The Circle of Alternatives

Cammie Patch

Junior Member
Joined
Nov 7, 2013
Messages
377
Location
Boise, Idaho
Aircraft
Calidus, Cirrus, Columbia, Archer, 172, Cirrus, Seneca, Arrow, Citation Mustang
Total Flight Time
7000+
I've been wanting to share this concept for a long time, but dreaded the long post. However, it is one of the most beneficial concepts I have learned in years of instructing and really want to pass it on.

Think of a flight as being in the center of a circle. Then, picture rings around the center. Each of these rings is another level of safety. For example, a 200 nm cross country flight could have quite a few circles around it. Each circle is something that makes the flight safer. The rings could be:
  1. Plenty of fuel
  2. Good weather
  3. Well planned route following roads and strings of airports, low terrain
  4. Daytime
  5. Proficient pilot
  6. Well-suited aircraft (turbo, speed, equipment etc)
  7. Pilot familiararity of route
  8. ATC services
  9. Plenty of places to land
  10. Aircraft condition and maintenance
  11. Selected altitude
  12. Send location reports as you fly
  13. Get flight following
  14. As you fly over hostile or sparsely populated terrain, keep track of where civilization is in case you need to walk to it.
  15. Monitor 121.5
  16. Cross ridges at a 45 degree angle so you can quickly turn away from them
  17. Picture the wind flowing like water over the terrain and you will be able to predict downdrafts
  18. Carry extra speed for more options in the mountains
All these rings make the flight safer
You could take away a ring or two and the flight is still safe. Even if all the rings are gone, if the flight goes perfectly you will still make it. But only if it goes perfectly.
When you are flying, think about ways to add more rings to your circle. Stay away from the middle. If you really think about it, the only excuse we have for having an accident is if the wing (rotor) falls off. Even then, proper maintenance should preclude that.
I find that I tend to get upset when people have accidents. It makes it look like flying is unsafe, when it really isn't. They say that about 85% of accidents are pilot error. I think it is higher. To me this means that we can eliminate 85% of our accidents.
During every flight, practice scenarios. Ask yourself "what if the engine quits now?" or "where would I divert to if the weather got bad?" If you are asking yourself these questions while you fly, then if one of those things happen, you can easily do what you already planned on doing. I have had two engine failures in fixed wing aircraft, and each time was a non-event because I had already been thinking through my "what if" scenarios.
Also, keep in mind that a perfect emergency landing is worthless if you are going to die from starvation or exposure later. so....
  1. Carry emergency food and a leatherman
  2. Keep your phone charged, have an extra battery
  3. Carry a SPOT (no excuse for not having one of these)
  4. Wear bright clothes
  5. Know the frequency for Center in the area, if your radio still works you may be able to contact aircraft overhead.
  6. If you do go down in mountainous terrain, have a plan and follow the plan.
Hopefully this will give everyone some things to think about. The Circle of Alternatives is something I find myself using all the time.
 
Excellent post Cammie!
 
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