birrddog
14th Apr 2010, 18:41
Received this link from the AOPA E-Brief.
Tulsa World: Report: Pilot lied about past (http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20100414_12_A11_TAHLEQ830499)
TAHLEQUAH — The pilot of a helicopter that crashed in October, killing two people, was under investigation for lying on his pilot's certificate and had methamphetamine and painkillers in his blood system at the time of the crash, a final report on the accident states.
Why someone would jeopardize their license, their life, and those around them, and risk a situation, that proved fatal in this case, is beyond belief.
Could this be an issue of training? Have I just been fortunate in those whom I have selected to train or guide me?
It is clearly in the syllabus, though I am referring to having this point hammered home, by the instructors. (And the aviation community in general)
Or am I off base in that comment?
Edited to add: Another example of why Hazardous attitudes should be as an important subject in the curriculum and re-currency training as ability to pilot an aircraft, like we have discussed in prior threads.
VeeAny
14th Apr 2010, 19:58
Birddog
Without commenting on this case in particular.
Sadly in a lot of walks of life but certainly in aviation the people who need telling the most, are those least likely to listen.
Gary
InducedDrag
14th Apr 2010, 23:55
or this....
Pilot on pain killers at time of crash, NTSB says (http://www.wbtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=12295246)
MONROE, NC (WBTV) - New information has surfaced in regards to the death of Mark Bartlett, the pilot who crashed his helicopter in Monroe in February of 2009.
According to the latest reports from the National Travel Safety Board, toxicology reports indicate that Bartlett was on high levels of prescription narcotics at the time of the crash.
Reports from the doctor say that Bartlett had been warned about the effects of the pain killers, which Bartlett took for knee problems.
His doctor also told him that he would only refill his prescription one more time. The doctor refilled the prescription one day before the crash, after assurance from Bartlett that he would not take them before flying.
The report also indicates that Bartlett lied about taking medication in his Federal Aviation Administration medical history in order to keep flying.
NTSB Identification: ERA09LA139
14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation
Accident occurred Thursday, January 22, 2009 in Monroe, NC
Aircraft: HUGHES OH-6A, registration: N4191A
Injuries: 1 Fatal, 1 Serious.
MEDICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL INFORMATION
Postmortem examination of the pilot-rated-passenger was conducted by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. The cause of death was listed as "…blunt force traumatic injuries."
The FAA's Civil Aerospace Medical Institute performed forensic toxicology on specimens from the pilot-rated-passenger. The report stated that 0.065 ug/ml Dihydrocodeine was detected in the urine, 0.156 ug/ml Hydrocodone was detected in the urine and 0.016 ug/ml was detected in the blood, and 0.147 ug/ml Hydromorphone was detected in the urine, but not in the blood, and Ibuprofen was detected in the Urine.
Medical records maintained on the pilot-rated-passenger by personal health care providers and by a pharmacy documented at least two kidney stones (in April 2006 and June 2007), treatment of high blood pressure since at least March 2007, and treatment for arthritis of the right knee since at least February of 2008. An orthopedic surgeon's note on the day before the accident noted, in part, that this pilot "…does have some grinding that hurts, especially painful up and down stairs. Also, some pain at work. He works as a helicopter pilot. … Inspection of gait reveals a minimal antalgic [painful] gait favoring the right lower extremity. Inspection of his right knee and leg show some moderate quadriceps atrophy. … MRI: … multiple loose bodies within the knee, some moderate arthritic change … some moderate chondromalacia patella. Assessment: Right knee mild osteoarthritis with some patellofemoral chondromalacia. … He is also requesting some more pain medication which was given previously. I spent some time counseling him regarding the long-term use of narcotics for arthritis. He is understanding that we will not be prescribing these long-term; however, he does need to help him sleep after a long night. We have given him a prescription for Vicoprofen[hydrocodone/ibuprofen], a total of 30. He has reassured me that he will not use these long term and that he will definitely not use them before flying a helicopter. …"
The pilot-rated-passenger's most recent Application for Airman Medical Certificate, dated May 21, 2008, indicated "No" in response to "Do You Currently Use Any Medication," and to all items under "Medical History," including specifically "High or low blood pressure" and Kidney stone or blood in urine." "Total Pilot Time" was noted as 250 hours "To date" and 50 hours in the "Past 6 months." Height was noted as 75 inches and weight as 235 pounds. All items under "Report of Examination" were noted as "Normal," including "Upper and lower extremities (Strength and range of motion)."