Excerpt from Buddy Holly Crash Remembrance

[WakeNCAgent]

Okay, so ultimateclassicrock.com isn't the NY Times, but the last line in the following excerpt left me wondering whether they misread the report. Can anyone elaborate?

Excerpt:
"The federal investigation ruled that even though the weather played a large role in the accident, the 21-year-old Peterson was too inexperienced to have been flying in such conditions. In addition, he had most likely misread the altitude indicator, which was different than the one on which he had trained, and inadvertently brought the plane down instead of up."

 

[MAKG1]

Well, you can look at the accident report yourself.

It contains speculation that the ATTITUDE indicator, not the altimeter, might have been misread. It is not conclusive, though it does seem likely under the circumstances.

http://research.archives.gov/description/2635701

 

[Hawker800]

Can't elaborate, but I have heard that conclusion some time ago.

 

[tinerj]

As usual a chain. Bad weather, night flight, inexperienced pilot, an instrument that did reverse sensing, a rush assignment, a pilot needing money (21 years old pilot with a wife and small child), conflicting weather information. Technically, he could not fly at night commercially, although he could have taken off legally if he had been doing a non-commercial flight.

Pilot Error. But I feel really bad for the pilot. A young guy trying to make money for his family and advance himself in the eyes of his boss.

 

[RJM62]

Well, you can look at the accident report yourself.

It contains speculation that the ATTITUDE indicator, not the altimeter, might have been misread. It is not conclusive, though it does seem likely under the circumstances.

http://research.archives.gov/description/2635701

The site probably thought it was a typo. Most people who aren't pilots would use the word "attitude" to refer to a personality trait.

-Rich