As Peter states, really dumb and one more accident that comes under the heading of “pilot error” or “overconfidence”.
Flying safely is all about margins and this instructor left himself very little margin of safety to conduct this maneuver (deep stall, passengers on board, night)
I feel bad for the students and hope they both make a full recovery. I think it is safe to assume that the instructor may be finished.
I’ve just done a quick and dirty W&B on our DA42 assuming 3 × 80kg pilots and 60% fuel.
This accident seems to demonstrate the ability of composite structure to absorb energy. I don’t think anyone would have survived had this accident happened in a metal aircraft.
Why?
I don’t see that either. The hull has just disintegrated, especially the underside, and I would be amazed if anybody had any legs left. Horrible…
Legs are still there Peter, but there was considerable damage to feet.
All three occupants are said to make full recoveries with the rear seat student recommencing his training shortly. Full recoveries from a physical perspective, I don’t think anyone fully recovers from an accident of any kind – we just deal with it. I was in one years ago and it still pops into my mind now and then.
Someone mentioned the upset recovery training that EASA are planning on introducing. There are risks involved in any kind of flying and upset recovery is just another way of introducing additional risk. The idea is to present these conditions in a controlled environment and it will be safe as long as the instructor understands what the student is doing and can take appropriate countermeasures. But, what if he can’t? Do we then teach the instructors about upset upset recovery?
Yes, in the UK certainly.
Krister_L wrote:
Do we then teach the instructors about upset upset recovery?
In a recent instructor standardisation meeting we were informed that the coming EASA upset recovery training can only be flown in aerobatic aircraft. The instructors involved must hold an aerobatic instructor rating. Daylight VFR only. No night-time IFR upset recovery training in multi-engine aircraft under EASA. Not now and not in the future either.
Seems sensible.
The one upset a regular instructor is likely to encounter is a spin, and dealing with that is part of the instructor training.
For the aerobatic rating (instructor or not) you train recovering from all sort of situations.
I wonder if ATPL holders with aerobatic ratings are exempt?
I think only Flight Safety currently has an approved course for the regulations which come into effect in March 2019 for Part 121 carriers.
http://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Advisory_Circular/AC_120-111.pdf
While some training may take place in an aerobatic aircraft (Flight Safety may be using a Zlin 242), most of the training is ground school and sim based, these been specially adapted full motion simulators (perhaps rolling inverted may be a challenge).
Rich Stowell’s Emergency Manoeuvre Training is a book worth reading, although perhaps short on the threats resulting from incorrect knowledge of automatic flight systems, especially at high altitude.
I don’t think an ATP with an aerobatic rating, instructor or otherwise, will grandfather the requirement to take the course, at least at Part 121 equivalent.
I can’t see the wannabee integrated schools providing this, and it will be too expensive for the pay to fly type rating FO, so the airlines may have to step up and pay for the training.
