Your topic Experiment: The Zero-Distraction Diet was interesting when I found it on Thursday searching for online diet…

“I think you are using this accident to further your own agenda–and you have lots of company, unfortunately.” You (Dave) wrote this in response to my statement that “we don’t know that his performance was satisfactory regarding stall recoveries”. You disagreed, you said, because “As a former DPE myself, I noted no reference to stalls anywhere in any test the PIC ever failed “.

As I pointed out, and as a knowledgeable former DPE I would think you’d agree, check pilots are not required to list every single area of performance in which the pilot was initially less than proficient. All they must really record, in practice, is sufficient information to justify a finding of a disapproval. Further, as long as in the opinion of the check pilot the airman eventually received training in and/or satisfactorily demonstrated proficiency in noted deficient areas, that tested airman may then subsequently “pass”. Especially since he had test events in which it was determined that the entire flight check must be redone, we don’t know all of the specifics. I was, therefore, merely stating that we don’t absolutely KNOW (as I feel you stated when you said “About the only thing he NEVER FAILED – your caps – was stall recovery) that this particular pilot had not had any problems with stalls. We can only KNOW if an area was found to be unsatisfactory if it has been specifically identified as such, not if it has NOT been documented.

I never said, nor meant, that he had previouslly performed poorly at stall recoveries, nor did I even provide a reason as to why he seems to have done so in this accident. In fact, I asked/stated “Was he simply “surprised” and/or “panicked”, responding in a manner contrary to everything he had been taught? We’ll probably never know for sure, but it certainly seems so.”

While I can understand how you might (possibly correctly) view some of the comments in some of the posts here as “just crusaders’ efforts at ‘not wasting a crisis’” to further their own personal agenda, what in the world to you think might have been my ulterior motives or “agenda”?

I believe I have done nothing more than to restate factual information, along with some personal experience and belief, in a logical, rational, and deductive manner to support my view of what I think the NTSB may ultimately find were the probable causes of this accident. I don’t believe I promoted anything but thought, and I attacked nothing and no one. I assure you I have and had no agenda at all, either open or hidden, other than to attempt to bring information to light for consideration by any interested people who read Bruce’s article and our posts here. I do this in the hope that we might all be encouraged to remind ourselves, and others, that we must always be vigilant in our duties, and proficient in our performance, when we fly. The consequences of not doing so are simply too great, and all of us lose at least a little when any of us fail to remember that.

Thanks, and I also appreciate all of the great info everyone has contributed to this thread.

Rather, as several have explained so well in the prior commentaries, this case appears (in very simplified terms) to be all about a) Lack of Situational Awareness (SA), b) Not following standard procedures (like putting the gear down early, putting props high/fwd early, not veryfying that the airplane was configured correctly, etc, etc), c) Improper speed control, and lastly, d) Lack of
proper stall recovery technique.

All airplanes stall because the wing’s angle of attack (AOA) exceeds the stall AOA, and the only way to recover is to reduce the AOA (notice I did not say to “level off”) and increase the power. This basic technique works regardless of whether the plane is a Boeing or a Cessna, whether the plane has manual/hydraulic or fly-by-wire flight controls, or whether the plane has or not a stick pusher.

I feel sorry for the current state of airline pay vs. job demands, but as others have said, neither pay nor lack of rest was causal to this accident, Pilot Error was. sad, but true.

Unfortunately, every time an aircraft accident happens, all of us in aviation are affected, and all of us feel the pain.

Stay safe, and remember “speed is your friend”.

June 8th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
“Actually, Mr. Tuuri, we don’t know that his performance was satisfactory regarding stall recoveries. I only listed specific problem areas for the one specific proficiency training event…”

Well, I read all the docket’s documents and interviews with check airmen giving the rides. As a former DPE myself, I noted no reference to stalls anywhere in any test the PIC ever failed. I think you are using this accident to further your own agenda–and you have lots of company, unfortunately. Fatigue, sterile cockpit, training, pay, flight hours, etc., have no bearing on the root cause of this crash which was, simply, the stick did not go forward when the shaker went off. Pure and simple. But why didn’t it? The other items are just crusaders’ efforts at ‘not wasting a crisis’.

Dave Tuuri