My hardest flight ever - Crossing The Alps - VFR into IMC
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- Опубліковано 5 вер 2018
- I'm flying a PA28 from England to Croatia and back, and it's not without drama.
This was supposed to be a direct flight from Pula to Linz in Austria, but the high terrain, combined with an obstructive cloud layer meant we ended up diverting.
We encountered VFR into IMC, impassable cloud, and my Ipad navigation app failed mid flight.
This wasn't my finest hour, but I'm pleased with the timely decision to divert, rather than risk an aimless course, and fuel exhaustion.
About the trip/GPS tracks
www.jonhunt.net/2018/05/europ...
I'm on Facebook:
/ theflyingreporter
My mentor/hour-building specialist
www.buddysaviation.club/
Hi Jon...no you haven't failed at all. A good pilot is making decisions all the time and you made a good call. Your minimums were being pushed and its better to be on the ground, wishing etc...you know the rest! Human factors (tired) is to be avoided at all times. You live to fly again and that's what its all about.
I agree. Stop beating yourself up Jon! You make sensible decisions in difficult circumstances.
Thanks so much.
The Flying Reporter as a single pilot the work load is away high, the other planes where multi crew, make huge difference, alway good watching
Hi Jon. Good video. In the circumstances you made the right decision especially when getting stressed and tired with fuel becoming an issue. I wondered if it was possible to stay closer to the others and follow the leader so to speak? I know one went over and the other under and you would have had to decide who to follow. Just a thought - I am a student pilot so obviously looking to more experienced pilots to learn decision making
I beg to differ about it not being your finest hour Jon. Instead of blindly pushing on in the hope of finding a path through the cloud ahead, you made the positive decision to divert, giving you time and options. The desire to push on regardless, especially with the added pressure of being part of a group can be difficult to resist, but at the end of the day you are the PIC and must look to your own and your passenger's safety first.
Great production quality as usual - I could really sense the tension in the cockpit..
Glad you liked the video. Thanks for the very supportive comments.
I totally concur - the decision to divert was the correct one for you irrespective of whether the other planes had found a way through.
Totally agree! You remained calm and collected to form balanced decisions keeping you and your passenger safe. I'd have been very content and calm as the passenger in that flight.
Totally agree. I'm not a pilot, but I thought you handled the situation very well and made the right decision to divert and not feel pressured to carry on. Your living my dream. Stay safe
Plenty of people pushed on in bad conditions only to never arrive. Perfectly sound decision making on your part.
Thank you Ryan.
I've only been flying a couple of years, and one thing that has really pleased me is the culture I've discovered, where people want to keep on learning, and are happy to share their stories - warts and all - as a learning aid for everyone. Your videos are a great example of that, I find them really helpful in my own journey as a pilot. Thank you for continuing to share this great material, in the manner that you do.
If this isn't your finest hour I don't know what is. You kept your cool, worked the problem, made the right decisions, landed safely. Bravo!
Thank you Laura.
This is a must see video for all VFR private pilots. Thanks for sharing and give a most realistic overview of the dangers of VFR over the top. My CFI always told me not to consider it, because the risks of broken layer becoming OVC are much too great. The way you handled the situation is to be praised : no trace of complacency, just the facts and a precise knowledge of your skills and abilities. I can only feel how relieved you were after landing safely. Classy!
Jon..Jon...Jon you were brilliant! Resisting all the pressures to meet up with the rest of the group to push on through the clouds not to be the only one to make it through these are the decisions that keep you alive! These are the brave and the right decisions when pilots bow to these choices things can horribly wrong very quickly. Listen to our heads and not our hearts and stay safe. In many ways your best yet it learning from this may well save lives.Great video as always looking forward to the next one.
Thank you so much Mike.
Very good Decision! No Failure at all!!!! I ve seen many accident cases which almost always happened because of „fear of failing“ or time pressure or ego. I think your decision making can help many people to do the right and Secure thing as well! Loved it.
Thank you.
I’m a student pilot. Seeing you navigate these choices and decisions in real time conditions is extremely valuable to me.
You did a great job! Great story of decision making and step by step trying to solve the situation. As a good pilot it is our job to keep learning and improving and sharing our own potentially "wrong" decisions with others so that we all can learn from it. You did great and always remember: any flight, that you can walk away from healthy is a good flight!
