http://www.rjma.com/flight/airwaves/920.htm

We left the San Francisco Bay area around 3pm and climbed into the eastern sky with same sense of adventure that likely gripped Charles Lindbergh as he began his record-breaking flight across the Atlantic in 1927. Along the way, we encountered thunderstorms, downed aircraft, narrow mountain passes, ice and snow in the clouds, an emergency landing, major re-routes, a declared low fuel advisory, and hours of flying over remote, rugged terrain. It was not what you would call your typical cross-country training flight!

This incredible adventure began on Sunday, September 19 and over the next five days we encountered nearly every imaginable challenge to safe flight. Our record of this journey is detailed in a 12 page narrative log with numerous photos. You can read about this exciting adventure by clicking HERE. My hope is that you will see and understand the importance of aeronautical decision-making and risk assessments that went into making this a safe, successful mission.

While our "stick and rudder" skills and maneuvers-based training played an important role in this trip, it was the decisions we made that ultimately determined our fate. Unfortunately, these are the very skills that are inadequately addressed in most traditional flight training programs.

Cessna 210 Bi-Annual Flight Reviews (BFRs) Features Extreme Maneuvers Recovery Training . . .

The pilots of high performance singles get themselves into trouble when they apply the incorrect control inputs following an unexpected upset.

Disorientation in the clouds, or severe turbulence, or autopilot malfunction rolls the airplane over to a 60 to 70 degree bank angle. The resultant loss of the vertical component of lift produces a sudden decrease in altitude. The poorly prepared pilot pulls back on the yoke in a vain effort to recover the lost altitude. As he pulls back, the airplane rolls into a quickly tightening spiral. Once the airplane exceeds 70 degrees of bank, the yoke enters the area of reverse command, e.g., the more the elevator is pulled back, the steeper the dive!

Dr. Charles Bishop and his wife, Dr. Beverly Bishop (pictured left - click on in to enlarge), owners of Cessna 210 Centurion recognize the importance of extreme maneuvers training. Both Bishops have been flying for 47 years . . . and they didn't begin flying until reaching their mid thirties (do the math). Their many years of experience have convinced them of the importance of remaining proficient in unusual attitude recoveries, especially in high performance airplanes. Each year, the Bishops and I go up high, fly hard, produce a little sweat, and land with the skills they need to remain upright in the toughest of flight situations.

Frank Nullet, M.D. (pictured left - click on it to enlarge), a cardiologist from Erie, PA also recognizes the importance remaining proficient in extreme maneuvers recovery in his pressurized Cessna 210. My recurrent training with him focused on extreme maneuvers recovery using no hands! The entire recovery procedure was limited to power and rudder inputs only while under the hood! I had Frank slow his airplane to MCA (minimal controllable airspeed). I gave a sharp tug on the yoke to produce a sudden stall, then kicked hard on the rudder to yaw the airplane into the first quarter turn of a spin. The inboard wing instantly fell out from under us and the nose pointed downward. Frank, while under the hood and hands on his lap, instantly pressed hard on the high wing rudder which returned the airplane to a wings level attitude. With the return of the vertical component lift, the nose rose sharply and the airplane slowly returned to steady-state, level flight. Again, this was all accomplished with Frank under the hood and his hands on his lap!

High performance airplanes like the Cessna 210 can quickly get out of control in the hands of an improperly trained pilot. Their sleek profiles enables these airplanes to rapidly exceed redline speed and produce a resultant airframe failure. The proficient Cessna 210 pilot has little to worry about in this regard! This also applies to Mooneys, Bonanza's, Cirrus, Lancairs, and dozens of other high performance singles.

Just when you think you've played by all the rules, you find yourself within a whisker committing an operational error (a bust . . . in aviation lingo). This past Tuesday, October 5, I was enroute from Jackson, Tennessee direct to Buffalo, on an IFR plan at 17,000 feet. About one hour into my planned four hour flight, the Memphis Center controller called and asked if I was aware of the TFR (temporary flight restriction) over Ft. Campbell, KY.

The center controller said, "You better check your charts and change the routing to your destination."

Huh . . . what was this all about, I thought to myself? The Flight Service briefing I received prior to departure indicated that there were no TFRs along my route of flight. And, frankly, I wasn't even sure where Ft. Campbell was relative to my route of flight. How close was I to it?

