Rising toll blamed on Macho pilots
Sunday Mail (Qld) 5/10/02
"The alarming rate of air crashes in Qld could be halved if pilots were better trained, a pilots' association has claimed"
This is titled "The big Story - Our Deadly Skies". It is two and a half pages long and during the story manages to blame everything from CASA, poor training standards, spending too much time attending to rules and regs, pilot stress, the macho element, a breakdown in pilot situational awareness,decision making,lack of basic physical skills for the 58 poor unfortunates who have lost their lives in 30 seperate accidents in Qld since 1999. It manages to quote our friend Bill, Peter Gibson, Bill Mattes, Doug Edwards. Somehow Dick was left out.
Doug Edwards said, what anyone who has been in the business knows, quote "Too many accidents are caused by a break down in the pilot's situation awareness. Flying Insructors, also, may be a person who has recently graduated as a pilot. The amount of learning they have to do to qualify as an instructor is minimal and it's really not enough"
Amen to that, Mr Edwards. Until instructing is seen as something to aspire to, something that is a priviledge to be gained after you have gone through the hoops and earned the right to instruct, is a profession that is treated with respect and paid wages according to that respect then no amount of chest beating, rule changing, will make a better pilot. I mean, anyone can learn to fly a 747 but how many really good able and dedicated instructors who know what they are doing are there?