Teen dies attempting to fly around the world

[wainscottbl]

Reqiescat in pace!

Enough has been said on the negatives, so may he rest in peace and may his family find the same. It's too bad he could not do it. It really is.

 

[tonyw]

I'm not going to give any of the BS about how he died pursuing his dream or any of that.

There are risks associated with anything worth accomplishing. Sadly, for these two, those got them.

If we didn't take any risks, we never would have landed a man on the moon. We never would have flown in the first place. Hell, we probably wouldn't have gotten out of our caves.

So yeah, sad that he died, but let's hope he inspires others to want to fly.

 

[gne in prog]

Was this the MIT kid or a different one? I haven't been keeping up on other peoples flying.

 

[flyinguitar]

Getting in a car and driving to the store to buy a some milk can be done in an irresponsible fashion. Likewise, activities that involve a much higher level of baseline risk, such as circumnavigating the globe in a single-engine airplane, can be approached with a mature, thoughtful attitude to safety and risk management. Unless you knew this kid and his dad personally, or have privileged information, it's going to be hard to judge their actions in any sort of fair/accurate way.

 

[Murdoughnut]

Getting in a car and driving to the store to buy a some milk can be done in an irresponsible fashion. Likewise, activities that involve a much higher level of baseline risk, such as circumnavigating the globe in a single-engine airplane, can be approached with a mature, thoughtful attitude to safety and risk management. Unless you knew this kid and his dad personally, or have privileged information, it's going to be hard to judge their actions in any sort of fair/accurate way.

I think you can judge a flight plan. My criticism was oriented at the effort to set a record.

 

[gliderboy]

It's so easy, though, isn't it? Night takeoff over the ocean, pilot gets the plane off the runway, relaxes back pressure and turns the yoke slightly while reaching over to pull up the gear and ....kaboom. Same thing happened here not too long ago. (And yeah, I know, maybe it was something else.)

Remember that video about the pitching deck operations when the senior pilot says: "You have to respect the night."?

 

[flyinguitar]

I think you can judge a flight plan. My criticism was oriented at the effort to set a record.

My comment wasn't directed at you specifically.

 

[ChasenSFO]

You know what else is awesome? Sex with a partner. Your first year in college. Meeting the love of your life and marrying them. Seeing your children born. Getting to a place in your career where you can help others begin theirs.

Very true.

There is nothing worth dying for at 17, short of some heroic act that saves lives.

Again, depends on the perspective. I have friends who are late-20s virgins who play Dungenons and Dragons and pokemon card games together and call it a night out, they're probably OK with never having taken a risk and are perfectly happy. On the other hand, I have a friend who does extreme sports and had lots of near-death experiences from around 15 and up. I don't think he would agree with what you wrote. Of course it turned out for him, he had a short career where he got a lot of exposure and now he has an awesome job because of it. But if he died doing a stunt, it was a result of a risk he was willing to take either way. Had this kid survived, we don't know what this would have done for him. Again, giving this situation the benefit of the doubt that this was in fact the kid's dream and not something he felt obligated to do.

Just flying an airplane in general is awesome. Trying to be the youngest around the world in 30-days is just being greedy, in my humble opinion. There's risk and then there's unnecessary risk. I suppose each person has to come up with their own calculation on that, but I think we can agree that the risk turned out too great here.

Yes, the risk here got the better of them, and flying an airplane in general is awesome. But greedy? I'd call it being wildly ambitious. Ambition is the one thing that separates the few who do big from the millions who dream big. I'm finding out quickly in life that when you go for your wildest dreams, you'll find out there isn't nearly as much competition as you'd think. Ambition, especially in teens, is something we should never discourage, it's far too sparse already in this country.

 

[JordanD]

Flying around the world is like climbing Everest now. Way overplayed.

 

[wbauman1217]

The effect of CRM on the crash will never be known, but imagine the dynamics between a 17-year-old PF son and his PNF father when things started to fall apart.

Yeah I've been wondering how much experience the dad actually had. Seems like one of those things where the kid is "PIC" just like I used to fly with Chinese students in the baron and they got to log "PIC"

 

[Cherokee_Cruiser]

RIP

very sad story

 

[ChasenSFO]

Flying around the world is like climbing Everest now. Way overplayed.

Maybe over-played in the media, but both really awesome things that few people over-all will ever do.

 

[Murdoughnut]

Maybe over-played in the media, but both really awesome things that few people over-all will ever do.

I think flying around the world would be awesome. But take your time - doing it with a 30 day time cap just seemed like bad juju.

 

[z987k]

And let's be honest here. He may have manipulated the controls most of the time but it's not even an accomplishment of the 17 year old if his experienced dad was with him.

 

[Autothrust Blue]

I've been feeling less and less willing to operate singles unless in an environment where I have lots of options in case of engine trouble. This makes me even more nervous. Not that it's new information.

"When I say 'feather four,' I want you to ask 'which four.'"

 

[dustoff17]

And let's be honest here. He may have manipulated the controls most of the time but it's not even an accomplishment of the 17 year old if his experienced dad was with him.

THIS!
I have the same thoughts about that Earhart girl retracing the original flight. Want to impress? Go solo!

 

[wbauman1217]

THIS!
I have the same thoughts about that Earhart girl retracing the original flight. Want to impress? Go solo!

She was also in a PC12. It's like a riding a century on a tandem bike with lance Armstrong. Woo hoo, you did it!

 

[Boris Badenov]

It's like a riding a century on a tandem bike with lance Armstrong. Woo hoo, you did it!

This made me very happy.