornly in a back room of the FBO, surrounded by men wearing a variety of uniforms and equipped with an impressive array of frearms. As in Lexington, these guys weren’t sure if he was a terrorist, a druggie or, simply, a confused and lost novice pilot. I smiled and burst into the room with, “Walter, what in the hell’s going on?” which had the desired effect; the uniforms relaxed a little since an FAA inspector obviously knew this guy. But in a quiet aside to my partner, I suggested we “fnd a reason to hang a condition notice on that airplane.” Hearing the whole story, the cops said they’d be satisfed if Walter would just get the hell out of there. But I knew if we extricated him from the clutches of the law and he launched again in that 150, there’d be another interstellar incident. So we hustled him into the G-car, assuring the uniforms that the FAA would fully investigate and impose appropriately severe sanctions (i.e., remedial training). My partner was nervous about giving Walter a ride in a government car, which is strictly verboten, but I hadn’t broken a rule yet that day and fgured we had to get him out of there while the getting was good. So we dropped him down the street from the Flight Standards District Offce (FSDO), where he called his son for a ride home, and I few his airplane back the next day on a ferry permit. Oddly, a similar drama was unfolding across the street that same afternoon. Another female inspector from our offce met a Bonanza fown into Lunken from Charleston, West Virginia, by an elderly pilot. The fight originated that morning in Florida and the no-radio landing in West Virginia was a “mistake.” When a Charleston FSDO inspector discovered he had no medical, he started a violation procedure and warned him against continuing the fight. But instead of taxiing to an FBO across the feld, he wheeled onto the nearest runway and took off into the wild blue, radar tracking the fight to Lunken. This obviously impaired man wanted to get to Cincinnati for a “serious” medical consultation. When he fnally found the right airport and landed, he was in such distress that somebody had to halfcarry him out of the airplane and into a restroom. Then, while the line crew “attended to” the interior of the Bonanza, the gutsy old guy escaped in a
U N U s U a L a t t I t U d e s | F LY I N G o p i n i o n
cab. Why the incensed — and insensitive — Inspector Crackett called the cops I have no idea. But she convinced Cincinnati police, the Hamilton County Sheriff and the Ohio State Highway Patrol that he was a threat to western civilization, and they were hot on the trail of the aerial desperado. After his doctor’s appointment, the pilot called from the Greyhound bus station to arrange long-term storage for his airplane. He’d given up on fying it and was about to board a Grey Dog for the long ride back to Florida. The FBO called the cops, who descended on the bus station, arrested the old man and threw him in jail for the weekend. When I heard what had happened that Friday night, I called on my boss to do something. This arrest business was unnecessary and inhumane; the man needed medical attention and a ticket home — not jail. He ordered me to “stay out of it,” and the old guy spent the weekend in jail until the charges (whatever they
were) were dismissed on Monday morning. He died in Florida a few weeks later. But this wasn’t an overreaction by the cops; it was the whacko action of a not very nice FAA inspector. The only time bells went off about law enforcement muscling into purely FAA regulatory matters happened a few weeks later when a local CFI reported that sheriff’s deputies conducting ramp checks had cited his student for doing solo touch-and-goes without a private pilot certifcate! It seems a group of deputies had attended an “Ohio Transportation Homeland Security” seminar where an FAA inspector had briefed them on how to conduct FAA ramp checks. My next call was to Hal Shevers, aka “Sporty,” and thank heavens for an old friend, a true general aviation advocate and somebody with enough horsepower to arrange a meeting with the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Offce. Then-Sheriff Simon Leis claimed he was unaware of this initiative, which
PERFECT 2020 VISION. KT 74 ADS-B Ready Mode S Transponder Ready to upgrade your transponder? Why not choose the one that’ll get you ready for ADS-B 2020 requirements. The Bendix/King KT 74 ADS-B compliant transponder, makes planning ahead simple and affordable. It’s designed to slide into where your existing Bendix/King transponder is in the panel without the need to rewire, offsetting future costs. Learn more about ADS-B requirements and how KT 74 can meet your needs now and in the future at ADSB2020.com
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 6 3 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
may or may not have been true. But to my knowledge, since that meeting there have been no deputies “ramp checking” pilots at airports. Bottom line, if you’re stopped, questioned, harassed, searched or just pissed off by law enforcement, cooperate. Afterward, make loud noises to every state and federal congressman, representative
These Guys Weren’T sure if he WAs A TerrorisT, A druGGie or A confused And losT novice piloT. and aviation advocacy group, such as AOPA. Tell me, and I will adjust my eye patch, swing through the rigging, knife in hand, and write about it.
