Originally Posted by
Lou Scannon
Well, Worldpilot, I have no desire to break you in mind and body with the sort of sarcastic reply that many will feel that you deserve, but perhaps I could pass on a little gentle advice:
In aviation there are a set of obvious errors that sit on the shoulders of every pilot waiting to bite him hard. They include landing at the wrong airport, taking off on the wrong runway, closing down the wrong engine, landing with the gear not lowered, clipping the undershoot, running off the end of the runway, landing on the wrong runway etc etc etc.
If you are very very lucky you may survive a lifetime of professional flying without ever falling in to one of those traps. That would then be an appropriate time to pontificate in the manner that you have.
In reality most of would remember the time that one did fall in to one of the traps or would have done without the help of the other pilot, flight engineer, air traffic controller etc etc etc.
A gentle sigh and expression of sympathy for someone who had would then be the normal reaction.
Thank you, Lou; you have put this very well. We have all "been there and done that" and ultimately, given the nature of the job, it's a case of "there but for the grace . . . "
I find these madcap rushes to premature and ill-informed judgment of someone else's misfortune to be unpleasant and unecessary; particularly so when offered by people who should know a good deal better. I don't include the 150/172 spamcanman in the latter - his supposed level of experience does not qualify him to make any useful contribution in this regard.