About Good Pilots and Bad Pilots

An example of one of my errors was before I got my IFR ticket, I decided to
launch on a forecast of broken 4000 foot ceilings and tops at 6000.
Forecast was to improve by the time I got to my destination. I did flight
following at 8000 so I could be VFR over the top and be in the clear smooth
air. You can guess what happened. Forecast was a bust.

Where was the error? If you had outs the whole way and didn't get
yourself up a (figurative) box canyon, you were fine. You were not
"Caught VFR on top", since VFR fields were in range. Needing to divert
is not a sign of error.

You were more vulnerable, as the fan could have quit leaving you to
descend through cloud. But you have a similar vulnerability flying over
water. Flying is risky; we accept the risk for the benefit.

Does the above make me a bad pilot for...

In my book, being a bad (or good) pilot requires a consistant pattern of
bad (or good) decisions. A single instance does not have predicitive value.

To err is human, and we must accept that even good pilots err, and that
an occasional mistake does not make them bad pilots (a phrase with
predicitive value). "Excusable" means "it's ok". This is why I say
there is no excuse, but there are reasons.

Jose
--
Money: what you need when you run out of brains.
for Email, make the obvious change in the address.

Jose wrote:

An example of one of my errors was before I got my IFR ticket, I
decided to
launch on a forecast of broken 4000 foot ceilings and tops at 6000.
Forecast was to improve by the time I got to my destination. I did
flight
following at 8000 so I could be VFR over the top and be in the clear
smooth
air. You can guess what happened. Forecast was a bust.


Where was the error? If you had outs the whole way and didn't get
yourself up a (figurative) box canyon, you were fine. You were not
"Caught VFR on top", since VFR fields were in range. Needing to divert
is not a sign of error.

You were more vulnerable, as the fan could have quit leaving you to
descend through cloud. But you have a similar vulnerability flying over
water. Flying is risky; we accept the risk for the benefit.

Does the above make me a bad pilot for...


In my book, being a bad (or good) pilot requires a consistant pattern of
bad (or good) decisions. A single instance does not have predicitive
value.

Do you mean predictive value? If that is the case, then you really
can't predict much based on a pilots style or behavior. I've know lots
of pilots who are very risk oriented and have never had an accident or
incident and I know a few who are very conservative and safety conscious
who have. I stand by my earlier assertion that it is results that
count, not intent, style, good living, whatever.

Matt

Do you mean predictive value?

Yes.

If that is the case, then you really can't predict much based on a pilots style or behavior. I've know lots of pilots who are very risk oriented and have never had an accident or incident and I know a few who are very conservative and safety conscious who have. I stand by my earlier assertion that it is results that count, not intent, style, good living, whatever.

The race isn't alwasy to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but
that's the way to bet.

Jose
--
Money: what you need when you run out of brains.
for Email, make the obvious change in the address.

"Jose" wrote in message
...
snip
To err is human, and we must accept that even good pilots err, and that an
occasional mistake does not make them bad pilots

but it may make them dead pilots.

Private wrote:

"Jose" wrote in message
...
snip

To err is human, and we must accept that even good pilots err, and that an
occasional mistake does not make them bad pilots


but it may make them dead pilots.



Which is bad. :-)

Matt