Pace;
Ever get the feeling that after all these years and all this learning we're getting too damn old for days like that?
Oddly the most frightening thing I have ever met from unforecast bad weather was unforecast heavy icing. KingAir 200, Prague to a business airfield close to London, single pilot I picked up so much ice in the climb that there was only about 15kt between cruise IAS and stall. Freezing level about 8 000' and mountains below so no chance to descend and the poor aeroplane wouldn't climb any more. Every gust set the stall warning off, I was petrified for 300nm.
A few years ago a couple of the GemStone guys did the same thing in a 748 over the Alps. The AAIB serious incident report is really scary.
SND