of silly chest puffing is why I've never posted in this forum before
And that is the problem with this place, and sometimes it does my head in so much that I leave for a while...
Everyone is an expert, so someone says "he took off without doing any pre-flight checks" and everyone else gos "oooh, what bad airmanship". Then someone pipes up and says, "hang on, pre-flight checks can be done rather quickly you know" and then the new PPL wannabe pipes up "oooh, he didn't use a checklist, what bad airmanship, my instructor ALWAYS insists I use one", then someone else pipes up in suppport of the first person, and then they are accused of setting a bad example to students. Then DFC quotes chapter and verse from his "How to be a really good pilot in theory" book and the whole thread de-generates into "I'm going to tell my dad on you", schoolkid rubbish.
It goes back to what GEMMA says:
My instructor mentioned he is currently putting together a new checklist with the REASONS why we do the checks added.
Which is precisely correct. If you understand the REASONS why you do a preflight check then you don't nescessarily need to take an age to do them or use a checklist (actually GEMMA another reason for the carb heat check is to ensure there is not already cab ice present too
). I don't want my aeroplane falling apart in the air any more than the next person, but I understand that if the stabilator is firmly attached, all securing screws, locking wire, and mountings look ok (and the same as normal) then I can be reasonably sure that I will be ok. I can of course waggle it until the cows come home in the hope that it will fall off in my hands....
Everyone knows water in fuel can be a killer, there has more than one person been killed by water in fuel who HAS checked their tanks.....the water had frozen, only to melt after take off when the tanks have warmed. DFC's wonderful procedues would not catch this, though I would say that Bose's POST FLIGHT / POST refuel might.
Anway, each to their own....I'm not going to NOT do anything which is going to risk my neck or anyone elses up there...
Safe flying.