GEAR UP
FROM ThE OpERATING ROOM TO FLIGhT Ops: A suRGEON’s jOuRNEY
F LY I N G O p i n i O n | B Y d i c k k a r l
The journey back To a firsT-class medical “Hey, Dick, your colonoscopy went great.” So says my friend and expert colorectal surgeon. I am just coming out from the sweet embrace of Propofol, the magic elixir that killed Michael Jackson. Suffused with a sense of wellbeing, I look out over the sparkling waters of Tampa Bay lit by a warm December sun. My wife, Cathy, smiles. “But I did feel a prostatic nodule. I looked back to my notes from fve years ago, and there wasn’t a nodule then, so you should have it looked into.” Thus began an adventure into the maw of modern medicine and the workings of the FAA when it comes to a frst-class medical certifcate. First, some basic prostate facts for our readers (ladies, this will take just a minute): About 239,000 men are
diagnosed with prostate cancer every year in the United States, but only about 30,000 die of the disease. So we have a common disorder that infrequently kills patients. (Of course, given the age of men that are diagnosed with prostate cancer, many may die of others things. Death and taxes!) Since prostate cancer becomes more prevalent in men the older they get, there has been controversy about using the prostate-specifc antigen (PSA) screening test. Is it possible that many men are treated to beneft the urologist or radiation therapist rather than the patient? With all this in mind, I had a PSA test, and I was reassured when it was normal. Because of the Christmas holidays, it was almost three
weeks before I met with a careful, thoughtful urologist named Dr. David Hernandez. He examined me — this time I was awake — and recommended a biopsy. This was scheduled for a week hence. A prostate biopsy is actually 12 different “passes”
The newS wAS noT gooD; iT wAS A cAncer AnD noT A TriviAl one. For A cAncer Surgeon, ThiS wAS An eerie experience. with a biopsy needle attached to an ultrasound head. The device looked innocent enough sitting on
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 6 4 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
an operation. At 4 a.m. on a Monday in March, Cathy and I set out for Orlando. We were home fewer than 36
illustration from shutterstock
A SurpriSe DiAgnoSiS
the counter in the biopsy room, but when it was inserted, it felt like I had the wrong end of a baseball bat shoved up there. Each time he fred the Louisville Slugger, I could feel it deep, deep down in the pelvis. Another wait for results — almost two weeks. The news was not good; it was a cancer and not a trivial one. So much for the PSA test. For a cancer surgeon, this was an eerie, somewhat surreal experience. A cancer doctor catches cancer. Now I was on the other side of the knife. I’ll leave out the description of searching for the right place and the right person to do the job. We settled on Dr. Vipul Patel of the Global Robotics Institute in Orlando, Florida. He and his team do a high volume of robotic prostatectomies, and I liked him immediately. He reassured me that he treats “a pilot a week,” so his team knew all about the magic words necessary to get my medical back. Another wait of six weeks — once the prostate is disturbed by the biopsy, it needs to heal before you can schedule
G e a r u p | F LY I N G O p i n i O n
hours later. The physical recovery was surprisingly quick. The philosophical recovery was another matter. How do we all manage to take the extraordinary machinery whirring away fawlessly inside each of us for granted? Even though I had a professional awareness of this blithe ignorance, I found the concept to have even deeper meaning now that I had a bad cylinder. If my life was to be shortened, did I want to continue as a cancer surgeon or did I want to do something else, such as fy airplanes? I know my father waited to retire from surgery until he was 71. He had always wanted to work in a hardware store, but by the time he retired, it wasn’t in the cards. At 67, could I get my medical back and do more fying? I had enjoyed the Lear 31A at Elite Air in St. Petersburg, Florida, immensely. Could I fnd a full-time fying job? For that matter, when could I fy again? Was my frst-class medical certifcate still valid? I was feeling better and better. I went on the Internet to www.faa.gov.
Within a few minutes, my head was uncomfortably rotating. After a good hour of searching I came upon the dreaded 61.53: “1. Operations that require a medical certifcate. Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, a person who holds a current medical certifcate issued under part 67 of this chapter shall not act as pilot in command, or in any other capacity as a required pilot fight crewmember while that person:
a. Knows or has reason to know of any medical condition that would make the person unable to meet the requirements for the medical certifcate necessary for the pilot operation; or b. Is taking medication or receiving other treatment for a medical condition that results in the person being unable to meet the requirements for the medical certifcate necessary for the pilot operation.” Now I was not feeling better. Was I “unable to meet the requirements”?
I fell fnally to the FAA page called “Pilot Medical Certifcation Questions and Answers.” There I found a question entitled “What medical conditions does the FAA consider disqualifying?” A list of medical conditions, some psychiatric,
AT 67, coulD i geT my meDicAl bAck AnD Do more Flying? followed. Substance abuse and dependency were mentioned, as was bipolar disorder. A personality disorder that is “severe enough to have repeatedly manifested itself by overt acts” seemed a reasonable disqualifying condition, as did “heart replacement.” But nowhere could I fnd any cancer, much less prostate cancer, on the list.