You were flying in my home country around my home airport (LOWG) - it is a though area in summer, especially - as you experienced it - with very quick cloud build ups in the mountain area more north of it around Zeltweg.
Keep up the videos!!
What I love most about your videos is the fact that you never let pride and ego affect your decisions nor your ability to teach others. You're so humble and it's very refreshing. You place the education of yourself and others above all else. Thank you. And your production quality is top notch.
Flippin eck, gripping stuff was absolutely brilliant to watch. Agree with everyone else regarding your decision to divert. You sir are a very sound pilot !
Thank you very much for that great experience to share with the community! Flying can be hard sometimes, especially when you are VFR. In my personal opinion you have made a fantastic job. Even your "Co-Pilot" made a great job: During the whole time he stayed pretty relaxed and calm. There was never any hectic in the cockpit. Lots of work, lots of decisions but never hectic. Always many happy Landings for You! Thanks👍 🛩
Excellent video. Please do not be so hard on yourself. You made the right decision and shows that you are a good and competent pilot. Now smile and enjoy the freedom of flying.. and merry Christmas 🎄
Great decision making here! Even if others might have been able to press on and get to the original destination safely, it doesn't mean it was the right thing for you to do. Everyone has their limits, but not everyone knows them. Recognizing your own limits and not pushing them has to be one of the most important skills a pilot can have and you have just demonstrated this perfectly here.
It's always good to see a pilot making the right call. Sadly, people get themselves into the position of running out of options because of poor choices made earlier in the flight, usually under pressure to push on. You kept your options open and made the right decision. Keep the videos coming, they bring me very fond memories of flying a PA28 in the 80s.
You're clearly thinking ahead of the aircraft as much as you can - which is why you made a great job of it. Always so tragic watching other videos where they don't - so good on you.
Well done man. Safety comes first! Right decision was made - no fail.
That was some of the best VFR decision making I've seen. You made sound and safe decisions. You avoided "GetThereitis" and you arrived alive. Great job.
You demonstrated sound decision making on that day, the most important competency for any aviator.
Resisting peer and public pressure, knowing that this would be published, must not have been easy.
Great airmanship!
Nice video. Thanks for sharing. GOOD decision making never = failure... I would never try what you just did. You have guts! Great scenery!!!
Newbie PPL here. Just wanted to thank you for posting this as this video precisely describes the situation I expect to happen one day and this video is very very good for both showing how will it look like and what one should do, especially the communication part.
And it's especially helpful as you don't have all the fancy synthetic visions, not instrument rated and all you've got is the basic six pack and SkyDemon. Pretty much the same setup most of us beginners have.
As someone who is starting on their aviation career your videos are a massive, massive help! This is another great example on how to fly VFR and deal with the stress of finding no way through the clouds. Your thought process and actions were spot on im my opinion! Thanks!
Thank you Jason.
Jon. Top decision. I’ve been there myself.
Great production and narrative as always. Thanks.
Thank you Russell.
Excellent decision making. Good call! It was nice to see how you dealt with this uncomfortable situation.
Thanks Roger.
Great video, and appreciate you posting it. You showed great decision making ability, and it's good to see these videos in addition to those for flights that go perfectly.
Cheers!
This is an absolutely brilliant video and as everyone has said you have demonstrated how to professionally make a decision under nasty pressure. Sharing this footage will only benefit the GA world and maybe help a poor pilot facing a similarly stressful circumstance. Sharing such an experience, in such a well filmed and produced video is invaluable. Congrats to your co-pilot for staying calm.
Thanks Peter. Alastair is a calm cookie.
You nicely added to your experience bucket without using any of your luck bucket - something all aviators should aspire to. Superb decision making and both yourself and Alistair were very calm indeed. Great video as always.
Like the bucket analogy. Thanks Mark.
Another PA-28 flyer from US. you did awesome. you made the right calculations, you evaluated your options and decided to divert. great piloting skills right there. many other pilots tried to push their personal minimums and became a statistic. kudos for making this decision and taking the time to share it.
Thanks. Do subscribe, if not already, to receive more content like this.
You made the right decision and kept calm... Fly with you anytime!
Subscribed!
Taking into consideration all the pressing and critical decision making, staying calm and keeping a clear head, very impressive flying Jon.
Thank you for your support Kevin.
