the Vintage Instructor STEVE KROG, CFI
Woulda, shoulda, coulda Many have said a majorit y of accidents/ incidents could have been prevented; the unfortunate outcome was a result of a series of small things that, when added together, led to an incident or accident. This is often referred to as a chain of events. As a flight instructor, I spend a good deal of ground school and flight training time discussing potential situations that could lead to an incident or worse. Actual situations are then experienced by the student (under the control of the instructor), such as pulling the power to idle just as the main gear leaves the runway. This is a practice I use with students, provided I know we have adequate runway to execute the “balked takeoff.” Some incidents begin taking place well before getting to the end of the runway. For example, several years ago while attending a major fly-in I observed an airplane taxi by the spot near where I was standing. The pilot’s head was in the cockpit focused on the instrument panel, adjusting the many bells and whistles on the instruments, radio, and GPS. In an instant of nonsituational awareness, major trouble developed. The aircraft left the taxiway, traveled down an embankment through a drainage ditch, and ended up
parked on a concrete waterway entrance. Taxi speed was not the problem; the pilot was taxiing quite slowly given the many people nearby. However, the pilot’s inattention led to a serious problem. No one was injured, but the pilot’s pride and self-esteem were certainly bruised severely that day. How did this really happen? One can only speculate, but I’ll take a guess that it happened like this. It was a true chain of events. The aircraft was not involved in the fly-in activities. Rather, it was meant to be a short charter flight. The pilot was prepared, and a preflight of the airplane was completed in preparation for the short 40-minute flight. But the passengers were late in arriving due to the amount of traffic entering the fly-in grounds. Upon arrival the passengers were in a hurry to get going. With passengers quickly aboard, the pilot attempted to expedite the launch time and began taxiing to the runway while setting up the required radio frequencies, GPS coordinates, and other needed instrumentation. The preoccupied pilot failed to negotiate a slight curve, departed the taxiway, and slid into the drainage ditch and concrete placement. In a matter of seconds, an anticipated short flight ended in disaster. Thinking back over the many flights I’ve personally made, especially cross-country flights earlier in my flying career, I recall several instances where I found myself in a situation in which I’d rather not to be. If you are honest with yourself, you, too, have been in similar circumstances. While I was attending an all day fly-in an hour or so away from home, the weather began to look ominous. Rather than stick around awaiting the impending thunderstorm, I chose to head for home in too much VINTAGE AIRPLANE
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