Multi- Engine Ground Blog Post # 4

After reading the article about the crash into Aspen, it really makes you to want to be a better pilot. It is a tragic article with a very real life spin on it that makes it better. There were so many stressful conditions going on that pilots were not operating the aircraft at there full potential. These were experienced qualified pilots that had a lot of trouble with the customers. In a professional world, the perspectives are very different between the passengers and the pilots. The pilot was trying to please the pressuring customer, but when 3 planes go missed back to back in front of you, he had a good indication that the airport was at a low visibility and weather could not have been accurate from the ATIZ and actual. Unsafe decisions were made and it was a costly outcome. Some of the contributing factors was the weather, the noise limit, the forbidden IFR traffic at night. The chain error started from the very begging when the pilot didn't put his foot down with the customer before take-off. What should of been done differently was  going around or don't even try the approach. Clearly the airport was not in sight as reported. If my job was on the line i would explain in detail the safety issues and laws upfront to the customer. They would more likely not be as upset with earlier notice. Demanding the customer hear your reasons as soon as possible could make the difference in the customers attitude toward the flight.