Very nice - You pushed and tested the limits which is where we all learn the most,but importantly always had a plan B. You avoided 'risky shift" and simple peer pressure where your fellow aircraft said it was fine in this or that direction. Even the silent pressure of personal embarrassment of failure to get you and your friend there didn't sway your final decision.
Pivitol point for me was when you said "I feel like I'm flying around without a plan" and subsequently made a really good command decision to divert.
Super video of decision making in the real world away from the classroom theory.
May your flying adventures continue successfully for many years
Thanks Richard. That was the turning point.
These are great vids please keep them coming. Finally i see how it all fits together with ATC. Had a long break and now attempting to get back into it. Have PPL but obviously very rusty. Well done
Thank you Philip. Glad you're trying to get back into it.
Great video Jon and an excellent example of making the right decision and correct choice. Doesn't matter what a 'few' might say the majority will be impressed with your calm and sensible airmanship
Thank you Tim.
Good decision making and ultimately a positive outcome John. You dealt with the situation as it presented itself and applied your own minimums instead of blindly following others. Good job!
Cheers Tom.
Great video... as someone els said you could sense the tension in the cockpit.. also a thumbs up to your buddy beside you keeping quite calm and not adding to the stress level... Mountain flying is a complete new game those pointy bits are very unforgiving.. in western Canada where I rent they will not even let us go into the mountains in till we take the mountain ground school and flight lessons.. great job !!!!!
Thanks Dan.
Such a good episode Jon and in no way did you fail. Absolutely the right decision. But my favourite bit was when you broke away from the other PA28. Lovely to watch.
It was great to fly in formation for a bit. Thanks Richard.
As a fellow VFR pilot, you did the absolute right thing. Keep up the great flying.
Will do, thank you.
Great video Jon, your videos are very interesting for someone like me learning on my time building experiences, I learn a lot from them when I do longer cross country flights over higher terrain.
From what I saw in the video, it was definitely the right decision, clouds are hazardous as they are (especially TCU's) but with mountains mixed in as well it's a terrible combination which could lead to dire consequences which no safe flying pilot would ever wish.
It almost happened to me when I was flying recently on a 2 hour flight back from East to West Slovakia with thunderstorms included but had just enough minima and distance from the CBs to continue otherwise it was an instant diversion to the nearest airfield, like that feeling you get in your stomach that you're not happy about something.
Looking forward to the next one.
Cheers
Jamie
Thank you Jamie. Safe skies.
As a relatively new pilot who plan to also fly in mountainous regions, I particularly enjoyed this honest and ‘real’ video. I think you are a very very good pilot and you are a role model for good decision making. Thank you
Cheers Magnus.
An excellent example of exactly what you should do when things don’t go according to plan.
Good airmanship and disaster avoided.
Well done.
Thanks David.
That was great, could almost be listed as a ‘must watch’ video for teaching sensible decision making. Good to almost be able to see you think - ‘weather, stress, fatigue, mountains, potential icing, low fuel - nope, divert’. Excellent.
Bit of an advert for why the BIR is such a good idea too, although I’m not sure I’d have wanted to carry on through some of that TCU anyway!
Thanks. I hope the video helps someone.
Great job! You appeared calm, capable and professional. Safety first before ego. You live to fly another day! Well done 👍
Thank you Kevin.
Jon. Good decision. I've done similar many times but I'm still here as you are. I've met pilots who were bolder & they are gone now. There is a saying, "There are old pilots and bold pilots but no old bold pilots." You made the right decision. Your situational awareness is keen. Keep flying safe.
Thank you Gary.
It was easily the best and possibly your only workable decision given your situation and the limitation of not being permitted to fly IMC. Great video, watching these helps me feel like I'm keeping more current than I would be if I was just dreaming about my next flight! Also, I've never had SkyDemon crash on my on any of the 3 devices I use it on, YET, so it sounds to me like it might be a hardware issue, rather than the App itself.
For me you stayed calm and took the correct action needed to keep you both and your aircraft safe. My honest opinion is I would have felt safe flying along with you. Life and what ever you do, we never stop learning. See you on the flight home ✈️
Thank you Stewart.
