Accident Case Study: Trapped in Ice

I wonder if that Cirrus could have made it if he didn't blow through the localizer.
 
These video are so good and so heartbreaking. You know how it's going to end, but I'm still rooting for them to make it all the way through.

On the cirrus I wondered if he didn't have the localizer tuned or maybe had the CDI set to GPS, then lost control trying to figure it out. Sad.
 
You're never really trapped in ice. Eventually, you will fall out the bottom.
 

But on topic, I watched that earlier today when I saw the new ASI video. It makes you wonder if the ice took him or if he would have had the same outcome in benign IMC if he had diverted for some other reason. And the Bonanza...did he have an out other than down into terrain? The main lesson is definitely to get current weather information before you take off and during your flight. But what else can we really learn from these two crashes?
 
Cirrus was on AP all the way until very end. If he stayed on AP he’s probably be alive. This is no excuse for not being able to hand fly, but clearly he wasn’t prepared. My guess he missed the loc because he was in hdg mode and never set up the approach for the AP to intercept

The saddest part: pin still in CAPS. I didn’t understand why he didn’t pull until I saw that picture near the end
 
The cirrus guy was utterly unprepared for the flight. Weather briefing 10 hrs before departure in the area he was flying is as good as not getting the brief at all, assuming he was flying from his home base. I don’t know if the AP (looked like GFC 500 or a similar variant from the picture) had envelop protection or not, if it did, that should have taken over and kept the wings level . If it did have the envelop protection, the pilot disconnected the AP after it kicked in. And the CAPS Pin, talk about chain of events...
 
WannFly said:
I don’t know if the AP (looked like GFC 500 or a similar variant from the picture) had envelop protection or not, if it did, that should have taken over and kept the wings level . If it did have the envelop protection, the pilot disconnected the AP after it kicked in.
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I don't think the GFC500 was ever installed in a factory plane other than the new Piper 100. I think the picture was a computer simulation. Registration says N451TD was a 2001 model, so it probably had an S-TEC 55, GNS430 and Sandel SN3308 HSI.
WannFly said:
And the CAPS Pin
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:yeahthat:
 
Complacency is a real killer. Which part of your preflight do you save a few seconds by skipping sometimes? The safety pin on the CAPS handle could be a fuel selector in your Piper or a control lock on your RV. Maybe it’s the alternator belt or a baggage door latch. Controls free and correct, instruments indicating properly during taxi, and pitot heat actually working? I’ve skipped things because I forgot or just got lazy, and I know I’m not alone. It’s an evil that really does require constant vigilance to fight.
 
I have been criticized for hand flying all approaches. There seems to be an ethos for reliance on the automation. Cirrus has been a leader in that.
 
Kristin said:
I have been criticized for hand flying all approaches. There seems to be an ethos for reliance on the automation. Cirrus has been a leader in that.
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There is nothing wrong with hand flying approaches in IMC if you are confident you can execute them or at least have some outs. One should be proficient in both, AP and hand flying. It seems pretty evident that this pilot was not prepared to hand fly a busted approach. He picked the wrong time to do it with being way behind the airplane with very limited and unpredictable performance and w&b and in a long constant turn. Just not the time I would want to learn how the plane or I handle the situation .
 
Kristin said:
I have been criticized for hand flying all approaches. There seems to be an ethos for reliance on the automation. Cirrus has been a leader in that.
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Back in my Baron/King Air days, I hand flew almost everything...except the one or two approaches per year on checkrides where I had to demonstrate autopilot proficiency. I struggled with those.

I actually did my first two jet type rides without engaging the autopilot. That certainly can’t be done now, and I doubt it was legal back then, either. The intent is that automation is just like any other system or skill that has to mastered, and that mastery demonstrated. Unfortunately I see far too many pilots who rely on the autopilot for most unusual attitude recoveries. :eek: The only unusual attitudes for which they don’t use the autopilot to recover are the ones when I say, “put your head down and close your eyes.”
 
Kristin said:
I have been criticized for hand flying all approaches. There seems to be an ethos for reliance on the automation. Cirrus has been a leader in that.
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If you have an autopilot you should be proficient at both and both are perishable skills so both should be practiced. My take anyway.
 
Kristin said:
I have been criticized for hand flying all approaches. There seems to be an ethos for reliance on the automation. Cirrus has been a leader in that.
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I actually prefer to hand fly approaches. It's actually a lot smoother than my one axis rate-based autopilot. The autopilot is OK for enroute and maybe for flying the HILPT, but for the final segments of an ILS or LPV hand flying involves less hunting. Plus it's good practice.
 
PaulS said:
If you have an autopilot you should be proficient at both and both are perishable skills so both should be practiced. My take anyway.
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It does take too much practice to turn on the autopilot, especially the older legacy units. I let the A/P do its thing on the initial parts of the approach where I am getting everything set up and getting my mind into it. When the final vector is received or we are on the intercept to the final approach path, the A/P comes off. It hasn't failed me yet, and I still know how to turn it on to make a check pilot happy.
 
