Originally Posted by
Pace
Where I differ is he states that full abrupt engine failures are Zero I cannot agree with that statement.
If BPF is arguing that all engine failures are pilot induced then sorry I disagree.
Hi Pace:
I edited your previous posts down to the two sentences I want to comment on.
First while obviously the probability of sudden total engine failures with no warning is not zero, I stand by my statement that it happens so rarely IMO no special training or practice for this scenario is warranted, yet this extremely unlikely scenario remains the initiating event for
virtually all of the forced approach exercises in training.
Your second statement is a deliberate misrepresentation of what I said. I said
80% of all engine failures are caused by the actions or inactions of the pilot. The other 20% obviously represent engine problems caused by something going wrong with the engine or its accessories. But again almost none of these faults
will result in the sudden total loss of power with no warning. Instead there will almost always be a period of abnormal engine gauge indications/engine roughness/partial loss of power/unusual odour/unusual noises etc etc. Recognizing this and doing something about about it will greatly increase the chance of a successful outcome over letting the engine fail and having to do a for real forced approach with no engine power.
So my point is that IMO flight training doesn't do a very good job on tailoring to training to fit what actually happens to real pilots in the real world. Instead it is all about flying the "perfect" forced approach. This ties back to the original question about field selection.
I thing the flight school obsession with field selection starts with a fundamentally flawed premise, that is choosing the "right" field is desirable because it will reduce the possibility of damage to the aircraft, something that is IMO utterly irrelevant. In fact I will go further and say that forced approach is the wrong word for the exercise, forced
crash is a better descriptor. The goal of the exercise is to crash in a manner that will have the lowest potential for injuries to those on board. I tell my students to aim for the middle of the landing area and make the aircraft hit the ground at the selected point, preferably at a low but controllable airspeed. If they are too fast and the aircraft is going to fly past the touch down point then I tell them to smash the aircraft onto the ground with forward stick.
Finally as I discussed in a previous thread if the engine loses power or stops after the glide attitude is established the aircraft is trimmed and pointed at the nearest flatish area, I expect a complete "cause" check to be carried out in a flow style of check. During the PFL exercise I will terminate the exercise if that check is not properly carried out and restart the exercise. This is the last chance to fix the pilot induced failures and save yourself from having to risk your, and your passengers life flying a for real forced approach.