It could also be something as innocuous and simple as a bladder infection that some older folk are prone to. The infection has them imagining all sorts of fantasy with no recollection after being treated with antibiotics.

Just on the Channel 9 news - Nixon has been released from hospital, went straight to the police station & was charged with prejudicing the safe operation of an aircraft. He was granted bail to appear in Parramatta Local Court on September 24.
Police have also been granted a warrant to examine Mr Nixon’s Sydney home.

DF.

I doubt that the police would lay charges if there were any doubts about his mental status.

Beer, ain't that the truth, had crossed my mind
UTI sure play some weird tricks on the oldies

That's a fact that many children don't realise when their parent/s enter hospital for unspecified problems. If they start telling you strange stories about what has been happening overnight then straight away ask the nurses to test their urine for infection.

After doing some digging around I've tracked the identity of the ATC. Best in the room, a real gun :ok: had the filth there in no time!

JR,

Ya mean the big fella was in on it too?

If so good work.:ok:

Nah, the big unit wasn't :E

A good lad though!

The cops don't make that decision. You'll be charged even if you're as nutty as a fruit loaf. It's up to the courts to decide whether you should be punished.


CRIMES ACT 1900 - SECT 205

Prejudicing the safe operation of an aircraft or vessel
205 Prejudicing the safe operation of an aircraft or vessel

A person who, whether on board the aircraft or vessel or not, does anything with the intention of prejudicing the safety of an aircraft or vessel is liable to imprisonment for 14 years.

From today's Adelaide Advertiser:



Well my eyes must be deceiving me - I could have sworn that the old girl had two engines the last time I saw her! :rolleyes:

DF.

It sounds like a neuropsychiatric event, or an organic brain syndrome. 6-7000 ft over Katoomba would be enough. I doubt that the court will find him guilty - my suspicion is that the passenger's ageing brain, bp or glucose levels or some there combination of factors left him very sensitive to the mild hypoxia ( he may have had marginal physiology) and he may have developed quite a lot of confusion and panic as a result. His physical state may have been particular to that day and not be reproducible. Its reported he handed in his licence - I wonder what prompted that.

As he was a trained pilot he would have reacted by reaching out for certain controls . I don't know the man, but I expect that if he can't remember the event, he won't be lying.

He could have had a minor stroke that deprived his brain of enough oxygen to make him lose the plot and think he was driving the Duchess.

A dear old Auntie, in her early 80's, a few years ago, drove herself to church and then took a friend home from the church.
Despite driving O.K. she got lost and had to pull up and ask her friend (around the same age, maybe a little younger), where she was.

The situation was, there's no way she should have got lost, she was in very familiar territory, not far from her home. Her friend rang SWMBO right after she got home and told her she suspected Auntie had "had a turn" whilst driving.

Auntie told us the same story and couldn't figure out why she got lost and needed assistance and guidance. We took her to the doc and doc confirmed she'd quite likely had a mini-stroke that temporarily affected her awareness and cognitive reasoning.

She was quite O.K. for many months afterwards, but then had another minor stroke that seemed to knock her about and start her on the road to frailty.
She had a couple more minor strokes, and just as we were about to move her into a nursing home, she had a heart attack, and that was it.

The interesting thing was how she told us of various fantasy scenarios she had experienced whilst in bed, when she had the mini-strokes - such as giant insects under her bed.
We put it down to nightmares - looking back, it was probably hallucinations brought about by her oxygen-starved brain.

Mimpe,


And in posting your opinions, your professional qualifications are?


Mr Nixon, a previously distinguished pilot has been charged with criminal offences.


I think that it is appropriate for the rest of us to now leave the matter to the courts.

I am seriously going to think twice about having my elderly mother-in-law as a front row passenger.

(Unless the EO for the ejection section is approved)

MIL not to keen on light ones ~ 1960 left New Ireland via float Beaver which got off on the 4th attempt (-one local on each previous attempt)

Next trip was with me 50 years later round Melbourne and the bay. Very chatty for most of it then would not talk (thought intercom had failed phew!). Clapped on landing (a good one) but then could not talk for 3 days!

Mini stroke -aka transient ischaemic attack or TIA.

DF.

It may]have been the media getting it wrong, but one TV report said he told the company when organising the charter he had never been in a small aircraft.

If true, it would seem to rule out the sudden medical problem theory. Shouldn't be too hard to determine if the charter was legit.

Did anyone do this scenario as part of their initial training? I recall my very experienced instructor suddenly saying, in level flight, "I'm a passenger, panicking and grabbing for controls, what do you do?' My elbow pulled up an inch from her temple before she could say any more. She agreed it would be effective, but perhaps a bit over the top as an initial response.;)

My hypothetical scenario is, you have two pilots, an 82 year old and a 23 year old, they got to talking about LOP/ROP operations. The young one, who is up on all the latest knowledge, is pulling the mixture back to LOP. The old guy, set in his ways, exclaims "you'll blow the engines up!, Fuels cheap! Run it ROP!" A scuffle ensues and the young pilot knocks the old pilots hand away, causing the mixture to go to Idle Cut Off. The old pilot not trusting the young pilot to handle asymmetric operations tries to grab the controls. Young pilot clobbers old pilot and conducts a forced landing. :)

(Disclaimer: I was not there, I have never met the people involved, I've never flown a twin, I mean no disrespect, I do not work for CASA, I'm not a LAME, I'm not a CPL or ATPL etc. etc.)

Snippets from Les Nixon


Read his Bio. here.


Mad as a cut snake.