I called Center. "Ah, Memphis Center, where is this TFR relative to my present position," I asked?

"It's at 12 O'clock and 30 miles," he replied. "You should have known about it. Which way do you want to go?"

"Negative . . . check your charts," came his terse reply! I could tell that he was annoyed that I was apparently not aware of the rapidly approaching TFR.

This instantly became a real life scenario that required immediate action on my part. What should I have done? Here were my choices:

The first option is what the controller suggested I do. The problem was the impending TFR was only 30 miles away. Traveling at three miles per minutes (180 KTAS), I had only 10 minutes to select a suitable re-route. This would have been sufficient time IF I actually knew where I was relative to Ft. Campbell. Remember, IFR charts do not depict ground references. So this option would not work.

Calling the nearest FSS was also not an option for the same time issue. Besides, they no longer had my original flight plan on file. I would have to start all over with them on a whole new flight plan.

The only reasonable choice as I saw it was to literally sweet talk the reluctant controller into giving me a vector around the TFR. In doing this, I explained in a friendly manner that I had requested TFR information in my original FSS briefing and that no TFRs were reported to me. I added that ATC had approved my requested direct routing to Buffalo . . . then I threw myself at his mercy!

He replied, "Roger, Centurion 4720Y, fly heading 050 degrees, vectors around Ft. Campbell."

The problem is that nothing in either the Private Pilot, Instrument Pilot, Commercial Pilot, or the CFI Practical Test Standards (PTS) or the FARs addresses the operational error (bust) that nearly occurred on my flight from Jackson, TN to Buffalo last week.. Specifically, which variety of TFRs can be legally penetrated by IFR flights on approved flight plans vs. which variety of TFRs must be circumnavigated? Equally perplexing is, how can a pilot be expected to avoid TFRs which FSS specialists fail to inform him of? Lastly, can a pilot on an IFR flight plan really expect ATC to steer him clear of TFRs?

This is yet another example of where conventional pilot training curricula falls woefully short of meeting the needs of private and instrument pilots operating in today's national airspace system. The only realistic way of developing proficient pilots is for CFIs to take their students out of the "practice area" and into the system as a regular, ongoing part of their flight training. Clearly, this is NOT being done by many local flight schools. I know this because I regularly review the log books of pilots coming to me for advanced flight training from other local flight training programs. Aside from the minimum required cross-country training, all of their flights took place at their local hometown airports and in the "practice area." Similarly, nearly all of their required instrument training took place under simulated rather than actual IMC conditions.

In summary, we will not reduce operational errors and associated accident rates until and unless we dramatically change the way we train pilots. This begins by conducting scenario-based training in the national airspace system. Remember, every hour spent on soft-field takeoffs and landings and S-turns over a road is one less hour spent in aeronautical decision making and risk management skills development.

Meet Jim Kaletta . . . Accomplished Pilot, Aircraft Owner, Association Leader, and Corporate Executive

Jim Kaletta is one of WNY's many aviation veteran's whose childhood love of flying transformed itself into a career of reward, and fun. Jim is a familiar face to local aviation.

Not only did he become an accomplished pilot, educated professional, and a local captain of industry, he went on to hold leadership posts as president of the Aviation Distributors and Manufactures Association, the Air Force Association, and the Buffalo Aero Club. He also served on the boards of directors of the Niagara Falls Airshow and the Buffalo Launch Club. With still time remaining in his busy schedule, Jim contributed himself as an Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Young Eagles pilot, Civil Air Patrol pilot, and as an FAA Aviation Safety Counselor in both Buffalo and Florida.

And that's not all. Jim is a member of the Quiet Birdman (QBs), the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), the Aerospace Medical Association, and the Airline Pilots Association (ALPA). In 1991, Jim was inducted into the Niagara Frontier Aviation Hall of Fame. As for Jim's hobbies, its no surprise that flying is listed as number one!

Western New York is proud to have men and women like Jim Kaletta who not only served as pioneers in aviation, but who continue to be role models for a whole new generation of pilots now learning to fly. He remains active in his many aviation organizations, particularly with the Civil Air Patrol, where he takes delight in introducing young people to aviation and encouraging them as they endeavor to follow in his remarkable footsteps.

