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I used to think crash videos made me a safer pilot, now I’m not so sure.
Lately, it seems like every time I log onto YouTube, all I get recommended are aviation accident videos. I realize that this is partially my fault since back when I was a student, I watched a lot of them under the belief that these videos would teach me ways to avoid mistakes that others had made thereby making me a better, safer pilot. Now, I’m not so sure.
Full disclosure: I’m aware that most YouTube crash experts are well meaning individuals who want to foster and nurture a culture of safety within the GA community. I’m also quite aware that many of these experts are high-time pilots that either have some formal background in accident investigation as investigators themselves or subject matter experts. Put simply, I’m not disputing their qualifications or intent. However, I am doubtful about their content’s overall efficacy on our community.
When an accident occurs, we all want to know why; airplanes don’t just fall out of the sky. So, we collectively rationalize the unthinkable by attributing it immediately to some probable cause. This is a natural reaction as rational human beings. But this knee jerk response can only provide us some “cheap comfort” since it mainly just categorizes what we don’t fully understand into things we do: VFR into IMC, CFIT, engine out, icing, all the usual suspects. And most accident video experts reinforce this behavior too, since they all basically follow the same formula: review the accident, give their expert reasoning on why it occurred, and then end with reminding us of what we already knew going into it in the first place.
Let’s be brutally honest here: Do you really need a YouTube expert to remind you of the dangers of flying into known icing conditions? How about thunderstorms? Flying at night over mountainous terrain in hard IMC? Yeah, I didn’t think so. In fact, if you read the comments section of a lot of these videos (please don’t read the comments section), you’ll find that there are more non-pilots than real ones. They either found the video out of morbid curiosity, or they just got lost (hey, it happens).
Do you really need a YouTube expert to remind you of the dangers of flying into known icing conditions?
As John’s article already astutely pointed out, we know that it’s almost always pilot error that ultimately causes most GA accidents. What we don’t know though, at least initially when an accident occurs, and certainly what no expert on YouTube can even begin to explain shortly thereafter is how the “Swiss cheese” was made in the first place, i.e., context. And when it comes to learning from an accident, context is king: Without context, a quick post-crash analysis video may be able to tell me the “how” but certainly not the “why”, and that’s where I think all these types of videos fall short.
Many would agree that the gold-standard in GA accident analysis is the Air Safety Institute’s Accident Case Study series. But why? Outside their obvious high production value, I think it really comes down to depth: Every case study tries to give you the full context of an accident including the pilot’s training and/or background, notable aspects about the aircraft’s type, the weather, as well as even the purpose of the flight itself. And then after walking you through the how, it ends with the why, providing an accident chain analysis that tries to coalesce all the mistakes made that led to the crash. This is key since even though hindsight is 20/20, it still allows me as a pilot to delve into the underlying factors behind why certain decisions were made (or not made) instead of just slapping a hazardous attitude on it and calling it a day. Please note that none of these videos could have been made hours after the accident they covered happened. None of them. They all required a full investigation to gather all the necessary details to provide a full picture of what happened and why.
Look, I’m not saying watching your favorite crash analysis channel has zero benefits: I think, at the bare minimum, it provides a platform for pilots to engage with each other and talk about personal flying experiences that may be related to the underlying cause of the accident in question (ok, you can go read that comments section now). And if you feel like a safer pilot after watching them, more power to you. But the idea that this cottage industry of crash videos is making us all safer pilots is where I have my doubts. I suppose if it prompts a rusty pilot to get into the cockpit with a CFI or more seasoned pilot, mission accomplished. But in the end, I’m still of the belief that most of these videos are ultimately more about clicks than safety. Hopefully, over time, I’m proven wrong.
- Do Crash Videos Make Us Safer Pilots? - December 16, 2024
- The Fine Art of the Debrief - November 13, 2024
- The Flying Sport - October 16, 2024
Flying accident videos are absolutely valuable for pilots. Rather than
I think we’re all kind of saying the same. These videos IMO are wonderful “monthly” training. The full reports are more “annual” training.
