Terrence,

 

Do you know for sure this was a stall/spin?  Do you know for a fact this aircraft did not have an AOA?  I get a little weary of you beating the AOA drum every time an aircraft goes down and there is the faintest possibility that a loss of control may have been involved.  Now I'm not criticizing the use of an AOA, nor your desire to save lives.  But we've all read your, well, almost a rant, many times and it does get tiresome.  After reading several of your posts on this subject I get the impression that you think having an AOA on all aircraft would eliminate stall/spin accidents.  While it should certainly help I think you would find that even with AOAs there will be stall/spin accidents.  When a pilot finds himself suddenly in an unexpected critical situation, like low and slow with some sort of power loss problem and with very little time to react, there is no guarantee that any device or instrument will prevent a stall/spin if he is not able to overcome the initial shock and panic and fly the plane within its limits.  Pulling back on the stick when close to the ground and descending rapidly, or trying to tighten that turn just a little more to make a clearing, is a very powerful involuntary reaction.  I believe it would be difficult, within a matter of seconds, to override that reaction and respond in a purely rational manner.  (This is where training really helps.)  Would an AOA help?  Most likely.  Would it prevent most stall/spin accidents?  Probably not.

 

Please give it a rest.  For the most part you're preaching to the choir.

 

Tom Gourley