Originally Posted by
Mike Flynn
I have received this email from Terry Holloway who is well known to many of you and MD of the Cambridge Flying Club.
His view is broadly one likely shared by very many here but I don't agree with its conclusion. First of all there is confusion around just what it is regulation and/or guidance is actually trying to associate risk with. As Terry himself highlights a 3700hr PPL is entirely likely to be as capable as a 250hr CPL in all ways but the paperwork, so then one might try and understand just what the barriers are to holding an AOC because if it is cost for the sake of loading cost into the equation due to the view that commercial operations can afford it and must pay then surely that is a bad thing and better to bring people into the fold than leaving them outside.
Further he may well speak about his highly experienced instructors and perhaps they are yet prior to AOC holders complaints over Wingly the other grumble surrounded the "Air experience" / gift flight conducted by this time inexperienced instructors!
You can have a conversation around the conduct of individual flights and if they are safely done or not (i.e. handling of the controls etc) and you can argue the relevant ratings this accident pilot may or may not have had, but what I don't think you can say with much confidence is that Wingly pilots are creating lots of smoking holes and I think that actually the root of this is more likely to be found in an overly onerous and costly AOC process than in any other place.
Wingly and its pilots are supervised just as any other pilot would be -the regulator has the same powers over them as anyone else?
I am shocked at Terry saying this. He might have had 3700 hours of take offs and landings but if he had 0 hours at night and was not qualified/current on instruments then he was dangerously negligent and I don't think a newly qualified CPL would be that stupid.
Come on - it may not suit the current mood of outrage but I can give you dozens of CPL/ATPLs that make mistakes, even with all the associated ratings.