I agree. There certainly are some that are not good, but there are those that are extremely informative. I have been flying for 32 years and learn a something every once in a while watching my favorite two You Tubers.
Flying accident videos are absolutely valuable for pilots. Rather than reading a dryly worded article from the NTSB, videos give a better picture of the flight conditions, the scenario of the airport, other aircraft involved. That gives us the ability to imagine ourselves in that situation, what to be aware of when we are flying. YouTube has plenty of car crash videos, but those aren’t as useful. Every driver knows, or should know, to slow down, don’t drink and drive, don’t road rage. Watching those videos don’t give us any insight that we already have. Many auto crashes aren’t our fault, somebody else runs a red light or loses control, so many times car crashes are out of our control. Airplane crashes are mostly under our control, maintain airspeed, follow established procedures, don’t get distracted during critical phases of flight, etc.
I disagree on the car crash videos. I’ve seen plenty of dash cam footage of accidents that has lead to me being a more cautious driver. For example, anticipating someone making a left hand turn across a 2 lane road when the right lane is blocked up with cars but the left lane is free.
I watch some
car crash videos with my kids… but I ask them to predict what is going to happen, as the scenarios develop.
They are getting good at predicting cars turning left in intersections; running red lights; etc.
It will be a few years before they get driver’s licenses. In the meantime, the videos seem to help teach them what to look for, because their predictions are usually good.
Awareness!!
YES!
They’re a reinforcement tool, just like any training. I’m sure we’ve all had a close call at some point in aviation that sticks with you forever, and shapes you as pilot and influences future decisions.
So many general aviation accidents are a result of “get-there-itis” and if one single YouTube recap of a crash can make you think “well crap, maybe I should go up today”, then it accomplished it’s goal.
The more important concept is learning to filter out so-called aviation experts who really have no clue what they’re talking about and speculate on what they think really happened.
It matters for the ignorant pilot who doesn’t yet know better, bringing home the “why” behind the rules, their instructor’s guidance or hangar flying…instant experience without risk.
It matters for those who don’t think it can happen to them as they “may” see parallels in their decision-making.
It matters to the rest of us on those days when you recognize in yourself that you’re pushing into a bad scenario and force yourself to admit you don’t want to be “that guy”.
Yes, not all have pure motivations making or watching the videos, but “case studies” are powerful teaching/discussion aids. If your learning comes easier via video vs written report, those based on fact can provide learning opportunities or reminders that there are no new causes, only repetition of lessons previously identified.
I respectfully disagree. Pilots benefit from being constantly reminded of safe flying protocol. If one pilot is saved by these videos, it is well worth it.
Wow. Missed the mark this time. Maybe if you were a better pilot with fewer hazardous attitudes you’d feel differently. You sound like one of the ego driven AH that comments on those videos.
Ouch
Oh, and don’t ever become a CFI. The rest of us don’t need you passing on your hazardous attitudes to new pilots.
A little touchy this morning?
Wow, got out on the wrong side of bed?
What hazardous attitudes are you referring to?
The accident investigation videos are extremely important to pilots. These should be a learning tool to pilots, learn from other people’s mistakes. I find myself thinking about what happened in an accident video and applying it to what not to do when I fly.
We all become complacent, it is human nature. If these crash videos remind pilots of that point, then bring them on!
As a student pilot, I find these autopsy videos fascinating. As I am going through training, my lessons have turned out very well. What we do not get exposure to situations where the pilot in command is not as fortunate.
I believe that I am more grounded because of these videos instead of being lulled into a false sense of security by the success I have experienced so far.
In fact, I am willing to bet that the victims in those videos would have appreciated those informational videosprior to their crash. However, I am also aware that “you can’t fix stupid “, and some pilots may be incorrigible.
Newbie here (300-ish) I find the videos very helpful, and watching in-depth analysis by Air Safety Institute more than once made me reflect upon my actions, my day and a few times these videos made me cancel or alter a flight.
With that said, I did find a few channels that either don’t provide a deep enough analysis or have or now shifting to milk the advertising and sponsorship revenue, and those seem to over dramatize or extend their content so they can squeeze more revenue. The folks I’m referring to know who they are so hopefully they are reading the comments too.