The Advantage is its Simplicity.
SmartDeck
®
by CMC Electronics
SmartDeck®
has all the capabilities of other glass cockpits, plus one key difference: its simplicity. Everything works the way pilots expect. No questions. No confusion. So every pilot can fy better, smarter and safer.
MONTREAL • OTTAWA • CHICAGO www.cmcelectronics.ca
For more information, please contact Greg Plantz, Director, SmartDeck at: 262-930-2320 Email: Greg.Plantz@cmcelectronics.us
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 6 6 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
G e a r u p | F LY I N G O p i n i O n
Was I legal to fy or not? I sought the counsel of several good friends in aviation. Some are journalists; some are lawyers, some owners of Part 135 operations, some airline pilots. The answers were not identical. All agreed on two things: Don’t ever lie on your medical application, and a PSA test result of zero is required for a valid medical after treatment for prostate cancer. But I predicted my PSA result would be zero, and I felt fne. Shouldn’t I be able to fy? Then I came across a statement from Dr. Warren Silberman, former manager of the FAA Aerospace Medical Certifcation Division (AMCD), in a Federal Air Surgeon’s Medical Bulletin. He said, “Once an airman has one of the forms of treatment [for prostate cancer], he must consider himself grounded pending review.” A friend of mine put it more bluntly. “Do you want spin or fact? The fact is cancer is disqualifying. The spin is that cancer is not mentioned in the FARs, so how are you supposed to know?” He suggested I get a letter from my treating urologist, prove that my PSA test was zero and then contact the Regional Flight Surgeon in Atlanta. The Regional Flight Surgeon and the AMCD in Oklahoma City, not my aviation medical examiner, are the only ones who can grant approval. What, I wondered, would be the chances of actually talking to somebody in the Regional Flight Surgeon’s offce? My frst call to the Atlanta offce met with a voicemail recording. My second call was met with the pleasant voice of a secretary, who promised to see if “the doctor was in.” Seconds later, and to my stunned surprise, I found myself speaking with the delightful Dr. Susan E. Northrup. I was so taken aback that I just stammered away until, fnally, I was able to construct a coherent sentence and speak it out loud. Far from sounding like some reproving bureaucrat, Dr. Northrup told me to round up my discharge summary, pathology report, those PSA test results and a letter from my urologist. She indicated that she knew my AME in Clearwater, Florida, and had even visited his offce. (Dr. George Coupe is a legend in my part of the world. He’s 88 and still going strong. He’s my kind of guy.) Dr. Northrup seemed to like Dr. Coupe too. You should know that the FAA has since changed the decision considerations so that a medical for a pilot treated for
prostate cancer without extracapsular disease may by issued by an AME. Once Dr. Northrup had my stuff, she sent me an approved medical. I ran with it clutched tightly in my hand to Coupe, as if I had just won a Pulitzer Prize. Even though it was the end of the
month and one more day of waiting would have granted me an extra month before I needed to renew, I got my electrocardiogram, peed in the cup and went out the door with a frst-class medical dated the 31st of the month. I was taking no chances.
Photo courtesy of Scott Slocum.
In aerobatic maneuvers, the greatest gain can only
Cold start. Hot start. Every start. be reached by taking it to the max. The same is true
SlickSTART
in manufacturing piston engine products. That’s™why Champion goes vertical all the way. All components in our piston engine systems are manufactured in SlickSTARTª is so effective, even sub-optimal fuel mixtures and the USA—we are the only manufacturer that can seriously fouled plugs wonÕt stop the capacitive discharge output say our aviation spark plugs are made 100% in the from providing the ignition boost your engine needs for reliable USA. Beyond that, all testing and quality controls are starts every time. ItÕs inexpensive, easy to install and requires performed by teams of experts and advanced computer no maintenance! If you want to deliver up to 340% more spark systems to assure unmatched, vertically integrated energy to your plugs, overcome poor engine priming and reduce products and systems. Perhaps that’s why before they electrical stress to your battery and starter, then SlickSTART is the go vertical, aerobatic pilots put their trust in the brand answer for you! For more information, call or log onto that’s been there. www.championaerospace.com.
