VINTAGE INSTRUCTOR
THE
BY DOUG STEWART
Don’t hurry, be safer!
T
he last week of July this year had been a long, hot, and hard week for me. Admittedly, I had spent the entire week in aviation mecca—AirVenture ’06. Many of my friends and acquaintances seem jealous that I get to spend the entire week at AirVenture every year, but they forget that I spend most of my time there working. Between presenting numerous forums and attending to my responsibilities in the NAFI (National Association of Flight Instructors) tent each and every day, it had been a very tiring week, and I was eager to get home. The plan was for me to oversee the change of personnel at the NAFI tent at midday, on the last Sunday of AV ’06, and then fly home. I had a client scheduled for the first thing on Monday morning, back at Columbia County, but practicing what I preach, the client knew I wasn’t promising to be there. If too many X’s appeared on my PAVE and CARE checklists, I might not make it home in time, if at all, for the appointment. I certainly wasn’t going to let the pressure of that appointment lead me into a bad situation. Those of you who were there must remember the ugly weather that greeted us that Sunday morning. For those of you who weren’t, let me just say that the severe storm warnings that were issued that
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morning were for a real good reason. Level 6 (and occasionally level 7) storms curving along a line that was close to 100 miles long were charging across Wisconsin out of the northwest.
There are few things in aviation that require us to hurry. The storm hit Oshkosh a little after 7 a.m. that morning. (A testament to the storm’s strength was that the flagpole atop the NAFI tent was bent back at a 45-degree angle, albeit with the flag still attached, when we arrived at the tent that morning.) Stretching out behind the frontal line all the way to the Minnesota border was an area of weather that went anywhere from level 4 down to level 1 rain, with some holes and clear areas in between. Then there was a second line of storms that wasn’t anywhere near as long or wide, but with the same approximate intensity. All of this was moving to the east-southeast. After that bit of nastiness was
over, many of the pilots still remaining at Wittman Field were now preparing for a hasty exodus before the second line of weather hit, myself included. I was able to quickly retire from my duties at the NAFI tent and contact the two people who would be flying back home with me so we could coordinate our earlier-thanplanned departure. Fortunately, I had already taken care of the fueling of my airplane the previous day, so that wouldn’t delay us. As I hurried about, taking care of the few bits of unfinished business that had to be attended to, I took the time to remind myself to remain vigilant about the dangers of being in a hurry. More often than I really care to confess, I have gotten myself into, for lack of a better word, a compromised situation because of being in a hurry. Although some might call me an old dog, I have learned at least one new trick, and that is to not rush. Another thing I learned long ago is that aviation is inherently dangerous. It really wasn’t all that long ago that I would say to a prospective client: “You know, the most dangerous part of this flying business is the drive home from the airport.” What a bunch of hogwash! Aviation is filled with risk. The only thing that keeps us safe is our ability to manage it. This risk is not limited to when we’re airborne, in whatever type of