This change in some content makers simply made me unsubscribe their channel and stick with the pros, but it does not render the category null. It just means we need to be more selective on the safety video providers we choose and send a message with our views.
Keep learning keep reinforcing and fly safe
I couldn’t disagree more. If you learn one thing per video, it’s better than getting killed by something you didn’t realize.
I agree generally with all the comments above (except the snarky ones about Mr. Sack). One of my favorite YouTube channels is Pilot Debrief, by “Hoover”, who I think does an excellent job of analyzing the contributing antecedents to the accident, and always maintains a respectful tone and sympathy for those involved. I’ve been flying for 60 years and can always learn something from his videos.
I agree that Hoover (and Juan Browne) probably produce the most objective analyses out there. There are a couple YT influencers that can’t seem to keep their personal biases out of the analysis and become disrespectful to the pilot and their families.
I also want to give a shout out to Pilot Debrief by Hoover. I am a 7K hour GA pilot. I enjoy his videos. They reinforce what we already know. He goes in depth to show us how “the holes line up in the swiss cheese.”
Well said. I’d like to add that my 50 years of flying hindsight and these post crash analyses has resulted in me definitely not committing aviation like I did in my 20’s!
I like to use every ADM tool in the tool box. You can’t deny GA has a declining fatal rate in the last five years. Is that due 100% to the proliferation of YouTube investigators? Of course not, however the dramatic shift downward and focus on the same with a broader audience can’t be dismissed.
I’m surprised you’ve made it to a commerical certificate with that attitude. Spreading those ideas especially to a green student pilot doesn’t help the GA community at all.
On July 20, 2021, I was a passenger in a PA-31 enroute from Long Island to Portland ME. When configuring for a long straight in approach to PDX, I heard wind noise changes that were inconsistent with numerous, prior commercial approaches and some limited USAF training I had in 1989. I unbuckled and searched outside all windows to see if something was wrong. I requested the copilot come back and listen, despite the pilot in command having “3-green” and ordering me to sit down and belt in. I demanded he come back to verify the situation. Turned out the right main strut’s joiner bolt had fallen out and half the strut/wheel was dangling by the hydraulic line. It suddenly dropped and landed on a golf course outside of PDX. With 30 seconds to spare, the landing was aborted. We returned to MacArthur and the pilot executed a flawless belly landing, with emergency services lined up off the runway. Had I not had an awareness of landing configuration wind noise changes and the self-confidence to insist on a crew member’s assistance, 3 passengers and 2 crew would have likely made a catastrophic landing at PDX with a tragic outcome. I fully endorse the review of aviation incident videos, so pilots 1) avoid complacency by believing “it can’t happen to me…” and 2) have the self-confidence to take action when something seems not quite right.
PDX is Portland Oregon. Portland Maine is PWM.
I guess I agree with the comments here, I do feel that these videos do help reinforce flying principles. Of course, non-pilots think the flying community is hyper focused on accidents. Just compare a flying magazine to a car magazine. The car ones focus on horsepower and gadgets. 40+% of the flying ones focus on accidents.
BTW, aren’t commenters here being a little hard on the author? I’m guessing he’s not a psychopath with a harmful agenda. (Let me know if you know differently)
BTW, aren’t commenters here being a little hard on the author? I’m guessing he’s not a psychopath with a harmful agenda. (Let me know if you know differently)
Thanks Ben! No worries! I do appreciate the feedback!
I also disagree. As a DPE, former accident investigator/safety manager, I understand that the proper purpose of any accident discussion is to prevent recurrence. If the original poster of the video, witness, photographer, author, etc. has ulterior motives then that is his or her problem. I still want to get value from the data if it is available.
Applying your standard, we shouldn’t read your article because you are just trying to”to get clicks.” That would be a sad waste of your experience as a resource to us all.
Learning to discern facts from stupid comments by posters is a much more useful goal then not watching the videos at all.