Trust is earned
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 6 7 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
technicalities F LY I N G o p i n i o n | B Y p e t e r g a r r i s o n
Cloudy Conditions on the AvgAs Front
If you don’t have anythIng to worry about, try avgas replacement Engines, aircraft, and the rules and certifcation standards and procedures that govern them have evolved together since the 1930s on the seemingly frm foundation of leaded avgas, which forms part of the operating limitations on which the type certifcates of aircraft and engines are based. Fuels and fuel systems have come to be perfectly matched to aircraft, and aircraft to them. But avgas, which is the only leaded fuel still produced in the United States, is a boutique product — the amount of road fuel refned is 700 times greater — and it has long been obvious that its days were numbered. If a completely compatible “drop-in”
replacement existed and it cost a buck a gallon less than 100LL, leaded fuel would have vanished of its own accord. That this hasn’t happened underscores the fact that fuel producers, engine and airframe manufacturers, and end users have no self-interested motive (the lead poisoning of themselves and their children being below the threshold of perception) to eliminate 100LL. The Environmental Protection Agency, however, has now made them an offer they can’t refuse. A year and a half ago, the FAA published the fndings of its Unleaded Avgas Transition Aviation Rulemaking Committee in a 100-page report with 162 pages of
appendices. The report opens with a gloomy summary of its important conclusions. Here are two of them: An unleaded replacement fuel that meets the needs of the entire feet does not currently exist. No market-driven reason exists to move to a replacement fuel due to the limited size of the AVGAS market, diminishing demand, specialty nature of AVGAS, safety, liability, and the investment expense involved in a comprehensive approval and deployment process. The property of avgas that dominates efforts to fnd a replacement is its ability — for which we use the shorthand name of “octane” — to support
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 6 8 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
Cutting through the myths to get to the faCts of flight
certain cylinder temperatures and pressures without spontaneously igniting. The use of tetraethyl lead, or TEL, to prevent spontaneous ignition, better known as detonation, began in the 1920s. Since then, no convenient, inexpensive and effective competitor to TEL has been found. Contrary to the belief of many people who put higher-octane fuel into their cars thinking that it has more “power,” octane has no bearing on the energy content of a fuel. Back when several grades of avgas were made, 80/87 was just as energetic as 100/145. It just happens that spark-ignition piston engines can harvest more of that latent energy if they have higher compression ratios, and those require a higher-octane fuel. Besides detonation resistance, however, other characteristics of a replacement fuel are scarcely less important. One is environmental safety; there is no point replacing the lead in avgas with another powerful toxin. Another is materials compatibility. Some potential fuel components, like ethanol and alcohol, are hard on elastomers used in engine, propeller and fuel system seals. If they had to be used, every airplane might have to have some parts, like O-rings and pump diaphragms, replaced. Another is lubricity; gasoline has lubricating properties that some potential antiknock fuel components, like toluene, lack. Another is vapor pressure, which represents resistance to bubbling at low ambient pressure and high temperature. Avgas has a much
VOL. CLVII....No. 30,000
The Stauer Times
“It’s About Time”
News Flash….
Government Gets Something Right
Super Light Titanium Timepiece Loses Only One Second Every 20 Million Years. BOULDER, Colorado The U.S. government
has engineered the most ingenious, most accurate clock in the world: the F-1 U.S. Atomic Clock in Boulder, Colorado. Our extraordinary new Stauer Titanium Atomic Watch utilizes the transmissions directly from that remarkable cesium fission atomic clock to report the most precise time.This scientifically advanced timepiece will gain or lose only one second over a 20 million-year period. It is that accurate! This perfectly tuned technological invention with the super light strength of titanium is now available for UNDER $130. Super Light Titanium has two big advantages over steel. One is corrosion resistance and the other is that titanium has the highest strength-to-weight ratio of any metal, which means that titanium is approximately 45% lighter than steel. But every other titanium watch that we can
find is priced at over $400, and none of those are nearly as accurate as our atomic movement. Stauer has decided to bring these resources together in a timepiece that has the most accurate movement available today.You'll never have to set this watch. Just push one of the buttons and you are synchronized with the atomic clock in Colorado, and the hands of the watch move to the exact time position.The sleek black textured dial has luminous hands and markers plus the timepiece is water resistant to 3 ATM.
The Stauer Titanium Atomic Watch is not available in stores and it comes with our 30 day money-back guarantee. If you're not completely satisfied with the accuracy, simply return the watch for the full purchase price.
A Titanium-clad offer.This Titanium Atomic Watch exceeds the accuracy of any Swiss luxury automatic so you can be more punctual and keep most of your money in your wallet, not on your wrist. Look at your watch and we guarantee that the time is incorrect, unless you are wearing the advanced atomic technology.
1-888-201-7141
Not Available in Stores Stauer Titanium Atomic Watch $195 now $129 +S&P or 2 credit card payments of $64.50 +S&P Call Toll-Free now to take advantage of this limited offer.
Promotional Code TTA422-08
Please mention this code when you call.
