Whirlybird asked:
I do find myself wondering if some of the people posting here have ever been in even a minor "emergency", like an unexpected diversion due to weather, while still having relatively few hours
Yes. Two, in fact.
On my second flight after passing my skills test, I had an alternator failure. I handled it ok, but I still needed a drink to calm the nerves afterwards. Since then, I've been involved in 3 more alternator failures - one as pax, one as PUT and one as observer on a test flight. In all three cases, my extra experience meant I was far more relaxed about the whole thing than I was the first time I experienced it.
I've also had to divert due to weather, with less than 100 hours. Again, I handled it fine, but it wasn't a pleasant experience. I've flown in marginal, deteriorating weather since then, and I've been far more aware of what's going on around me, both in terms of the weather and viable alternates. I haven't had to divert since that time, and I'd like to think that that is, at least partly, because of the lessons I learnt from the first time about staying on the ground if there's any question about the weather. But I also believe that, if I did get caught out by the weather again, I'd be in a better position to be able to make a diversion, and the whole thing would be less stressful.
So I think I'm probably in a position to say that low-hour pilots
are capable of handling minor emergencies, but that this capability improves with experience. And I don't know whether "low-hours" extends as far as first solo.
FFF
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