I also find these videos very helpful in my own training; it has driven home, for example, that pulling back the stick is almost always the wrong action when things start going wrong.
Thank you for this article. I greatly appreciate it. I’m a student pilot. Watching these crash videos can discourage you. I had the same thoughts that if I watched these crash videos, they could help me, only to discover they were causing fear and discouragement, so I stopped watching them several months ago.
I struggle to understand the purpose of this article. Aviation safety is a complex and ongoing process that involves studying theory, practicing with a CFI, pushing our limits, and learning from past mistakes—our own and others’. Each accident analysis channel has its unique purpose. Some provide quick update on an event, while others offer deeper insights. It’s up to us to decide how each fits into the larger puzzle of improving our understanding.
When I watch or listen to accident analyses, I don’t need every detail to imagine a scenario and evaluate what I might have done differently. These channels may highlight gaps in my knowledge, which I can then explore further. Overall, I find them incredibly valuable. I particularly appreciate Hoover and Juan for their efforts—though different, both provide perspectives that serve distinct purposes. Ultimately, it’s about how we choose to use these resources for our benefit.
“If it happened to you its not going to happen to me”.Watch them but dont become morbid about them.They will make you a more safety conscious pilot which has to be a good distinguishing quality in a pilot.This is just simple common sense.[Common sense=genius in disguise]
I am a six hundred hour PPL.”If it happened to you its not going to happen to me”.Watch them but dont become morbid about them.They will make you a more safety conscious pilot which has to be a good distinguishing quality in a pilot.This is just simple common sense.[Common sense=genius in disguise] P.S.I am a serious fan of Dan Gryder of Probable Cause.
Personally, I watch a couple of the big name guys on the accident videos and I have learned a lot toward general airmanship and how to avoid emergencies, and maybe what to do in the event of an emergency. It’s one thing to say “don’t get too slow too low”. It’s another thing to have a video of what happened to an actual person. You think I pay attention to my ASI a little more closer to the ground? You betcha
Mr Sack has a valid question here. Is the use of video presentations more effective at accident prevention more effective than decades of written articles and reports found in various periodicals? Understanding that correlation is not causation, do we see a trend in reduction of accidents that corresponds with the increase of accident videos? are videos more effective at preventing some accidents over others? There are many other questions we could look into.
Mr Sacks does not say that there is no benefit to watching the videos, but he asks whether there is a limit to the benefit. Indeed, the investigations into the ADM process leading up accidents do not delve as deep into a pilot’s life hours days and weeks prior to an accident. nor do they go into the reasoning or psychology of a flight crew. A good example is when we see an accident happen in a low risk, clear sunny day, with no wind. An accident where we know the preventive measures should be obvious. Why would a pilot forget to put the gear down, or miss an item on a checklist, or forget to do the checklist at all? Why, on some occasions, do pilots go down a path of flawed reasoning or fail to engage in the problem solving process at all? In a recent raw video of an electrical failure and the crew’s landing an otherwise perfectly functioning airplane after another aircraft and subsequent collision with said aircraft brings to mind, why was their reasoning so flawed? What was the underlying mental process that was failing them, and why was that chain of thought not questioned?
This is after at least one of them has had the required training in human factors (IMSAFE). Why, even though we as pilots are trained on aircraft systems, did these two pilots turn a rather troubling but manageable condition into a fiasco? There will be plenty of analysis on the pilot error involved, but why did the pilots engage in an erroneous thought process? Mr Sacks touches on this a bit in his paragraph mentioning the Air Safety Institute’s videos. in watching the Air Safety videos, and others, there is some depth given in what happened, some of the attitudes surrounding the immediate events leading up to the accident, perhaps some generalizations of a pilots personality and demeanor, but that is about it.
On the face of it, it is hard to argue the videos are doing any harm, and may at the very least, trigger a thought process. What Mr Sacks seams to be hinting at is that we really don’t know how much the videos are helping reduce the accident rate. Perhaps the next step is to do some objective research. These videos may indeed be integral the improved rate, but by how much? what are the limitations? how can we over come these limitations? It may also broaden the accident investigation and prevention to examining other more nebulous factors in the human factors domain. I would give Mr Sacks credit for bringing some objectivity to understanding the impact of the “cottage Industry”. it may help the video producers honed their craft, so we may benefit all the more.