Stauer
14101 Southcross Drive W.,
® Dept. TTA422-08
Burnsville, Minnesota 55337
www.stauer.com
T E C H N I C A L I T I E S | F LY I N G O p i n i O n
higher resistance to bubble formation than, for instance, auto fuel does. Excessive bubble formation, in the form of vapor lock, can make an engine run roughly or quit altogether. A replacement fuel also has to be “fungible” with 100LL — that is, capable of being mingled in storage tanks and in aircraft without ill effect — and it must not interact disagreeably with current aviation oils. Finally, a new formulation must be able to be manufactured out of existing components in existing equipment and stored and transported in existing containers, because avgas replacement is not likely to attract heavy capital investment at any level, from the big refners down to the small-airport FBOs. Long after the petroleum industry settled upon the accepted formulation of avgas, it was codifed in an American Society for Testing and Materials standard, D-910, which is now the touchstone for candidate replacement fuels.
There is no guarantee, however, that D-910 includes every fuel property that might affect aircraft operations. A candidate replacement for 100LL must therefore be thoroughly tested, both in ground test cells and in fight, to verify its compatibility and safety. Even before that can be done, however, test protocols have to be devised that will satisfy all the players in this game — engine and airframe manufacturers, fuel producers and, fnally and most importantly, end users, who will be the frst to fle lawsuits if something goes wrong. For example, suppose the selected replacement fuel were similar to 100LL in all respects except that its vapor pressure were somewhat higher. Various avenues are open to deal with this problem. Limits can be imposed on fight altitudes and temperatures; fuel pumps can be submerged in the tanks of lowwing aircraft, so that fuel remains under pressure on its way to the engine; or fight tests can be performed on each
aircraft and engine type to determine whether a vapor pressure higher than the baseline 100LL standard is acceptable. The challenge of approving auto fuel for some airplanes was similar; it was handled by type-specifc Supplemental Type Certifcates.
avgas replacement is not likely to attract heavy capital investment at any level. The same applies to detonation. If the detonation resistance of a replacement fuel were somewhat lower than that of 100LL, some high-performance engines might require modifed operating limitations, or knock sensors (already common in auto-
D E D I C A T E D T O H E L P I N G B U S I N E S S A C H I E V E I T S H I G H E S T G O A L S.
Weathering the regulations and taxes affecting your light airplane can be a full-time job. The National Business Aviation Association knows you can’t afford to make it your full-time job. Membership in NBAA gives you a voice and protects your interests, so you can stay focused on flying toward even greater opportunities. Learn more at www.fl yforbusiness.org.
IF YOU USE YOUR AIRPLANE FOR BUSINESS...
Stop by NBAA’s Booth #1541 at the AOPA Aviation Summit
Flying solo doesn’t mean you fl y alone.
T E C H N I C A L I T I E S | F LY I N G O p i n i O n
mobiles) and automated devices for regulating mixture or power. Those systems would, of course, have to become part of the engines’ type certifcates. Even if a replacement fuel were in every way a lead-free twin of 100LL, claims would certainly arise over accidents or mechanical problems that occur shortly after a user adopts the new fuel. Problems may be random, but it’s natural for an owner to blame them on whatever he changed most recently. We saw this pattern when 100LL replaced 80/87 (because previously lead-free engines, habitually run too rich, started getting lead fouling in their plugs) and when 100LL replaced 100/130 (because valve problems were blamed on the loss of some of the lubricating property of lead). Backing away from the specifc complications of the transition and looking ahead several years, an ominous factor is the lack of a “market-driven reason to move to a replacement fuel” mentioned in the 2012 FAA report. The small and ever-diminishing size of the avgas market; the fact that the average age of the “legacy” avgasburning feet is measured in decades; competition from jet and diesel fuels and alternative engine types — all these factors militate against large capital investments in a new fuel. Even the FAA is pinching its pennies; its 2014 budget request for unleaded avgas R&D is an infnitesimal $5.6 million. NASA has not gotten involved; the problem is too mundane. The large majority of general aviation aircraft — including most homebuilts and singles with engines of less than 250 horsepower — comprise what the FAA calls the “transparent feet” that can use an existing lead-free fuel without modifcation. In Europe, these have already received regulatory approval for lead-free 91-octane. Aircraft with high-compression and turbocharged engines, however, including most larger twins, might require modifcations to run on an eventual replacement. Though there are far fewer of these aircraft, they use the majority of the fuel. Most FBOs have tankage for only one nonturbine fuel, however, and at many locations the larger fuel demands of the nontransparent feet may drive out the lower-octane alternative. Already today we see larger FBOs at larger airports discouraging smaller aircraft by
high fuel prices. Perhaps the future will fnd aircraft naturally segregating themselves at airports supplying one fuel type or the other, but not both. The economics of replacement may be complex and far-reaching, well beyond the mere per-gallon cost of the new fuel.
