Quote:
Originally Posted by Larry Jacks
Steve Fossett achieved some serious aviation milestones, no doubt about it. However, "great aviators" don't fly in IMC (instrument meteorological conditions) with no instruments and no instrument rating.
Steve Fossett had an instrument rating, various jet type ratings as well as balloon and sailplane ratings. I wouldn't go so far as to call him the greatest aviator in the world but he was a very good one - setting dozens of world records in balloons, gliders, and powered flight.
Even very good aviators can make a critical mistake that kills them. For example, Frank Tallman was the top Hollywood stunt pilot for many years following the death of his partner Paul Mantz. Tallman died in a CFIT accident (controlled flight into terrain) when his plane struck a mountain on a routine flight. Scott Crossfield was truly a great aviator in anyone's book but he died when his 1961 Cessna 210 broke up at night in a thunderstorm. A readily available $2000 Garmin handheld GPS with weather receiver would've probably saved his life.
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My bad, Larry - yes - Fosset had an instrument rating, as well as 350 hrs in the 6 months prior to the crash (a LOT), and multi-engine commercial ratings, as well. He was a well-educted and highly experienced aviator.
Piggy-backing on your trend, a neighbor of ours, former Navy pilot with several thousand hours, died in 2006 due to controlled flight into severe weather (similar to Crossfield). AOPA's push for ADS-B as a replacement for Mode-C, CAS, and surveillance radar, includes Wx uplinking via UAT.
Another friend, about 25 years ago, flew into the side of a mountain on a bright, sunny day with only mild winds. Reason? He tried climbing over a ridgeline from the leeward side.
Great aviators are great not because they don't make mistakes. They're great because they take the time and effort to avoid situations where they're forced to rely on their exceptional skills. Pilots who forget that usually find, sooner or later, circumstances where they get themselves into a situation out of which their skills or the limitations of their aircraft become the weakest link in the chain. I would submit that the ability to avoid such easily avoidable situations is one of the key skills of being a great aviator.
I again submit that Fosset wasn't a great aviator.