Airman wrote:
I sure miss the old days when we had a lively discussion group with
some very experienced pilots opining upon matters. Poster were for the
most part civil and if you could ask the right questions then listen a
guy like Nick Lappos (or many other very experienced pilots) would
respond.

Roger, I miss the old days too. But I think there is still a
significant wealth of knowledge here, just a lot of quiet people (lurkers).

This is a little long and rambling, but I put a lot of thought into how
aircrew handle emergencies, however great or small the emergency and
whoever the crew is composed of.

I am presently a military flight instructor and have been for a bit less
than three years. I would hesitate to call myself "very" experienced.
Partly by choice and partly by circumstances, I have become specialized
in and good at instrument flying. Handling emergencies and crew
resource management both play a big part, and of course both relate to
the study of human behavior.

Today I was practicing emergencies in the simulator (required periodic
proficiency practice... say that three times fast!). Now, not because
I've become "that good" or salty (hardly), but I reacted very calmly to
one type of malfunction (erroneous engine out indication, think loud
alarm noise with bright red light and rpm gauge winding down) that
usually startles most guys. The common reaction is to be startled and
quickly lower the collective; my hands didn't even move... why? Note
that an actual engine failure is also accompanied by a physical reaction
from the aircraft and additional instrument indications. Now, I
honestly wasn't "spring loaded" in my mind for this particular
malfunction, so why did I react atypically?

It occurred to me that at my present experience level, I have grown to
regard many malfunctions and minor emergencies as a nuisance. I
wondered if this was bad, if this was a warning sign that I was falling
into a classic psychological trap of arrogance? I wondered if it was
good, if I was observing myself mature. Maybe it was neither good nor
bad. Well, what else is involved in my approach to flying? I am always
willing to learn, no matter what the source. Simulators are always
educational for me, just not usually in an introspective sense. I still
have great respect for the dangers involved with flying. I still think
about "what ifs" and work to maintain my own basic skills while building
more advanced skills.

I'm getting to the end of my line at my current job and won't be flying
on my next tour (the military likes you to be well rounded). It takes
effort for me to remain focused in the cockpit each day. Staying
focused is a conscious choice I make as part of a careful mindset. I
believe I have an overall healthy approach to flying. I believe that
the fact that I have grown to regard certain minor emergencies as
nuisances isn't dangerous, because it complements and is tempered by
other facets of "how" I fly.


I probably thought waaay too much into this... thanks for reading and I
hope you don't mind my rambling