Inside the ‘Perfect Storm’ and other gales — a rescue pilot’s story: Famed Rescue Pilot Edward Fleming to Address Aero Club of Buffalo on Thursday, October 21, 2004

During the course of a 30-year career in helicopter rescue, Colonel Edward Fleming led scores of high-risk missions, including the gale of 1991 described in Sebastian Junger's “The Perfect Storm” and the airlift of Dr. Jerri Nielsen from Antarctica after she developed breast cancer. He has written about his experiences, and was recently invited on the “Today” show to talk about his new book, “Heart of the Storm: My Adventures as a Helicopter Rescue Pilot and Commander.”

Col. Ed Fleming tells a story of true heroism about the constant dangers faced by the pilots and crews who fly the most versatile — and vulnerable — aircraft in the skies today."
— John Glenn, former U.S. senator, astronaut, and bestselling author of John Glenn: A Memoir

"To risk your life to save a stranger is the highest mark of a human being. Ed Fleming is such a man, and this book is a great read."
— Dr. Jerri Nielsen, author of the #1 New York Times bestselling Ice Bound

"Filled with suspense and emotion, Heart of the Storm reads like a thriller — but it’s all true. Ed Fleming has led a dramatic and interesting life, and this book portrays it in living color."
— Robert K. Tanenbaum, New York Times bestselling author of Resolved and Absolute Rage

Click HERE to make your reservations for this exciting evening. You do NOT have to be a member to attend. Guests are welcome!

Click HERE for information about becoming a member of the Aero Club of Buffalo.

This program will be a sell out! Seating is very limited. Make your reservations early!!!!

The following recounting of a tragic spatial disorientation flight was reported in the October 8 issue of AOPA's e-Pilot's Newsletter. It is illustrative of how insidious spatial disorientation can be, especially to low time, perhaps inadequately trained IFR pilots. Pilots are particularly vulnerable to spatial disorientation if they received only minimal instrument training experience in actual IMC conditions. While simulated instrument conditions, e.g., "under the hood" and in a flight simulator, offers a convenient way to learn IFR procedures, these simulated conditions are no match for the experience gained from flying in actual IFR conditions. Take a look at your logbook . . . if less than 30 percent of your instrument training took place in the clouds, beware! Finding IMC conditions to train and fly in is no problem here in WNY!

Another factor contributing to spatial disorientation in the clouds is not being current. IFR skills are the most fragile of all flight skills, e.g., they quickly deteriorate from lack of use. Just because you have your IFR ticket doesn't mean you are proficient on the gauges. WARNING: If you haven't been in the clouds in the past 30 days, you can expect to experience sweaty palms! The best way to restore your IFR proficiency get back in the clouds ASAP . . . or by taking an instrument proficiency check (IPC) with a CFII.

On October 25, 2002 a pilot flying a Cessna 182 became disorientated and crashed while being vectored for an approach into the Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro, NC. The pilot and both of his passengers were killed.

On the day of the accident, the pilot attempted two ILS approaches to Runway 33 at the Smith Reynolds Airport in Winston Salem, NC. Shortly after being cleared for the first ILS approach, the pilot called Greensboro Approach and declared an emergency, stating that was "totally disoriented". Approach Control instructed the pilot to climb to 6,000 feet in order to get on top of the overcast. The pilot was then given a radar vector to re-intercept the Runway 33 localizer. During the approach, the pilot was advised that he was off course, and instructions to climb to 4,000 feet were issued. ATC issued another heading to intercept the localizer again, and the pilot was unable to maintain the inbound course.

Approximately 50 minutes after the pilot initially contacted Greensboro Approach, he advised them his fuel status was low. In an effort to help the pilot, approach then vectored the pilot towards Piedmont Triad for an Airport Surveillance Radar (ASR) approach. The last instructions given to the pilot were to maintain 2,500, turn 10-degrees to the right to re-intercept the inbound course. The airplane was found in a heavily wooded area near the outer marker. Greensboro weather at the time of the accident was one-half mile (statute) visibility with mist, and the ceiling was100 feet overcast.

The NTSB determined the cause of this accident to be the pilot experiencing spatial disorientation, which resulted in a loss of control and collision with trees.