I just watched your video since it‘s winter and no chance to fly the next weeks. I live in the south of Germany so naturally we have travelled a lot to Italy and France and I have been in the same situation like you a couple of times. My friend hates flying above clouds so my recent flights were always below and therefore I prefer to choose well known VFR routes like Brenner pass etc. Until today I was only forced to divert once and I feel more comfortable flying Brenner as over the years you know where to fly even without GPS. Adding to my safety I have an Iridium satellite receiver by ADL Golze which gives me live weather on my Ipad as we do not have any weather service like in the U.S., weather via GSM is very unreliable especially in the Alps. I really enjoyed your videos on your trip, as you have said the french controllers are really professional and great, with the Italians, especially further south, I prefer to minimize contact, they are really bothering with their waypoint estimations, but I think that is also due to the difficult radar coverage. My most difficult flight yet was from Munich to Lisbon...that was an adventure but Spanish ATC is no fun.
very good video ! very instructionnal, you are taking decisions for your own aircraft according to your personnal experience and taking in consideration the human factor and weather evolutions. Even though the second aircraft had a route to go through you didn't push to it ! Some would be tempted to follow the other aircraft at any price. but you didn't, you were aware of your situation and took the appropriate decision at the right moment well done ! I really enjoyed this video !
Thanks for your kind comments.
You shouldn’t have felt you failed. I agree with most of the other commenters this was an excellent example of good decision making. I fly a lot in the Alps and visibility is very important. Clouds can build up during the day especially along the valley sides obscuring the peaks and I have been in a similar situation before: boxed in with clouds ahead in a valley which appeared to obscure the pass and forced to turn back and take a different route. I heard other pilots on the radio who later were able to make the pass I was headed for but I felt it was dangerous at the time I was there and decided against trying. If you feel uncomfortable with the weather then diverting is always the best decision. Better to be alive on the ground and able to see your friends on another day than dead on the side of a mountain.
Thanks geoffrey.
Good decision making and you have not failed at all. Get-there-itis is what kills you, specially in the alps. Living and flying in Switzerland, I know how hard it can be to cross them. I'll be honest, flying over or in the alps is almost always a more or less stressful situation for me, only exception being perfect CAVOK conditions with great vis and no winds. Anything worse than that already keeps me on my toes (which is a good thinig). I've been over the alps in marginal conditions, but it's really not easy...
Excellent decision making. Timely divert and you know your limits. I’d say you’ve probably learned a lot on this trip and no doubt it’s made you a better pilot. I’m in awe!
Thank you Steve.
A super example for others, well done Jon.
Thank you Henry.
The right decision, although I wouldn‘t have attempted to fly on top in the first place in a SEP aircraft. At least not above the main Alps. Coming from Pula, I‘d have kept further east, going via Graz - Pinkafeld (LOGP) - Wiener Neustadt (LOAN). The terrain is much more forgiving, but it is a longer route. With 4 hours of endurance, it should be possible though. Pula to LOAN is about 2 1/4 hrs, LOAN to Linz between 1 and 1.5, depending on routing and wind.
Just found your videos and enjoy them immensly, keep it up! May you always land safely...
Excellent video again Jon as always. I am always so impressed by your professionalism, good decision to divert.
Thanks Dennis.
Fantastic decision. Saw the video about the incident over Bakersfield, where a VFR pilot encountered IMC and proceeded anyway. Ended in tragedy. Very smooth landing!
Thanks!
Excellent video Jon, safe and timely decision making, as others have said very easy to have wanted to follow the rest of the group and made your situation much worse. Looking forward to the homeward leg.
Thanks Marvin.
No-one could have made it with all that sad apprehensive music around Jon. So glad you found the happier music and we’re able to land safely. 😬
Cheeky.
Amazing video and kinda strange to hear familiar callsigns and controllers. Thanks for sharing ans greetings from a fellow pilot from austria✌🏽
Love your honesty, you made a wise decision, appreciate the lesson
Beautiful video, as always. Welcome to Austria!
Thank you!
Fantastic video and great airmanship on display.
Thank you Andy.
Had to wait a while for this one, but well worth it and fascinating and instructive as always. Faced with a similar situation, I hope I would keep my cool and think as clearly as you did.
that is the best quality of a pilot... keep calm... look at all the options ... and stay on the safe side. If you think for a split second "i shouldnt do this" than dont do it...
I'm sure you would John. Thank you.
Well done Jon, on the ground safely is the main objective. Thanks for sharing the (stressful!) experience. I feel exhausted after that :-)
Sorry to wear you out!
