Aviation Risk/Reward

Pilot121

Pilot121

Well-Known Member
With all the recent airplane crashes occurring recently (Houston, North Dakota, one in California, one in Tennessee), and being a very new student pilot myself, it seems to me that it may just not be worth it to fly. Is this a common sentiment among student pilots? How did all of you deal with the inherent risk of flying airplanes, especially when you had little experience? I know all things in life carry risk, but in your opinion, is flying really worth it if one is not 100% devoted to becoming a pilot?
Thanks,
Pilot121
 
Fatal car crashes don't keep you from driving do they?

Not going to look up the numbers but I think you have a greater chance at dying in a car accident on the way to the airport than you do in a fatal airplane crash.

"Aviation in itself is not inherently dangerous. But to an even greater degree than the sea, it is terribly unforgiving of any carelessness, incapacity, or neglect."
 
I will try to answer the last portion of your question first, the "100% devoted to becoming a pilot".

In my very fresh, ink still wet, CFI opinion, if you intend to pilot an aircraft, you should never attempt to be any less than that. The risk is there absolutely, and your best defense from becoming a case study, or statistic, is to be as well prepared as possible. Training to fly is unlike most of the things in life we learn (you know, brain dump after passing the test), everything matters, and even the smallest things can have drastic effects. Can you prepare for everything? No....but can you get to the point where you can handle almost everything, well I'm certainly going to try. Study, study, study, chairfly, then study some more. Take lessons that arent required, attend a seminar or two. Do whatever it takes to soak up as much useful information as you can. Thats how I personally mitigate the risk, and recommend doing just that.

As for your original question, "is it worth it?"....
For once you have tasted flight you will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards, for there you have been and there you will long to return.

The experiences aviation has offered me in my relatively short venture are without comparison. I can only imagine, that as time goes on, they will no doubt remind me why this risk is worth the reward.

Id talk with your CFI though, share your concerns, and do whatever makes you most comfortable. Feel free to PM if you would like more from me.

-Zak
 
Life is risky.

You may not want to leave bed in the morning, either.

That being said...thousands upon thousands of flights occur safely every day. Many pilots go entire decades-long careers of flying without ever having a serious emergency.
 
IslandFlyer said:
Fatal car crashes don't keep you from driving do they?

Not going to look up the numbers but I think you have a greater chance at dying in a car accident on the way to the airport than you do in a fatal airplane crash.

"Aviation in itself is not inherently dangerous. But to an even greater degree than the sea, it is terribly unforgiving of any carelessness, incapacity, or neglect."
Click to expand...
You try to be the best you can be at everything you do, you attempt to make no mistakes, you try to get all of the training and all of the experience you can to stack the deck in your favor.

Sometimes you do all of this, make no mistakes, and still lose. This you must live with.

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@Pilot121

The numbers are out there, flying is safe. Risk mitigation is what makes it safe. Blue Angels and Thunderbirds fly low altitude/ high speed aerobatics in jets and have very few accidents while doing it, because of risk mitigation.

Airlines have very good safety protocols. Damaging airplanes and killing people isn't good for business. General aviation (non-airline or military) still has a good safety record but it is hard to calculate accidents:flight hours because there isn't a means to collect data from all of those pilots and airplanes. Most GA accidents are related to human factors and very few are related to mechanical failure.

Overall the number of accidents relative to flight hours is very low. I'm more concerned about being hit in my truck while driving to the airport than what happens while I'm flying. I suggest taking some aviation safety courses and reading the Joe Nall Report.


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Pilot121 said:
With all the recent airplane crashes occurring recently (Houston, North Dakota, one in California, one in Tennessee), and being a very new student pilot myself, it seems to me that it may just not be worth it to fly. Is this a common sentiment among student pilots? How did all of you deal with the inherent risk of flying airplanes, especially when you had little experience?
Click to expand...

To stay alive, it is pretty easy.

1) Fly the airplane
2) Stay current and proficient
3) Fly the airplane
4) Avoid marginal weather and aircraft you are unfamiliar with solo
5) Fly the airplane

Loss of control accidents, at every level of aviation, are the biggest killers. Unfortunately, the aviation environment has plenty of distractions, which often contribute to these accidents.

I would suggest reading a lot of accident reports. Easy to find at ntsb.gov. Should give you an idea of what the areas of high risk are, and how to not put yourself in those situations. The good news - learning to fly with a CFI is incredibly safe. (Part of being a CFI is reviewing accident reports periodically, a big part of renewing that certificate)
 
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