Here’s a hug! You actually read it! Thank you!
I like what you are saying. A lot of the accident train has been well identified, ending in words like “Pilot Failed to…”. and then stops there, as though there was some conscientious decision made by a pilot to do or not do something to save the situation.
I do believe videos are another method of disseminating information, and as people in general, read less and less, wea are becoming more dependent on it.
We need to look deeper into the human factors, period. outside of aviation, from time to time, we are confronted with some terrible event. in may cases, in hindsight, we often recall small things that were passed over or took for granted, waking up groggy, a smell of fuel in a wrong place, etc, that doesn’t register in our minds. In the case I sited, I wonder if the pilots had some factor which made them not reflect on just how much of an impact on the degree of danger to flight an electrical failure would have. What made them think landing immediately was required? maybe they did not know the independence of the ignition system, or could it have been that the biological process in their brains was hindered some how such that no rationality was involved. That would be something a youtuber could get into.
Ultimately, like you, I also believe most of the gold nuggets to be mined from these accident videos are on the human factors side of the investigation. And in fact as I eluded to above, John Z. recently wrote a fantastic piece that pointed this out (though I don’t want to speak for him): It is almost always the pilot, not the plane that is the probable cause. And though the “how” maybe interesting and make good copy, it is in the “why” where we start to see how the accident chain formed that ultimately led up to the crash. It is in the “why” where we can compare our own personal calculus to the pilot’s given a similar situation (context!), and learn from it. But it is also the “why” that is ultimately the hardest to get to.
Of course. The rest is trying to express same points of view that, truly expressed, are very narrow to say nothing.
When I saw the title I knew this was going to be high reply of you’re wrong and I get something out of it.
I think those channels are the most viewed out of all the aviation YouTube types. I watch them some but find myself watching jimmys world or the rusty pilot more.
I taught driver education in the early 70’s and we showed the kids videos of car crashes. No one wants to die or be injured in a car or airplane accident. We fly with the weather and in aircraft that are old but have proven technology. The limits can’t be overcome by skill or knowledge and for certain not by money. You can’t buy your way out of an airplane accident.
I watch those videos until they list something I don’t do in my flying. Like overloading the plane and taking off with a high density altitude. The best videos cover not declaring an emergency before it is too late.
As a relatively new pilot I find accident videos so very helpful. I believe repetition is one key to learning so learning from others mistakes in life an aviation is better than making them ourselves. However, I wonder if there is any way to quantify the relationship between watching accident videos and safety. If not none of us really know the answer.
There is an old saying “It’s not WHAT you read, but WHO you read”. Same is true about these kinds of videos. A lot of these so called experts are just trying to cater to our thirst for instant information and to get more clicks. The quicker the video comes out after the accident the greater potential for misinformation, misunderstanding and fake news. There is only one “official” cause (or probable cause), and that is determined by the NTSB and as we know, it often takes more than a year to issue the final report. Anyone conducting an accident analysis prior to the final report being issued is engaging in pure speculation.
I’ve conducted a number of accident investigations as an FAA Aviation Safety Inspector and while I may have had an initial thought/impression of what caused the accident, I’ve been surprised by information found later in the investigation.
Typically, a lot of these “content creators” are basing their analysis on very limited information (perhaps a single video) they haven’t been to the accident site or interviewed a single witness. How valuable is that? The reason the NTSB takes so long to issue a final report is they have a lot of information to collect and analyze, possibly including laboratory reports on metallurgy, electronics and even autopsies.
In all fairness, there are some creators (like Juan Browne) who acknowledge that the information they are providing is preliminary and the NTSB will issue the final report. However, beware of the “experts” who are willing to categorically declare the cause of an accident based on a single video without ever seeing the final report. They are free to disagree with the NTSB, but should be able to discuss what facts they got wrong.
