More parachutes will save lives....too many fatalities
I understand this might be controversial but I feel compelled to say my piece. I read the NTSB reports constantly, along with any plane crashes that register on google. Seems like pilots are dying pretty much daily. Lately I have seen quite a few plane crashes where the pilot just completely fails to land the plane safely for whatever reason. Looking over the many accidents, I am certain pulling a parachute quickly would have resulted in a much better outcome for a lot of these pilots.
I hear pilots quick to blame other dead pilots for their incompetence (and it is often valid and should be discussed), but the reality is that pilot could be you. Plenty of these fatalities are by experienced and competent pilots. Even some from this board who have tragically passed. Many ended up in a stall to spin after losing power, often from a decently high elevation. Others ended up smashing into trees or houses at a decent velocity. It appears even well trained pilots misjudge a steep bank angle with no power and stall when it is too late. Even some landings that look ok resulted in disastrous results due to flipping of the aircraft or a harsh landing with an immediate fire on contact. One pilot called ATC and said they had a nice field and they would make the landing. Something happened, they flipped and the plane blew up on what should have been a normal field landing.
And what about engine failure on a dark night or over rough terrain? What about being disoriented in IFR? What if you are caught in rough weather? Would you rather try to make an emergency landing or pull the chute?
Going back and looking at a lot of these accidents, if the pilot had pulled a parachute when things went south I think many of these people would have walked away. The parachutes have a remarkable safety record even when pulled from relatively low altitudes, depending on what you are flying.
Some of you will disagree and say a parachute causes people to act with less responsibility but I fly in many planes with chutes and I have never seen evidence of this. Is the parachute the end all be all of safety? Absolutely not, nothing beats good judgment and piloting skills. But I am starting to think pulling a parachute early would save a lot more lives if it was an option.
I understand this might be controversial but I feel compelled to say my piece. I read the NTSB reports constantly, along with any plane crashes that register on google. Seems like pilots are dying pretty much daily. Lately I have seen quite a few plane crashes where the pilot just completely fails to land the plane safely for whatever reason. Looking over the many accidents, I am certain pulling a parachute quickly would have resulted in a much better outcome for a lot of these pilots.
I hear pilots quick to blame other dead pilots for their incompetence (and it is often valid and should be discussed), but the reality is that pilot could be you. Plenty of these fatalities are by experienced and competent pilots. Even some from this board who have tragically passed. Many ended up in a stall to spin after losing power, often from a decently high elevation. Others ended up smashing into trees or houses at a decent velocity. It appears even well trained pilots misjudge a steep bank angle with no power and stall when it is too late. Even some landings that look ok resulted in disastrous results due to flipping of the aircraft or a harsh landing with an immediate fire on contact. One pilot called ATC and said they had a nice field and they would make the landing. Something happened, they flipped and the plane blew up on what should have been a normal field landing.
And what about engine failure on a dark night or over rough terrain? What about being disoriented in IFR? What if you are caught in rough weather? Would you rather try to make an emergency landing or pull the chute?
Going back and looking at a lot of these accidents, if the pilot had pulled a parachute when things went south I think many of these people would have walked away. The parachutes have a remarkable safety record even when pulled from relatively low altitudes, depending on what you are flying.
Some of you will disagree and say a parachute causes people to act with less responsibility but I fly in many planes with chutes and I have never seen evidence of this. Is the parachute the end all be all of safety? Absolutely not, nothing beats good judgment and piloting skills. But I am starting to think pulling a parachute early would save a lot more lives if it was an option.
