Simviation Forums

Before you view the video I should point out it is abundantly clear the SUV completely ignores the fact that they are driving across a runway. The result: a poor student pilot gets caught in a bad situation.

http://www.whas11.com/news/177227511.html

Interesting video...thanks Adam...

I was waiting for Heather to say she thought it was a four way stop sign! 

[quote]I was waiting for Heather to say she thought it was a four way stop sign!

[quote][quote]I was waiting for Heather to say she thought it was a four way stop sign!

hahahaha

"We didn't pull out in front of an airplane!"

"Yes, you did."

well, there goes all hope for the human race

Yeah, It's to bad the student pilot quit flying because at this point.. he has more experience than most student pilots, I assume he just did a belly landing.

Looking through the photo gallery, only the right wheel was torn off. http://www.whas11.com/news/177227511.ht ... =y&c=y&c=y

Before you view the video I should point out it is abundantly clear the SUV completely ignores the fact that they are driving across a runway.

The driver is not "driving across a runway". They are driving over an uncontrolled access road which is approximately 440ft from the marked (displaced) runway threshold. There were apparently warning signs, but no active control. You'd be relying on a person, who may or may not be an aviator, seeing and possibly hearing an aircraft on final approach. In a car with a radio, aircon/fan, etc, it'd quite easily drown out the noise of a light piston on final with a low-ish power setting. On my way to and from work I drive under short final of a runway with heavy light piston use. You can't always hear them coming.

Northwest Regional Airport, Roanoke, Tx. RW "17" threshold

The result: a poor student pilot gets caught in a bad situation.

I have a lot of sympathy for the pilot. Due to the direction the SUV was travelling, combined with a student pilot probably working quite hard an concentrating on the runway ahead, it would have been almost impossible to stop the collision as he'd have been unsighted of his 1-2 o'clock low viewpoint. But what he was doing at that height (440ft from the displaced threshold, about 40-50ft from the beginning of the runway surface)? That is another matter, and probably one that his flight school and the airport management will have to answer. Use the full length of the tarmac = close the road. Use the road = use a displaced threshold, or put traffic control lights on the road.

Easy to attempt to apportion blame, but it's not as clear cut as people think.

Looking at what has been reported, I suspect the majority of the fault will be held by the airport and school; those involved were potentially the victims of bad procedures, on the ground and in the air.

Bit of blame with both parties here IMO

Car should have seen the aircraft, but what if they weren't looking. maybe they drive over that road all the time and the aircraft are normally way above them.

Aircraft was far far far too low on approach. There's a displaced threshold for a reason.....that road! He was however unfortunate as it would have been very difficult to spot an approaching car from the right when sat in the left hand seat.

.mic

Bit of blame with both parties here IMO

Car should have seen the aircraft, but what if they weren't looking. maybe they drive over that road all the time and the aircraft are normally way above them.

Aircraft was far far far too low on approach. There's a displaced threshold for a reason.....that road! He was however unfortunate as it would have been very difficult to spot an approaching car from the right when sat in the left hand seat.

.mic

It will make for a good insurance claim that will end up in the courts being argued that the aircraft was undershooting the runway, mind you, that's why we have an undershoot in the first place.....

Matt

Aircraft was far far far too low on approach. There's a displaced threshold for a reason.....that road!

You're a student pilot Mic. I bet you do exactly what your instructor shows and tells you to do (within the capability of your experience thus far). If the instructor told you to land 2000ft into the runway at Liverpool to save time taxying, you'd do it. I bet this student pilot was doing exactly what he'd been taught to do, and landing exactly where he'd been taught to land.

As I said, I don't think the majority of blame lies with either party involved. Poor airport layout. Poor management of said layout!

Aircraft was far far far too low on approach. There's a displaced threshold for a reason.....that road!

You're a student pilot Mic. I bet you do exactly what your instructor shows and tells you to do (within the capability of your experience thus far). If the instructor told you to land 2000ft into the runway at Liverpool to save time taxying, you'd do it. I bet this student pilot was doing exactly what he'd been taught to do, and landing exactly where he'd been taught to land.

As I said, I don't think the majority of blame lies with either party involved. Poor airport layout. Poor management of said layout!

Yeah I have to agree with the airport layout issue. It sounds like the airport has repeatedly tried to resolve that issue but the owner of the drive is not being cooperative. Hopefully after this incident the owner of the drive will change their tune 

Aircraft was far far far too low on approach. There's a displaced threshold for a reason.....that road!

You're a student pilot Mic. I bet you do exactly what your instructor shows and tells you to do (within the capability of your experience thus far). If the instructor told you to land 2000ft into the runway at Liverpool to save time taxying, you'd do it. I bet this student pilot was doing exactly what he'd been taught to do, and landing exactly where he'd been taught to land.

As I said, I don't think the majority of blame lies with either party involved. Poor airport layout. Poor management of said layout!

Yeah I have to agree with the airport layout issue. It sounds like the airport has repeatedly tried to resolve that issue but the owner of the drive is not being cooperative. Hopefully after this incident the owner of the drive will change their tune

Aircraft was far far far too low on approach. There's a displaced threshold for a reason.....that road!

You're a student pilot Mic. I bet you do exactly what your instructor shows and tells you to do (within the capability of your experience thus far). If the instructor told you to land 2000ft into the runway at Liverpool to save time taxying, you'd do it. I bet this student pilot was doing exactly what he'd been taught to do, and landing exactly where he'd been taught to land.

As I said, I don't think the majority of blame lies with either party involved. Poor airport layout. Poor management of said layout!

Yeah I have to agree with the airport layout issue. It sounds like the airport has repeatedly tried to resolve that issue but the owner of the drive is not being cooperative. Hopefully after this incident the owner of the drive will change their tune

Aircraft was far far far too low on approach. There's a displaced threshold for a reason.....that road!

You're a student pilot Mic. I bet you do exactly what your instructor shows and tells you to do (within the capability of your experience thus far). If the instructor told you to land 2000ft into the runway at Liverpool to save time taxying, you'd do it. I bet this student pilot was doing exactly what he'd been taught to do, and landing exactly where he'd been taught to land.

I have gone against the opinion of my instructor a couple of times. At the end of the day if I'm in control I won't do something that I don't feel comfortable doing. Landing long at EGGP is a bit different to planting it down a couple of hundred feet short of the runway. The displaced threshold isn't available landing distance.

If this was how his instructor was teaching him to land, then the instructor was doing it wrong!

It's being said that this was at the end of his first solo cross country, so what I suspect actually happened was that the student messed up the approach but just wanted to get it down (and he would have done if there headn't been a car in the way )

.mic