Originally Posted by
PukinDog
But you go on ahead thinking whatever you want about good 'ole plane-thieving, reckless-flying, suicidal "Rich" that felt like he was entitled to an audience just because he decided to off himself.
I work somewhere that frequently has people commit suicide and many people call it selfish and that they want an audience. The truth is that at that moment they’re not them anymore, they’re in a different headspace and the only outcome they see is one of them ending their life by how they have chosen. Their mind completely switches off from what makes sense. From the lack of audio communication on taxi/takeoff I’d say Rich is in that place, he’s effectively on his own auto-pilot. The only way to stop him is by someone speaking to him, and I’d guess nobody was there when he got on that plane.
Later in the recordings It sounds like he might be crying as he talks to the other pilot and ATC about landing. He also said he didn’t expect to make it after the roll.
He was heading for the Olympic mountains, at a guess that was his intended final destination but the talk between pilots/atc might have just convinced him to not do it. I don’t think he ever intended to land the plane when he got on it. I think the ATC/pilot chat in the air will have made him realise this wasn’t the way to go.
Not sure if the crash was a landing attempt or not but there is a lesson in not ignoring mental health to be learnt here.