In article , Viperdoc wrote:
I would argue the point that an individual who flies VFR in IMC is a
skillful pilot. Most pilots would suggest that flying in IMC and being lost
in a thunderstorm do not demonstrate good judgment or skill.

Skill and judgement are different things. I've known pilots with a high
level of physical skill sometimes display an appalling lack of good
judgement.

If you fly often enough, sometime you (the generic you, as in y'all in
the newsgroup, not the original poster) may have a serious lapse of
judgement which you ask yourself sometime after the fact, "Why did I do
THAT!?" and which you'd be critical of someone else if you'd see them do
it. Sometimes we do have sudden losses of judgement.

It's common practise at many airports to be reading through something
like NTSB Reporter, or a flying mag with some coverage of aviation
accidents with other pilots, and all be commenting how "We'd never do
THAT". Then some months/years later do precisely that. I know pilots who
generally always show good jugement and skill once load a plane aft of
the CofG envelope and have a bloody good scare from it. I know pilots
who otherwise show good judgement to paint themselves into a corner with
the weather. I know pilots who otherwise show good judgement
accidentally run a fuel tank dry because they neglected a normal
downwind check. You can't just think "I normally display good judgement,
therefore I'll never be in the NTSB reports because of X", because one
day your human fallibility will get you. You have to ALWAYS be on your
guard for your *own* judgement failings because eventually, you'll make
a stupid/bad judgement call. Every pilot I know who has 1000 hours or
more has made at least one self-inflicted bad-judgement error. Most have
lived to tell the tale with no bent metal - but before they made that
error, they'd never have believed it'd be them who made that dumb,
stupid mistake. Every airport is teeming with "I learned about flying
from that" stories that people have acquired from their own lack of
judgement one day, even if they are the person who normally displays
excellent airmanship.

None of us are immune from making stupid mistakes, even grossly stupid
ones that we though we'd never make because we are "better than that" -
most of the time we are, but sudden loss of judgement happens, and
occasionally you need that superior skill to get yourself out of a
stupid position you put yourself in in the first place.

--
Dylan Smith, Castletown, Isle of Man
Flying: http://www.dylansmith.net
Frontier Elite Universe: http://www.alioth.net
"Maintain thine airspeed, lest the ground come up and smite thee"