The elimination of 100LL represents a critical challenge for general aviation. It could produce profound consequences, or pass practically unnoticed. It could lead to an industry-wide renaissance or to a number of funerals or to neither — at this point, no one can say.
Add a year of digital for only $5.99 You love the magazine, but have you seen FLYING on the iPad? Special digital-only offer:
UPGRADE NOW > > In every issue, you get: • Digital exclusive photo galleries and videos • More in-depth editorial and how-to tips • Social sharing capabilities
For current subscribers only, add 1 year of digital for ONLY $5.99!
Learn more at www.flyingmag.com/adddigital F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 7 1 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
JUMPSEAT
FLYING ThE hEAvY METAL wITh AN AIRLINE CApTAIN
F LY I N G O P I N I O N | B Y L E S A B E N D
sPecUlAtion fAscinAtion THE CRASH OF ASIANA AIRLINES FLIGHT 214 If the George Zimmerman trial wasn’t enough to feed a media frenzy, a major airplane crash at one of the country’s busiest airports flled the remaining void. When I was contacted by a national TV network to validate a specifc nuance of the 777 automation system, I actually considered that maybe this time the media would get it right — well, at least in the ballpark, anyhow. After viewing a YouTube video of an Oakland newscaster reading the now infamously fake names of the pilots, I knew all glory for accuracy had faded. In that regard, I felt compelled to enter the speculation fray of the Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crash. Although the general public is certainly fascinated by the sensational aspect of an airplane crash, we as pilots
are fascinated more by an accident’s relevance to our own personal aviation experiences. The popularity of the Aftermath column in this magazine is a refection of that fascination. If the accident involves an airplane we have fown, we take a keen interest. Put my name on that list. But before I discuss some of the pertinent aspects of Asiana 214, afford me the opportunity to explain the process of a major National Transportation Safety Board investigation. Having donned a blue Tyvek suit and shuffed around a crash site after my airline had one of its worst days, I have a unique perspective. It was a life experience that I would care not to repeat. A full year passed before the smell dissipated from my nostrils. The Go Team, with its
gold-embroidered NTSB windbreakers, is the most familiar and identifable ingredient in the process. These folks are employed by the government full time and are chosen by the NTSB for their knowledge in certain areas of accident investigation. With the Asiana crash, these areas are Structures, Powerplants, Systems, Performance, ATC, DFDR (Digital Flight Data Recorder), CVR (Cockpit Voice Recorder), Flight Crew Ops and Survival Factors. Each Go Team member is designated a group chairman according to their area of expertise. The NTSB employs a party system, with it always being the frst party in the investigation. The FAA is the second party. At the discretion of the Investigator In Charge (IIC), entities with an interest in the investigation are included as
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 7 2 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
third parties. For the Asiana investigation, the major entities are the airline, Boeing, Pratt & Whitney and KARAIB (Korean Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board). The NTSB has limited people resources. It relies on these entities to provide an individual expert in at least one or more of the participating groups. After the NTSB conducts an organizational meeting at the command center, the group chairmen outline the tasks to be accomplished during the on-scene feld phase of the investigation. Each group examines the wreckage as it pertains to its area of expertise. When the day’s tasks are completed and the group chairmen have assembled the collected data, they report to the IIC at the end-of-the-day progress meeting. After the progress meeting, a press briefng is given. Once the on-scene activities are complete, the groups prepare drafts of their factual reports. When all the reports have been submitted and distributed to the parties and NTSB members, a public hearing is convened. About 90 days later, at the discretion of the IIC, a technical review meeting is conducted. The technical review allows all the investigative groups to compare notes. The analysis phase begins when all parties are given the opportunity to submit their interpretation of the factual data. The interpretation includes safety recommendations. With the party submissions presented, the NTSB convenes a Sunshine Meeting, during which the board
J U M P S E A T | F LY I N G O P I N I O N
members reach a conclusion based on the factual data. An offcial probable cause is issued with recommendations to the parties involved. Soon after, the Blue Cover Report is entered into public record, concluding the investigation. If one or more of the interested parties disagree with the fndings, perhaps after discovery of additional evidence, a petition for reconsideration can be fled. The sole purpose of the entire process is not to place blame but to fnd a cause so that the same accident never occurs again. The NTSB, in Chairman Deborah Hersman’s words, has been very transparent with the factual data of Asiana Flight 214. That’s good and bad. It’s good that a government organization is showing its cards. It’s bad because the release of information allows the misinformed to reach biased conclusions without all the factual data. It is strict NTSB policy that releasing any factual data without approval risks losing investigative party status. I’ll weigh in using only the data presented at the