Thanks Max for reading the article and the feedback! I’ve always wondered what the NTSB and other FAA Inspectors think of online crash video experts.
If the GA community is feeling squeezed & threatened. Is crash after crash after video in the algorithm good for the survival regarding new recruits?
Thank you Mr Sack for this article.My first impression after reading it was that you had a negative attitude about learning to fly safely. However, after reading the excellent varied commentary,I have a completely different appreciation for your endeavors. As your readers have commented, some video sites are helpful and well done and others are simply not beneficial to aviation learning. When I completed my private pilot and IFR training, I subscribed to the NTSB for about 5 years to see where did pilots go wrong. I am a practicing physician (oh no another doctor that thinks he’s a pilot) that loves aviation. As a surgeon, I have had complications. After a bad outcome( not fatal), I always go back and look at what I could have done differently. Where did I fall short? Would the operation have gone flawlessly if I had better equipment, or was this just an unpredictable accident, or as in most cases was this doctor/pilot error? What can I do better to. prevent this in the future? The science behind the NTSB analysis is probably the best. However, the well done videos are more entertaining and fun to watch. They also allow one time to decide “would I have made the same choice” as the Pic. Once again, thank you Alexander for your interesting article
Thanks for reading it and not piling on comments that have no bearing on the article itself!
The ASI videos are a fantastic resource and as I stated, the gold standard! The question is why? And I believe a big part of that is how most of them build an accident chain and coalesce the information into a meaningful whole (with some key takeaways at the end). Unfortunately, I don’t believe you can really get that same efficacy with a quick video about an accident that just happened – it takes time to really build the full picture. But as I said, if any of these videos inspire a rusty pilot to get a checkout or someone to review fundamentals, more power to them!
I find Juan, Hoover, Petter, and the Safety Institute to be very well done, highly informative, and important reminders that there has never been a perfect flight.
There are other good ones out, but I never go for the ones that are just seeking clicks, which means I avoid Grider like the plague.
Yes, I watch them, and read the comments sometimes. Im surprised sometimes to see people that think something is new and say it is dangerous. Like a tear drop entry into the down wind. I was taught this entry almost 50 years ago. Is it dangerous? Yes, for people that are not talking on the radio.
It is fun to see people complaining about ADS-B requirements… yes, the same complaints were made when transponders were made a requirement, then mode C.
Things change all the time, airplanes are now like flying a computer, and every airplane is running a different program they expect you to learn… the old Apple vs MicroSoft problem arises… ‘yea, I know apple programming, but not Microsoft’ or vice vers…
The videos for me are entertainment, not instruction. Like the Russian car crashes, you just gotta look and think, damn, that must have hurt.
Some videos have me thinking of new ways to save lives. I see planes crash that don’t catch fire until the fuel injection system leaks onto the manifold… it would suck to burn alive. So, why not put a fire extinguisher system like the ‘fire ball’ fire extinguisher forward of the fire wall?
So, not all YouTube crash videos are bad.
I’m absolutely positive it doesn’t hurt, and if it makes a difference to even one pilot, then yes it helps.
Videos, articles, presentations, and group discussions about mishaps are absolutely healthy and essential ways to mitigate complacency and increase awareness of how quickly things can go – and have gone – wrong in a dynamic flight environment. Pilots need to routinely think about what they can control, and what they can’t, and develop strategies and approaches to reinforce a reasonable level of discipline and acceptable risk in their flying activities. At times, relying too heavily on experience alone can blind us to simple things we know but have begun to simply neglect – or worse, omit — in our flying. All pilots are human, we all are susceptible to making mistakes, and videos often show that can and should learn from the mistakes of others. As a community, we all need to consistently assess ourselves, how we think, and how we remain mentally sharp and attuned to potential flight hazards that can be anticipated and mitigated through professional excellence. Flying can and should be enjoyable, but none of us were borne with wings on our backs – we have to accept that flight involves risks and responsibly approach those risks with understanding and sufficient preparation to fully benefit from the experience over time – every time we fly.