An excellent video and I agree with the many others who suggest it is a good learning reference for making a good decision to divert while that option was available and sensible. As I watched absorbed in the tension, I was sort of reliving a scenario I faced many years ago as a student on a Solo cross-country trip. Weather was predicted to be good and with approval of my instructor I was hoping to meet up with some friends at a fly-in which happened to be at one of the airports that was on the flying-school approved list. As I got half way there, I started to find myself at 3000ft being above some small pockets of cloud, but as I progressed forward they started to join together and soon I was over an almost solid layer of cloud. I told ATC I was going to do a 180 and look to descend below the cloud as soon as I could. I found some bigger gaps in the cloud as I tracked back towards my home base and got below it and breathed a sigh of relief when I got back shortly before the clouds started to become overcast at my home airfield. I am so glad I made that decision to turn back that time. I was so disappointed I had not been able to complete that cross country flight and didn't get to meet up with my friends. But afterwards I found that many of them had also had to turn back and one of them ended up diverting into an en-route airfield with a 600ft cloudbase. Absolutely no shame in making those sort of decisions.
Thanks Neil.
11:20 well done. There are old pilots and there are bold pilots - on the ground are nice cups of coffee, nice ladies and good food. and fuel 😎👍. You are the Captain whatever you decide.... Don't be gutted.... you're alive! That was one nice runway 👍
Why would you get criticism? You've flown a route and made all the right decisions. You're a great pilot I'd fly with you any day! Your videos are very real, thanks for sharing the highs AND lows of avaition!
Why?...this is social media, and it's brutal at times. Thanks for your support..there are plenty of lows in aviation...my bank balance for one!!
@@TheFlyingReporter yes my bank balance is one of the lows of aviation for me too but it's totally worth it!
Hi Jon, totally the right decision to divert and remain legal - hopefully the new EASA IR (Basic Instrument Rating) will come into force and you'll be able to convert to this from your IR(R) and benefit from this rating. As a VFR pilot I can't directly relate to what you experienced beyond flying on Autumn days when the fog is in the air in the morning or in the evening and have to be careful not to get caught in it or when we have a strong inversion which can significantly reduce visibility. As ever I look forward to the next episode!
Thanks Jason.
I'd agree with many of the comments - you didn't fail. You made the correct safe decision given the scenario. No point trying to push where there's doubt. Enjoyed the video.
Thank you for your kind comments.
Great job putting SAFETY first!
Knowing the rules is important... knowing your own limits is even more important. You managed the situation you found yourself in very well.
Well done Jon, you did great!
Excellent decision making under pressure. 👍
Very well handled as always Jon. You remain super cool despite the workload and the pressure you must have felt to continue. I’d say well done for not succumbing to ‘get there itis’ 👍
Thanks Rory.
Right decision at the right time! That's what it boils down to. Perhaps actually it was your finest hour after all!
Thank you.
Really top job that, good work and great decision!
Jon , failed ?, I beg to differ .. You made a decision that you will look back on in the realms of time , and know that on that day you made one of your best ever decisions . Too many pilots have suffered from “ pressonitis “ and paid the ultimate price . This video is compelling viewing , a great lesson to one and all . Thank you .
Dave C
Appreciate it David.
Thank you for an excellent video, I've come back to it a third time to keep me on the learning curve. One thing which would perhaps have helped - SkyDemon has a "colour terrain" option which is a MAJOR visual aid when flying over anything other than flat terrain. I guess you've discovered it by now :) or perhaps I didn't see that you had it enabled?
I fly a flexwing trike and have gone through one or two similar situations, with only the minor additional challenge of not being in a comfy warm cabin!
All the best, safe flying
Adam
Excellent piloting, Jon. I would have done the exact same. Its better to be on the side of caution and live to fly another day.
Thanks Seb.
Nice story and video! And you saw things which you wouldn't have otherwise ;)
Great decision making! I'd call that flight a resounding success - you completed it in challenging conditions while remaining safe. If you hadn't diverted and managed to "squeeze through" while pushing the limits of safety *that* would have been the failure, even if it resulted in you getting to your intended destination faster.
Thank you for your support.
