Ed,

Aspen is a one-way airport. I'm surprised you didn't end up riding the Town Lift.

On the other thread, the issue is L-IV's and accidents. As a physician from a specialty (Anesthesiology) that dealt with high insurance rates, I think a couple of comments may be useful.

1. The unidentified esophageal intubation used to create a high-priced brain injury due to lack of oxygen. In 1986, we got pulse oximetry and capnography in the operating room. Capnography gives a 100% accurate indication of improper intubation. Oximetry gives a nearly equal indication of oxygen in the blood. The combination dropped our liability insurance rates by 75%, and the brain-injured patient from unidentified esophageal intubation is a rarity.

In the L-IV, the parallel would be a calibrated AOA. Just like capnography and oximetry, you can ignore the AOA, but with the AOA, you have a very good way of staying away from the stall. Properly sized and positioned stall strips would tame stall behavior as well. And cuffs or VG's promise to be even better.

All of these are pilot-independent ways of reducing stall/spin accidents.

2. Training. In Anesthesiology, training is supposed to be the way to keep skills sharp. The real answer is that constant use of those skills is far more important. Continuing medical education and recertification are worthless. My group had to fire a member for incompetence. He had all the papers you could ask for, but was dangerous. You can't certify judgment.

This isn't to say training isn't necessary. Rather, it isn't sufficient, and I'm not sure what would be truly sufficient. Recurrent check rides are probably better than nothing, but accidents show they aren't sufficient.

Ted Noel

On 1/29/2013 12:15 AM, Ed Gray wrote:

 

Grayhawk, good advice.  The “unable” response is one we are reluctant to use.  I was told by Aspen tower to “go around” in a Mooney 231 about 10 feet above the numbers with flaps and airbrakes out, because a dolt in a Jetstar was parked on the opposite end of the 8,000 foot runway.  I obeyed the tower and scared the crap out of my passenger clawing for altitude over the ski lifts at the east end of the airport.  I immediately wondered why I didn’t say “unable” or just land.  The tower guys are not there for your safety, just to provide traffic separation.  Ed Gray  Dallas  360   PS  Try getting insurance without the IFR rating!