press briefngs and my own experience with fying the 777. Making the assumption that readers of this magazine are already versed in the evidence that the airplane got low and slow, I’ll cut to the chase. Below 10,000 feet on the descent, two experienced pilots occupied the fying seats, with the frst offcer observing from the jumpseat and the relief captain occupying a cabin seat. Although the right seat pilot was a new check airman, he had approximately 3,000 hours in the 777 alone. The left seat pilot was more than halfway through his initial operating experience (IOE) with about 25 hours left to go before he was considered fully qualifed — a 60-hour requirement for Asiana. (Most U.S. carriers require only 25 hours of IOE for a PIC.) The left seat pilot had been a ground and simulator instructor, transitioning from eight years of fying the A320 — an interesting and perhaps crucial fact. Asiana Flight 214 was cleared for a visual approach. Although the glide slope was
out of service, no untypical procedures were utilized by ATC. The precision approach path indicator (PAPI) was available as a source of glidepath guidance. The autopilot
feet the airplane had slowed to 170 knots. Seventy-three seconds later, the airplane reached a speed of 103 knots, at which time the tail cone impacted the seawall prior to
At 500 feet, the check AirmAn hAd observed three red PAPi lights And one white. was disconnected at 1,600 feet. The left side fight director switch was in the off position with the right side switch in the on position, an indication that the IOE captain had no electronic guidance. The check airman reported that vertical speed was the fight director mode in operation. The autothrottle switches were in the armed position. A command speed of 137 knots had been determined to be the appropriate approach speed by the crew. At 1,400
the threshold of Runway 28L while the crew attempted to execute a go-around. At 500 feet, the check airman had observed three red PAPI lights and one white. And at 200 feet he observed four red PAPI lights. The 777 autothrottles will maintain current speed or speed selected when vertical speed mode is pressed. But if the autothrottles are disconnected by pressing the button on either power lever, they will not engage unless another vertical mode is selected or the takeoff goaround switch on either power lever is utilized. It appears that the autothrottles were armed, but no information has been forthcoming stating whether they were engaged. If they were not engaged, the thrust levers would only apply power once the computer determined the
ACCIdENT INvEsTIGATORs AppROACh ThE wRECkAGE OF AsIANA AIRLINEs FLIGhT 214. As IN EvERY INvEsTIGATION, ThE AFTERMATh OF ThE CRAsh dEMANdEd A hIGhLY COORdINATEd EFFORT. F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 7 3 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
J U M P S E A T | F LY I N G O P I N I O N
speed was nearing stick shaker activation, an automatic warning function of an impending stall. Below 100 feet in the approach confguration, the automatic activation system is no longer active. The system assumes the pilot is landing. Boeing autothrottles have a clutch system. They move, providing a subtle visual cue. Airbus autothrottles do not move. It is a set-and-forget
system. Perhaps the IOE captain regressed to his prior Airbus experience. He was in an unfamiliar airplane executing an untypical operation — a visual approach without electronic glide-path guidance. That being said, an LNAV/ VNAV approach was available as backup, but it doesn’t appear that it was utilized. The FlightAware graph refects the possibility that the approach was never quite
stabilized after 4,000 feet. A descent rate at over 1,300 fpm below 600 feet does not qualify for the defnition of a stabilized approach. If the autothrottles were engaged, another possibility exists. They are easily overridden. I made that mistake in the simulator during my initial training, resting the weight of my hand on top of the thrust levers. I allowed the speed to decrease to an
A timeline of the AsiAnA 214 crAsh 4,000 feet
180 seconds
Check airman observed airplane slightly high. Check airman observed vertical speed mode selected.
1,600 feet
82 seconds
Autopilot disengaged.
1,400 feet
73 seconds
Airspeed: 170 knots
1,000 feet
54 seconds
Airspeed: 149 knots
500 feet
34 seconds
Airspeed: 134 knots Check airman observes three red and one white PAPI light. Check airman commands IOE captain to “pull back.” Lateral deviation begins.
200 feet
16 seconds
Airspeed: 118 knots Check airman observes four red PAPI lights.
125 feet
8 seconds 7 seconds 4 seconds 3 seconds 1.5 seconds
Airspeed: 112 knots Power advanced forward by IOE captain. “Increase speed” call by unknown crew member. Stick shaker activation. Airspeed: 103 knots/power accelerates to 50 percent “Go-around” call by unknown crewmember(s).