Another great entertaining and instructive video, Jon. I agree with the rest of the community here, in that you were "In Command" as you should have been, and made sound and reasoned decisions based on the circumstances and with safety always top of mind. Perhaps having an autopilot available would have given an opportunity to relieve the "Aviate" part of the equation giving you more breathing space to manage other issues? I don't have one either - just putting it out there. Anyway, after your demonstration, Jon, I'd fly with you any day. Keep up the good work...
Thank you Alan.
Excellent flying. You were calm, considered and most importantly, safe.
Ignore any silly comments, nobody with any flying experience would find anything serious to criticise there.
Thank you Dave.
Jon, you made absolutely the correct decision. When I was a student pilot I can remember looking up at the clouds and moaning about the weather. An old boy at our club came over and told me. son, your better of down here wishing you were up there. Than being up there wishing you were down here........ now I’m that old boy and I’ve passed that wisdom on many, many times........
Thanks for your support.
Oh, just saw you landed in Graz, my homebase! If you’re ever in the area again, I‘ll gladly buy you lunch/dinner. Have a good one!
Thanks!
I have crossed the Alps VFR on seven occasions. All of them have been in summer or early autumn. The conditions you encountered are absolutely typical of each of my crossings. And so you never really know whether you are going to find a way through. The cloud often does not conform to the forecasts, and can change quite rapidly, with rapid build-ups in warm weather. Certainly, you need to be confident to attempt it, and planning is key. The most important thing, as you discovered, is to have a Plan B, a plan C, and a plan D! But, most of all, it is important to relax and enjoy the experience; don't let the stress get to you! Anyway, I agree that your decision-making was safe and sound, and I hope shifting to Plan B won't put you off attempting it again!
Not put off...but will treat with extra caution in future. Thanks for watching.
In aviation there is no destination. Just to safely join the ground. Good decision and well done! Good video and very helpful. Take care.
You did the exact opposite of fail! You did the smart thing and exhibited being a good, safe pilot.
Cheers Gary.
When seeing building cumulus around mountains with questionable conditions ahead the low route might be safest.When checking the weather watch the ground temps plus aloft and interpolate considering the dew point for where developing cloud bases are most likely building. You should know afternoon is when convection is likely.
Cool under pressure again and sensible decision making. What you wanted there was the basic instrument rating the CAA are planning! Great video again :)
Reading about the BIR with interest Peter.
@@TheFlyingReporter Yep, looks well worth it, got to decide whether to start IR(R) now or not as it's going to be a year or two!
"We'll get on the ground and work the rest out later"....
Every pilot should remember that phrase. Every.
Well done id say John. Some tough but correct PIC decisions there ;)
Thank you Andy.
Great decision Jon you didn't get pressurized to carry on.
Thanks Phil.
the right decision, great video. thanks for sharing!
Thanks for watching.
Carefully watched and I missed the part where you went into IMC, however good cloud avoidance
I don't know what the fuss was all about Jon, I would of just kept going ha ha. Just joking! Great video once again and no decision is a silly one, yours and your passengers safety is always the main priority. Your videos are always great to watch and these are not just videos but helpful guides for others who plan such flights. Also, no one should judge you Jon, until one is in that left hand seat and experiences what you go through on your flights there shouldn't be any judging and so; any decision is a good one. Happy Flying :)
Thank you for your support.
Good decision if there’s any doubt there should be no doubt!!
God decision! 15:18 your friend is enjoying the turbulence 😂
I think we'd both had enough by then!!!
Good flying but knackering!!!! Good decision to turn back/divert.......looks like your afternoon flight to join the group gave you some cool sights!!!....next.......
It was bumpy as hell though, low level!
I was "co-pilot" in a PA2 Turbo Arrow one time coming back from France over the Isle of Wight we encountered some very unstable air that made my passport to fly out of my shirt breast pocket!!!!
I had visions of it flying out of the window/door...
Hello Jon, Yes right decisions made. Great experience though. I would have done the same, definitely safer. excellent video as usual.
Cheers Robin.
Very well handled Jon especially VFR and with normally aspirated engine. Not sure about your mates scud running in valleys though. My preference for the alps would have been in a turbo charged plane. As always enjoy your videos. Will send u a research article on GA mountain mishaps. Douglas commercial SMEL Instruments
Thanks Douglas.
Good job. Very helpful controllers there.
They were excellent.
Good decision making!! 👍🏽