Robert M. Gary wrote:
If you fly IMC you WILL someday get ice. Its
just not realitic to say anything else unless you use your IFR ticket
for nothing other than bragging rights in the FBO.

That might be a little extreme -- even up here in Ottawa, Canada, the
freezing level is typically around 10,000 ft in the summer while the MEAs
can be down around 3,000 ft -- but your point is very well taken. To avoid
ever picking up even a trace of ice, you'd have to fly VFR only for almost
half the year in Canada or the northern U.S. (and even then, only with a
clear sky).

The FAA's approach
to teaching icing is totally unreasonable and they need to go back to
teaching how to determine where ice may be and how to escape. This
modern idea of "if ice touches you, you will die right away" is not
helpful.

I agree very strongly. It's good to warn people to be careful, but if you
make them panic unnecessarily you're risking an accident from some other
cause (say, CFIT during a hasty diversion). Through all its bad acting, the
NASA icing video is somewhat helpful, since it does show people dealing
practically with icing in the air (i.e. the pilot of a single has to ask for
a descent forcefully when ATC brushes him off on the first call, but he
doesn't get to the point of declaring an emergency).


All the best,


David