Man I should know better than to start opening my mouth but what the hell...Doc wrote:Nope. Will never happen. Ever. I will not do this. If the gear "will not come down" then it doesn't count, but it's just one of those things that will never happen to me. I will NEVER win the Masters, the Tour de France, the Indy 500, Wimbledon, Le Mans, the German Grand Prix, the Paris Dakar or land gear up, because I forgot to put it down! Take it to the bank!
Not all accidents are part of a chain of events. There are not always contributing factors. Some accidents are caused simply by the pilot. All by himself. I know you have been taught all the warm and fuzzy, politically correct terms. They do NOT always apply. Long hours, duty times, fatigue and all the rest sometimes do have some bearing on performance. No doubt about it. But lowering the gear is right up there with opening the bathroom door BEFORE we piss in the toilet! It's just one of those things we DO!
Doc, seriously. You probably won't ever do this.. Ok. I hope you're good vibes keep your ass safe for the rest of your days flying. Don't ya think, even just a WEE bit that having that type of attitude may one day lead you down a bad road? Wouldn't you rather be a little cautious in how you think, so as to prevent something like this happening as opposed to believing nothing bad will happen to you? I don't mean, approach your day with paranoia, but at least approach it with some sense of reality. You're really no better than anyone else here, and last time I checked, aside from the google bots on here, we are all human and subject to errors and mistakes. It's not a matter of if, but when and how bad and how you handle it.
With all due respect, your statement about "There are not always contributing factors" is ignorant. Things just don't happen for no reason at all. There is always something that leads up to it, whether it be as simple as a drifting tired mind or a days worth a crappy events finally leading up to the "oops." Your thought process is dated and old school. I don't mean to be rude at all, but times have changed, a great deal of research and study has been put into human factors and event chains. The evidence is there, and it provides a better answer to issues that arise then some pilot simply saying "It's like wiping your ass..." Smart funny remarks aren't what the industry needs, and it's certainly not what a new pilot needs to hear either.
I suspect you are quite the perfectionist or would believe you are anyway, and would therefor find it hard to admit to being able to make this, what would seem, simplest of mistakes. I would also go as far as to say you have just never been faced with this particular issue of gear extension at THE very moment you go to do something which is so automatic. That.. or your EGO is much too important to admit you're just as human as the rest of us. Any automated process can be thrown off if a wrench is introduced at the wrong time. You believe what you wish on this, I respect that entirely, but this CAN happen to you. I'm not intending to bring your skills or experience into question, but rather hope to point out to you that despite all of this "experience" you are far from impervious to mistakes.
Nuff said...
Cheers!