Many pilots don't even know what spatial disorientation is, or how to cope with it in the airplane. What is worse, severe disorientation can happen so subtly that a pilot may not realize how serious the situation is until it is too late. For more information on how to prevent spatial disorientation and how to cope if you experience it, see the AOPA Air Safety Foundation's recently updated Safety Advisor, Spatial Disorientation.

The photo left (click on it to enlarge) is of Barron that survived a mid-air collision. Note how the landing gear of the other airplane cut a swash right through the roof of the cockpit!

Mid-air collisions are largely non-survivable. This guy was obviously quite likely. While non-survivable, mid-air collisions are easily avoidable. One of the best ways to avoid a mid-air collision is to ALWAYS contact ATC and request Flight Following. If you don't do that, at least turn on your transponder and squawk altitude. This will enable other TCAS equipped airplanes to see and avoid you.

But the very BEST defense against a mid-air collision is to simply look out the window! It's easy for pilots to get pre-occupied with their instruments, their radios, their charts . . . . and even their passengers (or CFI). Constant scanning of your surrounding airspace is essential to avoiding a mid-air collision.

Thanks to Kevin Rose of Kevin Rose Aviation Services at Akron Airport for sharing this dramatic photo with us.

The lesson illustrated by the above photos (click on each to enlarge) is straight forward and very clear. Pilots MUST have their feet on the brakes before engaging the starter! Thanks to John Lipiarz for sharing these photos with us!

Bill, Hillary and Kerry are flying on Kerry's wife's private jet.

Bill looks at Hillary, chuckles and says,

"You know, I could throw a $100.00 bill out the window

right now and make somebody very happy."

Hillary shrugs her shoulders and says,

"Well, I could throw ten $10.00 bills out the window

and make 10 people very happy."

Kerry says,

"Of course then,

I could throw one-hundred $1.00 bills out the window

and make a hundred people very happy."

The pilot rolls his eyes,

looks at all of them and says to his co-pilot,

"Such Big shots back there.....

I could throw all of them out the window

and make millions happy."

[Thanks, Bob Race, for sharing this with us!]

Click on the photo to the left to see the Rand Corporation's published 1954 vision of what the typical home computer will look like in 50 years (2004)! Obviously, technology moved along far faster than the best minds at the Rand Corporation could imagine. Sadly, like this Rand prediction, the training paradigms we follow often lag far behind the what is happening in the real world. This is particularly true in aviation.

Examples of this are more numerous than we can imagine. GPS, for example, is a phenomenal safety tool, but no where in the private or instrument Practical Test Standards (PTS) are emergency overhead GPS descents through the clouds discussed or required. Few CFI's incorporate these maneuvers in their emergency procedures training curriculum. Why? One big reason is they are not required by the PTS! Remember, today's Practical Test Standards (PTS) for all ratings were developed back when the above photo was taken!

If the goal of the student is to pass the check ride and get his/her pilots certificate, then time spent on more relevant, lifesaving, issues is solely at the discretion of the flight instructor (and the student's checkbook). In most cases, flight instruction is limited to those topics covered by the PTS. For example, if the airplane is equipped with an automatic direction finder (ADF), the Instrument PTS requires demonstrated student proficiency using the very same ADF technology that was around when the photo to the left was taken!

How about discussions during the oral exam about communications failure while in IMC conditions? The FAR that addresses this subject, specifically 91.185, provides the "required" answer. The answer given is NOT the best solution in today's radar environment. Take a look at the weather products addressed in the Private Pilot Knowledge Test. Most private pilots will never, ever see several of those products in the real world. Yet, none of the currently available web-based weather products nor those available on proprietary weather computers at nearly every airport are even addressed on the Knowledge test.

How about demonstrating proficiency in soft field takeoffs and landing? Today, 99 percent of the nation's public use airports are all paved! This was not so back when the Rand photo was taken, yet the maneuver is still in the PTS! There's nothing wrong with teaching soft field landings, but let's not do it at the expense of leaving out more relevant, more current training issues - like TFR identification and avoidance procedures, position awareness training using hand-held GPSs, issuing and interpreting PIREPs, in-flight weather avoidance services available from ATC, etc. We need to get private pilots back into the radar facilities and towers to better understand the national airspace system.

