Lessons learned from the Oregon tragedy

Mr Kim's death resulting from his decision to attempt to walk out of an
area he was unfamiliar with after becoming stranded, raises some thought
provoking questions for aviators.
In years past, this forum has carried several threads on surviving a
crash in a remote area. I behooves us all to review our personal
preparations for off airport landings in areas over which we will be
flying.

Sorry to hear about this... Does anyone have any background on it? I
live in Colorado and haven't heard about it.

john smith wrote:
Mr Kim's death resulting from his decision to attempt to walk out of an
area he was unfamiliar with after becoming stranded, raises some thought
provoking questions for aviators.
In years past, this forum has carried several threads on surviving a
crash in a remote area. I behooves us all to review our personal
preparations for off airport landings in areas over which we will be
flying.

I'm thinking of getting a PLB, although I haven't been able to convince
myself to spend the money yet. Right now I carry a handheld that I hope
to be able to raise someone on should I go down.

--Dan


john smith wrote:
Mr Kim's death resulting from his decision to attempt to walk out of an
area he was unfamiliar with after becoming stranded, raises some thought
provoking questions for aviators.
In years past, this forum has carried several threads on surviving a
crash in a remote area. I behooves us all to review our personal
preparations for off airport landings in areas over which we will be
flying.

it's been all over the news.. family missing.. stuck in snow after getting
lost..
father attempted to walk out after 8 days to get help.. walked in circle..
figure he walked 15 miles and was found a mile from his vehicle..
mother and children are ok

In oregon


wrote in message
oups.com...
Sorry to hear about this... Does anyone have any background on it? I
live in Colorado and haven't heard about it.

john smith wrote:
Mr Kim's death resulting from his decision to attempt to walk out of an
area he was unfamiliar with after becoming stranded, raises some thought
provoking questions for aviators.
In years past, this forum has carried several threads on surviving a
crash in a remote area. I behooves us all to review our personal
preparations for off airport landings in areas over which we will be
flying.

("john smith" wrote)
Mr Kim's death resulting from his decision to attempt to walk out of an
area he was unfamiliar with after becoming stranded, raises some thought
provoking questions for aviators.


One of his problems was thinking he was 'here,' when in fact he was
....there.

Many of his subsequent decisions were based on that first wrong premise.


Montblack

Montblack wrote:
("john smith" wrote)

Mr Kim's death resulting from his decision to attempt to walk out of an
area he was unfamiliar with after becoming stranded, raises some thought
provoking questions for aviators.



One of his problems was thinking he was 'here,' when in fact he was
...there.

Many of his subsequent decisions were based on that first wrong premise.

perhaps something as simple as a hand held GPS could have saved him. Or,
even a hand held radio.

Most pilots carry these items with them as a matter of course.

perhaps something as simple as a hand held GPS could have saved him. Or,
even a hand held radio.

It went well beyond that. Mr. Kim drove his family into mountainous
country, above the snow line, wearing tennis shoes and light clothing.
His chances of hiking out were almost nil.

I know he wasn't expecting to take a wrong turn, and I know he wasn't
expecting to get stuck in the snow, and I know he wasn't from that part
of the country -- but the unfortunate Mr. Kim apparently did not take
even the most basic precautions.

We keep a giant Tupperware container of survival gear in each of our
vehicles. In that kit is warm clothing, some food, chemical hand/feet
warmers jumper cables, flash lights, tools -- the basic survival stuff.
We have an even more extensive kit in our airplane, knowing that the
*average* time from crash to rescue is 18 hours in the United States --
plenty long to die of exposure in the Midwest.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

wrote:

Sorry to hear about this... Does anyone have any background on it? I
live in Colorado and haven't heard about it.

You must not watch the national news much. Search with Google on his
name and you should find lots of information.

Matt

Jay Honeck wrote:

but the unfortunate Mr. Kim apparently did not take
even the most basic precautions.

Happens to pilots a lot, too, I would surmise. How many pilots who fly
over the relatively smaller, yet just as remote and lethal mountains of the
eastern US carry survival gear?

Admittedly, I am not 100% there just yet myself, but I do carry a personal
locator beacon with GPS, a handheld GPS, space blanket, survival pack
(matches, signal mirror, whistle, etc), and a first-aid kit. I don't have
food and water at this point (not sure how to store it), nor do I have a
signal gun.

Regardless of the Monday morning arm-chair quarterbacking that no doubt is
going on around the newsgroups and chat rooms of the Internet, Mr. Kim had
a very difficult decision to make at that point. I cannot imagine what
that must have been like to be in that position and I have the utmost
respect for his attempt.

--
Peter

According to an FAA study I found on their website several years ago,
the time is 72 hours.

Jay Honeck wrote:

We have an even more extensive kit in our airplane, knowing that the
*average* time from crash to rescue is 18 hours in the United States --
plenty long to die of exposure in the Midwest.