I blame GFC. (lack of funds to fix the aircon in the King Air)

I had a similar thing happen to me around 20 years ago, just the Pilot and me on a Kingair operating a charter flight from Brisbane to Townsville.

He nodded off to sleep for most of the flight, and I just assumed that was it as he said he was very tired, never considered he could have passed out, which luckily he hadn't and he woke up well before TSV.

Why do they still allow these flights on Kingairs with only one Pilot. :ugh:

Sadly? I should bloody well hope a pilot who falls unconscious at the helm (not to mention on approach!) would lose his medical!

These incidents are becoming too common and make a mockery of the aviation medical system.

So you couldn't give a toss about the poor guy who just lost his career, almost certainly through no fault of his own?

Nobody sets out to have a medical emergency, and no medical certification system can foresee every possible medical event.

Have a little compassion.

Does anyone actually know how this bloke is ?

I asked one of the Firebird AS50's on Wed if they knew and they didn't know.

Anyone with an update on his condition ?

So... Dr remoak. We were under the impression that he was never to regain his drivers lisence according to your authophsy... What is the sudden concern?

Because it is perfectly possible to understand the seriousness of a situation, while having compassion for the person who is in it. Not something Aussies understand, apparently.

Hi guys, lost my medical a few months back due LOC as a pax on commercial flight. Had a bad cold, dehydrated etc. Was taken off to A&E and problem found, 3 days later pacemaker inserted. Fit, healthy, early 20's, class 1 medical, ECG's perfect etc. Not a hint of a problem.

Massive shock to the system to even though just starting out in GA, have spent probs over 100k on training let alone everything else.

CASA avmed not too bad, only took about 3 weeks to regain class one medical. With appropriate treatment anything possible. Not a fun situation though thats for sure.

Wouldn't be so quick to make judgement of whether an individual should retain medical or not. Let the guys who know what they're on about make decisions. I now have a redundancy system in place! Probably safer than some 50+ yr old airline pilot just waiting for something to go wrong...

Hope the guy is sorted and back in the air soon.

C-Change,

heard a day after the incident that the Pilot is ok.

remoak,

I wasn't trying to be incompassionate, and I can sympathize with anybody who gets slapped in the face with a fish as big as this. I'm going to be honest now - it's situations like these that get up my back so to speak... a very good friend of mine is a long distance runner, absolutely incredible level of fitness, but he was failed on his initial due to his eyesight. Not because it was so bad, but because the difference between his eyes was so many dioptres apart. It wasn't a great deal, but enough to prohibit a referral.

No, what makes me angry is the system that prevents a perfectly healthy (and capable) individual from pursuing a dream.

On the contrary, I completely agree with you, and that's exactly my point - nobody can predict these things.