As a low time instrument pilot, I'm sure I don't know what I don't know, but I've had good results with letting the autopilot track the FAC while I manage the descent manually. The autopilot does a better job than me at tracking the lateral course, and it frees up a LOT of mental resources to watch altitude and look outside for the runway environment. Of course with antique autopilots like mine (or with any A/P, I suppose), you still have to keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't do something stupid. I did all my training with no autopilot, and I'm amazed at how much easier things are with one. The GTN makes a HUGE difference as well.
 
Kristin said:
It does take too much practice to turn on the autopilot, especially the older legacy units. I let the A/P do its thing on the initial parts of the approach where I am getting everything set up and getting my mind into it. When the final vector is received or we are on the intercept to the final approach path, the A/P comes off. It hasn't failed me yet, and I still know how to turn it on to make a check pilot happy.
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I have no idea what your experience is or what you fly. But the newer ones will fly an approach down to minimums, then fly the missed for you. Getting it to do that is a lot more than turning it on and off, maintaining proficiency is important. No one should ever let hand flying skills deteriorate, I practice both.
 
PaulS said:
I have no idea what your experience is or what you fly. But the newer ones will fly an approach down to minimums, then fly the missed for you. Getting it to do that is a lot more than turning it on and off, maintaining proficiency is important. No one should ever let hand flying skills deteriorate, I practice both.
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Over 9000TT with extensive 135 pax and cargo in Great Lakes and SE Alaska, as single pilot IFR.
 
genna said:
The saddest part: pin still in CAPS.
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The most mind boggling part. You have a freaking get out of jail card right next to you and you choose not to use it. Did the pilot go through CSIP training?

Also, RE: AP. I've seen lots of people (flying as safety from the right) bungle autopilots. They're used to a beater PA28 or 172 then get in a newer updated club plane with a GFC500 and basic things like getting it to follow the GPS, understanding what the hell the flight director is and how to follow it, capture an altitude, etc., prove to be too difficult to some "bahhh I don't know how to use this thing, I'll just handfly it!" ... okay.

Anyway.. sad, but accidents like this really irritate me. No reason you should get trapped. A VFR no ice day doesn't certainly turn into icing. Learn how to understand weather, not just reading the thing off Foreflight but being able to make your own reasonable conclusions... if it's 5*C at the airport and clouds are forecast to move in later.. they're not saying ice, but the dewpoint is expected to rise.. do I really want to be playing in the cards or hoping I make it there before that scattered layer becomes broken, and then OVC?

You'll even hear people on the radio here suddenly encounter ice, in SoCal, in non ice planes.. if it's drizzling here and 8* you can be fairly certain there's ice up there somewhere
 
the auto pilot is just another tool. its there to help you manage the workload. to many use these tools as crutches. I normally hand fly the jet up to the mid twenties if the weather is good and the workload is not heavy. the down side to that is I know I am adding workload to the NFP when doing it. example, a couple weeks ago, late night all nighter leaving SEA. low ceilings, ice, turbulance, big mountains ect. part of my brief was that I would be calling for the autopilot at autopilot mins to keep us both on top of the game. could I have hand flown it, yes, but in this case the tool added to our SA and was the proper call. sometimes turning it on is the right call, other times turning if off is the right call. i love watching guy try to fly a visual approach from the downwind with the box. they are pushing buttons, turning knobs, ect. my favorite call after hearing cleared for the visual is autopilot off, flight directors off give me the bird.
even without autopilots and flight directors these modern nav units are complex. pilots need to know how to operate them, know exactly what every function does, and what to do if you do not see what you expect.
use your above average systems knowledge so that you do not have to show your above average pilot skills.
 
That's a good point. Leaving a little uncontrolled airport in the middle of no where is a lower work environment than leaving even a busy delta with charlies and a bravo nearby, where you are immediately vectored then given the old route change let me know when you are ready to copy spiel.

At the end of the day do what you are comfortable doing. Me, single pilot IMC, I'll use the autopilot, it's a good one, usually as soon as I'm high enough. It's a tool, used properly it enhances safety. It's good ADM in my book. I'm not a pro pilot, but I do practice IFR procedures a lot. In the simulator or with a safety pilot, I'll mostly fly by hand. Managing the avionics really doesn't differ between hand flying and using the autopilot. But the autopilot it nice when you get a full route change, an altitude change, then 5 seconds later a frequency change.
 
PaulS said:
That's a good point. Leaving a little uncontrolled airport in the middle of no where is a lower work environment than leaving even a busy delta with charlies and a bravo nearby, where you are immediately vectored then given the old route change let me know when you are ready to copy spiel.
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But as others have noted, you need he level of proficiency with your automation to make sure that you actually tell it to do what you want it to do...it’ll do what you tell it, even if that’s wrong. ;)
 
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