I would like for anyone who watches crash videos to change their mindset from why did they do that, I would never do that, or this will never happen to me, to this could happen to me. It helps to remove the invulnerability attitude from your flying.
Aviation accident discussions are absolutely beneficial to a pilot. The actual video of a crash occurring may not be beneficial, but discussing what caused the accident and how to avoid it is an opportunity to learn.
Alex, As a veteran of far too much YT I wanta say thanks for the article! I’ve watched the full range from well thought out informative material, Hearse chasing sensationalism (Like the stuff the guy in California puts out) and everything in between. This applies to non flying subjects as well. Sadly, I think the revenue structure at YT is largely to blame. Fortunately pilots are smart enough to separate the useful material from the clickbait and let the posters with less relevant material move on to other subjects. Thanks again.
Thanks KM! Yes, exactly, YT is full of accident videos and crash analysis. Most of them do provide some value as many people have mentioned, but I think as a community we need to be more objective and demanding on what makes some of them more valuable than others and strive for that ideal.
If one simply “watches” the video then they are mostly entertainment and of little value, however with tools to analyze they are an invaluable window to understanding.
If we all had the self awareness and decision making skills to stay out of accidents there would be no accident videos. It’s all theory until it happens to you. I watch them to keep me humble and honest.
WE all learn something from being aware of another’s mishap or new found knowledge, regardless of the cause. Early in my aviation career (1960’s) in the Flying Magazine’s monthly article, “I Learned About Flying From That”, I picked up a small piece of information that I didn’t use for forty years. In my wonderful Mooney flying IFR in IMC, I was cleared for a VOR approach and anticipated breaking into VFR well above 400 feet above minimums. For ATC’s reasons, I was 1,000 feet above the IP published altitude. With my Garmin 430W. the approach was simple all I had to do was GET RID OF THE 1,000 feet of excess altitude which I commenced immediately using gear down, full flaps and a healthy slip. About a minute later still in IMC, dead silence. The engine quit, still wind milling. Went through the checklist, no luck. With the Garmin 430, situational assessment was easy even though I was still IMC, I thanked the controller in my mind for the extra thousand. Once completing the checklist, I recalled the article which stated that if you loose your engine and know restart was not going to happen, then follow through the shut engine down procedure. The last thing I would have needed is to have full power return at an unanticipated and perhaps worse tine. When I pulled the mixture control to idle cutoff power returned, never mind the engine backfiring. Had I not gone to the shut down procedures until I made visual contact with the runway, and at that point even momentary power would have placed me at risk of over shooting the runway. Successful landing. Had to be towed in. The problem was a stuck carburetor float.
There are two additional questions of interest here I think.
Perhaps the question should not be – do the videos do any good, but rather are they the best use of a pilot’s time in improving safety. Perhaps reading or watching some other videos or spending time in a simulator would be more useful?
The other is a question of viewership. Because of the format and ease of viewing, are these videos more likely to be used than other forms of training?
You are pointed in the same cardinal direction as the article! That first question is in fact what I’m getting at!
Here’s the thing: No where in my article did I say ALL crash videos are bad and have no benefit. However, and as many have stated, not all crash channels are created equally.
Personally, I think the channels that go back and give a more informed view of a crash that already had some kind of formal investigation associated with it provide more “safety value” than most of the reactionary pieces covering a crash that happened a few hours ago. To that end, I took the ASI videos as an example of what I think is the gold standard in excellent crash video analysis – each ASI video usually presents an accident chain analysis that coalesces all the information into a *meaningful whole* that you can use on your next flight. To me, that’s what a “safety” video needs to be about otherwise it falls into the category of current news where the real benefit isn’t even in the video itself, but the conversation it starts about whatever safety topic is at hand, i.e., icing, stall/spin, engine out, you name it. And if that conversation prompts pilots to get more sim time or go out with a CFI or seasoned pilot, as I wrote, more power to them! But I do think taking an objective eye on crash video analysis is still worth everyone’s time given how popular they are! Perhaps the title of this article should have been, “Why are crash analysis videos valuable to pilots?”
Alexander, I think your title stimulated a lot of discussion.
