Many people think flying is dangerous but it’s not as bad as people think. You’ve probably noticed that since you’ve started training, you’ve heard about all these plane crashes and they are making you wonder whether you made the right choice to learn to fly. I was questioning it myself over 20 years ago. The fact is, there are way more car accidents than airplane crashes. The news just makes a bigger deal out of it when it happens to be a plane so it stands out more. Are you going to stop driving because of all the car accidents? Then why stop flying because of plane crashes? Planes are very reliable and the chances of anything happening to cause an accident are very slim.
The reality is, that most airplane accidents are not due to mechanical problems at all. Most are due to pilot error. Most aircraft accidents are preventable! Here’s a couple of things you can do to help ensure a long safe flying future. The main thing I would suggest is that you train to be safe. Always ask yourself if the decision you are making is adding unnecessary risk.
Do you have an appointment that you can’t miss? Are you flying there to save the driving time? What if the weather is marginal, or a little worse than what you would normally fly in? Are you going to take the chance to be sure you make that meeting? Don’t take the chance. In aviation, you have to realize that it doesn’t always go as planned and when it doesn’t, you have to be prepared to walk away! No meeting is worth your life. If you absolutely have to be there, then drive. The other thing you should do, is use FAA recommended procedures. They are there to help pilots know what to expect from other pilots and be able to anticipate their actions better. If everyone entered the traffic pattern at a 45 degree angle to the runway, we would all be able to plan better. I’ve seen planes come pretty close to each other just because someone wanted to get into the traffic pattern as soon as possible using the shortest route. He flew right in front of a guy who was climbing out after takeoff.
The shortest route is not always the safest. If you’re not going to follow recommended procedures, at least listen to what is going on so you’re not interfering with people already in the pattern! If you try to fit in and you’re going to cut someone off while doing it, at least be willing to abort the plan. Playing a game of chicken with airplanes is not a good idea. Fly safe, make decisions that are safe, follow recommended procedures and really keep an eye out for the people that don’t and you’ll enjoy many years of flying.