Bad Flight

[Huggy Bear]

I had one yesterday; and I don't mean a flight with bad stuff happening to you, system failures, student does poor, ATC screws you, etc. Lord knows those are all too common. I mean the kind of flight in which I am bad. Yesterday's was a simple 2v2 intercept hop, a flight I've done literally hundreds of times, and done effortlessly, but yesterday I felt like an amatuer. Late melds, late finding bandits post maneuver, blind at the merge, student shot. Shit!

Luckily, these flights are few and far between, but they sure serve to put the ego in check. Why is it so easy to remember the bad flights? I do a hundred flights well, maybe even 10 of those 100 flights are remarkably fun or I'm just "on" or save a really hurt jet; I screw up one and I feel like a douche-bag forever.

Of course, maybe you guys are all rockstars and never have a bad flight.

 

[xj220]

The thing that bugs me after a bad flight is that I know I'm better than that and those are stupid mistakes I shouldn't have made. Like you said, it puts your ego in check and gives you a (hopefully) safe reminder to not get complacent.

 

[Uncle Fester]

I like to think that a good aviators can admit when they've had a bad flight. Shitty ones fire up the excuse matrix.

 

[BACONATOR]

I've had at least my fair share, and it's even worse in multi-piloted airframes, especially with aircrew, because you have an entire audience to watch and take notes on how retarded you are. Luckily, those flights are punctuated by mostly good ones.

 

[Bevo16]

As long as your # of takeoffs = your # of landings, you are good.

 

[PropAddict]

I've had at least my fair share, and it's even worse in multi-piloted airframes, especially with aircrew, because you have an entire audience to watch and take notes on how retarded you are.

Yeah.

It'd be bad enough if you could just self-debrief and say "Damn, I gooned up that landing. Why they hell did I do that?"

Instead, you have three chiefs and 2 FO's run up to the cockpit and complain about their aching backs.:icon_rage

Not that that's ever happened to me or anything. . .

 

[vick]

"...it's not your flying, it's your attitude. The enemy's dangerous, but right now you're worse than the enemy. You're dangerous and foolish. You may not like the guys flying with you, they may not like you. But whose side are you on?" :icon_wink

 

[NightHawk7125]

"...it's not your flying, it's your attitude. The enemy's dangerous, but right now you're worse than the enemy. You're dangerous and foolish. You may not like the guys flying with you, they may not like you. But whose side are you on?" :icon_wink

Haha :icon_tong

 

[Bevo16]

Next time, buzz the tower. At least that way nobody will remember the crappy flight.

 

[Kickflip89]

They will, however, want some butts.

 

[NightHawk7125]

Don't want to get that chance of flying cargo planes full of rubber dog shit out of Hong Kong.

 

[ChunksJR]

Once wrote a "dear john" letter to my wife and family after a flight because we came that close to hitting the superstructure...at least that's what my crew chief said AFTER he talked to me AFTER 2 hrs and one-on-one. I was the HAC, my 2P was on the controls. I took controls, but not before my crew chief $hit himself. The dear john letter was the only way I slept that night.

It's not that bad decisions WILL kill us, but they CAN...we just don't know when the next one will. Some make it their whole LONG life making bad decisions until their last one. Others get nabbed on their first. Just strive to never make bad decisions and there's nothing else you can do.

Keep your head up and out of the clouds & live on the nose of the aircraft, not the tail.

Good luck and fly safe.
~d

 

[jt71582]

Aaand another thread ruined with Top Gun quotes. Huggy if it makes you feel any better I just finished FAM 4 and EVERY flight I almost die.

 

[a2b2c3]

Aaand another thread ruined with Top Gun quotes. Huggy if it makes you feel any better I just finished FAM 4 and EVERY flight I almost die.

Man, I feel bad for your IP's.

 

[jt71582]

Man, I feel bad for your IP's.

OK it's not THAT bad.