0 seconds
Airspeed: 106 knots/impact with seawall
0 feet
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 7 4 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
uncomfortable level on a single-engine approach before I recovered. Gone unmonitored, it would have the result the world witnessed with the Asiana fight. In addition to the automation issues, consider some other ingredients as accident factors. No matter how pleasant the individual, fying with a check airman adds a certain measure of stress above and beyond the awkwardness of operating a new airplane. An IOE pilot is under constant performance evaluation. Having been on both sides of the equation, I understand the stress. Add to the mix the fact that the captain in the right seat was new to his check airman position, evaluating an experienced captain who had been an instructor. Perhaps a little intimidation was involved? Or perhaps the check airman had an expectation that the IOE captain would perform to a higher standard? Utilizing automation for nearly every phase of fight can deteriorate or de-emphasize basic fying skills. As ridiculous as it sounds, a visual approach could prove to be a daunting task, especially if it’s rarely accomplished without electronic guidance. As a peripheral factor, the IOE captain claimed to have experienced a fash of light at some point during the approach. Although the NTSB will investigate the possibility, it doesn’t appear to give the light much credence. Even the IOE captain admits that it did not obscure his vision inside the cockpit. Regardless of the above possibilities, why weren’t the power levers shoved through the instrument panel light years earlier? That’s the multimillion-dollar investigation question. I’ll be on the sidelines with you, waiting for the NTSB’s Blue Cover Report.
A utomot i v e Acces s o ri es Laser Measured, Custom-Fit
FloorLiner™
Accurately and Completely Lines the Interior Carpet
Textured Finish
Contoured Underside
Available in Black, Tan and Grey for over 900 Applications
Check out our full line of Automotive Accessories at WeatherTech.com
In-Channel
All-Weather Floor Mat
Accessories Available for Order Now: 800-441-6287 © 2013 by MacNeil IP LLC
Cargo/Trunk Liner
Side Window Deflectors
Acura · Audi · BMW · Buick · Cadillac · Chevrolet · Chrysler · Dodge · Ferrari · Ford · GMC · Honda · Hummer · Hyundai · Infniti Isuzu · Jeep · Kia · Land Rover · Lexus · Lincoln · Maserati · Mazda · Mercedes-Benz · Mercury · Mini · Mitsubishi · Nissan Oldsmobile · Plymouth · Pontiac · Porsche · Saab · Saturn · Scion · Subaru · Suzuki · Toyota · Volkswagen · Volvo · and more!
American Customers WeatherTech.com
Canadian Customers WeatherTech.ca
European Customers WeatherTechEurope.com
F L ASH BAC K S BY BETHANY WHITFIELD
A LOOK BACK AT FLYING MAGAZINE 25 AND 50 YEARS AGO
WE EXAMINED new fuel additives that aimed to reduce the likelihood of flash fires during aircraft crashes. The new chemicals could reportedly turn fuel into a jelly with the consistency of butter within a half of a second, preventing the volatile fuel flow that can lead to fiery crash scenes.
OUR COVER FEATURED A BELL 206B JETRANGER, WHICH THE MANUFACTURER CLAIMED WAS THE SAFEST SINGLE-ENGINE HELICOPTER ON THE MARKET AT THE TIME. WITH MORE THAN 4,000 OF THE MODELS FLYING, THE JETRANGER REIGNED FOR YEARS AS THE MOST POPULAR HELICOPTER IN THE SKIES.
WE REPORTED on Beech Aircraft Corp.’s development of its Queen Air 80 prototype. While flight-testing that airplane, the company was simultaneously working on constructing a pressurized successor — to be known as the King Air — which would go on to become one of the most successful business turboprops of all time.
WE TALKED TO then-91-year-old Jimmy Doolittle, who provided a first-hand account of his long aviation career and of making the first “blind” instrument-only flight. When asked what it was like to fly new aircraft, Doolittle said, “If you feel you’re the airplane’s master, nothing stirs you up anymore.
LEN MORGAN extolled the virtues of the P-51 Mustang, that most venerated of all World War II fighters. Morgan described flying the Mustang as similar to “riding a slingshot” and called the airplane “a beguiling temptress no suitor forgot.”
OUR COVER FEATURED A CESSNA 320 CROSSING THE BEAUTIFUL EMERALD-BLUE WATERS OF BISCAYNE BAY OFF THE COAST OF MIAMI. IT WAS THANKS TO THE ADVENT OF GENERAL AVIATION THAT MIAMI TRANSFORMED FROM A REMOTE VACATION DESTINATION INTO AN AREA OF THRIVING, YEARLONG ACTIVITY.
F LY I N G M A G . C O M / 8 0 / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 3
If you fly it...
We insure it. AOPA Insurance Services helps insure more GA aircraft — including Light Sport, Turbine and Experimental planes — than anyone else in the world. And, it’s no wonder. Based on our extraordinary relationships with A rated companies, we can provide you with: • The best coverage at the best price • Coverage options to fit your needs • Accident forgiveness • The expertise and service you deserve. Protecting your passion is our passion.
Get your customized quote quickly, today!
800-622-AOPA [2672]
And get the best coverage at the best price.