The sooner the flight training community . . . and the FAA folks that regulate it . . . understands this, the sooner we will be able to dramatically improve aviation safety.

To its credit, the Rochester Flight Standards District Office (FSDO) recently e-mailed the following message to flight training professionals throughout its region:

As you are no doubt aware, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is moving forward with several key initiatives to help improve the quality of pilot education. Logically, the success of these efforts will depend greatly on the flight instructor community. For this reason, the FAA views the existing cadre of aviation educators as a key element in improving the quality of training within the general aviation (GA) community.

In an effort to develop policy and training materials that support the flight training community, the FAA had developed three new training guides to assist you in your instructional activities. The first of these is the Flight Instructor Training Module, Volume 1: FAA/Industry Training Standards. This document is intended to familiarize flight instructors with the FITS program, including its history, objectives, and future goals. It is also designed to aid instructors in the development of their own FITS-based training curricula.

The second and third resources are both designed to help flight instructors understand and effectively utilize the tenets of System Safety. Volume 2 provides an introduction to System Safety. It also highlights several practical tools that pilots may use to help identify hazards, assess risk, and address any safety of flight issues before they pose a threat.

Volume 3 of the series takes these principles a step further by guiding instructors through the development of their own unique scenario-based training programs. This will allow instructors to teach System Safety not as an ad hoc instructional topic, but instead as an integral part of each training activity.

All three of these instructional resources, along with other valuable training materials, may be download by visiting http://www.faa.gov/avr/afs/FITS/training.cfm

This is an excellent first step in the process of bringing flight training into the 21st century. Hopefully, we'll see some major revisions to the Practical Test Standards (PTS) because . . . as long as those standards remain, that's what the vast majority of CFIs will train to!

Are you ready to deal with the Flight Service Station briefer's warnings of occasional icing in clouds and precipitation?

These are just a few of the critical issues you must be familiar with whenever operating a non-known ice certified airplane in Upstate New York from November 1st through May 1st. Unfortunately, the easy answer . . . the answer given to you by many inexperienced CFIs is to NOT fly when icing is in the forecast. While such advice will most assuredly keep you out of the ice, it will also keep you on the ground for months at a time!

There is no easy solution to the problem of icing. It is an insidious meteorological condition that has baffled weather forecasters since the earliest days of powered flight. Locating icing conditions in

the clouds is like looking at a stadium full of people and identifying those persons who have the flu! Just because people are known to walk around with the flu does not mean we have to avoid crowds. If that were the case, the FAA would not permit wintertime IFR flight of non-known ice certified airplanes when the cloud temperatures drop below 32 degrees F.

Like anything else in aviation, frequent recurrent training can fill a lot of knowledge and skill gaps. Such recurrent training can bring you up to speed in: (1) new web-based ice forecast products such as the one HERE; (2) actually flying in cold clouds; (3) and in learning to make realistic go/go-go decisions regarding wintertime flying.

Click HERE for an excellent article that should answer many of your questions about aircraft icing.

"All aircraft, if capable, shall maintain a
listening watch on VHF guard 121.5."
- Notam FDC 4/4386

This Notam, issued shortly after September 11, 2001 is still in effect! This requires that all aircraft with two radios to tune and listen to the emergency frequency, 121.5, on their number two radio. It also reminds us of the North American Air Defense Command's (NORAD's) new procedures for communicating with aircraft crews whose intentions are unknown. These procedures will be published in the next update of the FAR/AIM. While these procedures remain unpublished, we have learned that intercept aircraft will dispense flares in your vicinity IF you are the target of their intercept intentions. Should this happen, you can expect to receive landing instructions on frequency 121.5 MHz.

If this issue of Over the Airwaves was forwarded to you by a friend, you can order your own free future copies of this e-publication by simply clicking HERE and completing the very brief signup form.

Over the Airwaves is not intended to be your typical training, official news, or club-type social journal. Instead, its intent is to stimulate thought, enhance aviation critical thinking skills, to encourage the strong pilot, and to disturb the weaker pilot. With this breadth of scope, Over the Airwaves will evoke a number of reactions. Please feel free to share these reactions with me by clicking HERE.