It is clear from the pretty much level crash rate in GA that something is going on cognitively that is a major contributor to these accidents.
One idea might be that the reason this type of flying is enjoyable to people is in some sense that it is pushing the limits of human cognition and thus induces a flow state.
If that is true, it could be that people will always push these limits and that the risk level is acceptable to people. Sort of like mountaineering and other extreme sports. People like them in part because of the risk.
In which case, no amount of videos or training is likely to reduce it and watching crash videos is just a form of living vicariously.
Just a hypothesis. I can imagine a number of serious studies that can explore this and have to wonder if there may be an existing literature.
That was the idea behind the article so mission accomplished! And the varied reactions and comments are great (and I think in the end will help make AirFacts a stronger community as a result).
I’m totaly disagree with your conclusions! Yotubers like Dan Gryder are giving valuable priliminary analysys and provide information for repeating the same mistakes.
Well, if crash videos trigger an avalanche of views and reactions, so did your article :-)
I will start my contradicting you with the annotation of yourself in your profile: “…because a good pilot is always learning…”
We will agree watching videos will teach you better, than, say, reading the tea leaves.
And boy, did I make some of those mistakes that got others killed, just I was the dumb lucky and they were not.
I AM a better pilot because I watch those videos.
Not once did I think “what an idiot this was” but rather “wow I did just THAT the other day…”
If people get better by watching why others crashed then thank Lord for this opportunity – social networks may be good for something in the end.
This entire article was more for “clicks” than helpful, compared to the 3 fellas I watch..
Alexander: I’m going to disagree with 95% of the commenters, and fully agree with you. I’m the safety manager of a medium sized international airport, and conduct dozens of incident investigations a year. I fully agree with you, that “ya already know what ya need to know”. We continually deal with the same basic handful of mistakes and non-compliances and poor attitudes. I do enjoy the thoughtful, well produced YT channels myself, but mostly for entertainment value. I find the best way of improving my aviation safety is to spend two hours in the airplane or at a desk with one of my favorite instructors. Of course, that costs a few more $ than watching 2 hours of YT :-)
Peter, first off thank you for reading the article and I appreciate your candid feedback! It means a lot.
I recall having a pilot come up to me at Sun ‘n Fun 5 or 6 years ago as I was working the Air Safety Institute booth in the AOPA tent and told me very specifically that one of our videos had saved his life. He had watched one where a pilot had a bird strike into the flight deck and it broke his only pair of eyeglasses. The pilot speaking to me also wore glasses and said that after watching that he started flying with a second pair of glasses. That helped him on an instrument approach at night into Little Rock, AR when a lens fell out of his glasses. He was able to get the second pair of glasses out of his flight bag, put them on, completed the approach and landed safely. I wish I had gotten his name, but that was a very cool interaction and to hear that one of our videos prevented an accident was an awesome feeling.
I can tell you that the Accident Case Studies take a while to put together, not just from waiting on the NTSB final report, but also deriving the lessons learned and putting it into a format that will make a significant impact on GA safety. Real Pilot Stories are interesting because we got to talk with pilots who had survived an emergency or incident without it becoming a fatal accident and could get their perspectives on what happened and why, what was their decision making process like, etc. The Early Analysis videos were done with the intent to get a good lesson learned or provoke some critical thinking from the viewers as to how they might adapt their practices and be a safer pilot. If we didn’t have enough information about an accident to pull together a good analysis quickly it wasn’t produced but earmarked for a possible later video. Our videographers and writers did an amazing job at putting these products together and there is a lot that goes on to get them produced. I worked with a very talented team of individuals and credit the late Richard McSpadden with fostering an environment that really focused on improving safety and the root causes of accidents.
As an occasional flight instructor, videos are just one tool in my toolbox for instilling a safety mindset in my learners and keeping myself appraised of what is going on in the safety arena.
John, I just want to say thank you for your thoughtful comment and to thank you and the whole staff at ASI for doing what you folks do. I am a huge fan of the content you produce and believe all of the ASI Case Studies are the “gold standard” for GA accident case study analysis. Thank you!