Cardiff City Footballer Feared Missing after aircraft disappeared near Channel Island
CO poisoning is almost impossible to detect until it’s nearly too late. However, there is no excuse, CO poisoning or not for an unqualified pilot carrying out this flight. Ibbotson knew he was unqualified, Henderson I suspect knew he was unqualified and an innocent life was lost.
I’ve spent a career in CAT operations watching cowboys taking the piss because they do it cheap, no one stops them and those of us with all the checks and balances in place lose business to these cheating s***s who laugh and lie their way out.
While I feel sorry for the loss and publicity Ibbotson’s family have suffered I hope his death may finally mean someone grasps illegal CAT and the operators by the throat and squeezes, hard.
Pilots are advertising helicopter sight seeing flights along the Thames, with 70 hours on their PPL and not knowing that for CAT a non-standard flight plan is required. It’s 20 years since I last flew a sightseeing flight, but I know what they mean to the real operators,
At a UK Airport last week I met an elderly lady whose son had paid for her to use the aircraft and pilot he hires regularly to take the mother to meet a friend. Cocky bloke in his 4 seat single and his PPL charging for a charter. Fancy putting your mum’s safety in the hands of a couple of hundred hour PPL in iffy weather?
Ignore CO poisoning, it had no more relevance than a mild cold in this case. The flight was illegal and Sala was killed by people prepared to take a risk for a few quid, and from information now coming out about airworthiness, or lack of It sounds worse than at first thought.
I make no apology for my anger, I have to work my arse off to keep the staff employed and the aircraft paid for and then answer questions about how Sala died and are we safe. My passengers are, at a price, I suspect a lot of passengers in the UK now aren’t.
I still await Grant Shapps response to how his “freeing up GA” has enhanced safety.
SND
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The reason for the difficult exam (the knowledge) London black cab drivers have to pass is they play by a clearly defined set of rules.
On the other side of the fence are the minicabs and Ubers who are the Arthur Daleys of the taxi world.
Few checks or regulation means you get what you pay for ...
On the other side of the fence are the minicabs and Ubers who are the Arthur Daleys of the taxi world.
Few checks or regulation means you get what you pay for ...
I don't. I don't use London taxis. I'm not rich enough, and I have difficulty imagining who might be able to afford them (when not on expenses).
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Agreed A and C.
The reason for the difficult exam (the knowledge) London black cab drivers have to pass is they play by a clearly defined set of rules.
On the other side of the fence are the minicabs and Ubers who are the Arthur Daleys of the taxi world.
Few checks or regulation means you get what you pay for but these people sadly undermine the legal operators business model.
If I was running an AOC operation I would be extremely angry to see cowboy pilots flying N reg aircraft on illegal charters that cannot be stopped by the CAA?
The reason for the difficult exam (the knowledge) London black cab drivers have to pass is they play by a clearly defined set of rules.
On the other side of the fence are the minicabs and Ubers who are the Arthur Daleys of the taxi world.
Few checks or regulation means you get what you pay for but these people sadly undermine the legal operators business model.
If I was running an AOC operation I would be extremely angry to see cowboy pilots flying N reg aircraft on illegal charters that cannot be stopped by the CAA?
Or have they reported them and been ignored ? Several correspondents on here seem to be well aware of what’s been going on.
Has it been reported and ignored or has it just been ignored?
Be lucky
David
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cowboy pilots flying N reg aircraft on illegal charters that cannot be stopped by the CAA?
The fact that an aircraft is on the N register does not exempt the pilot from the law or regulations of the country in which it is used.
As regards the pilot it is the same. The rules applying to my FAA licence make that crystal clear: in fact it says that where the UK regulations differ from the FAA regs, the more restrictive regs apply.
All that said: I agree entirely that those arranging or flying the type of illegal charter that this flight appears to have been should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law and have exemplary penalties imposed whatever reg aircraft they use.
Unfortunately the CAA is a rubber-toothed poodle when it comes to investigating, let alone prosecuting illegal ops, even when the prepetrators are AOC operators who already have Flight Ops Inspections and are thus readily investigable.
I personally know of one UK AOC holder that was chartering a King Air on a private C of A in Africa while advertising it as fully UK licenced and insured and their crew included a third 'ghost' pilot whose name was logged for all the (great many) hours over the legal maxima. One of their pilots was renowned for performing aerobatics to wow his female passengers. Indeed he was almost famous for it in the community they worked for.
This was reported but the CAA decided it was 'too difficult and too far away to investigate'.
I also had dealings with a UK scheduled airline that didn't allow Captains to write defects in tbe tech log, instead these were listed on the back of your met paperwork and left for the next guy to read, 3 pages of them on some of the fleet. Not one of the fleet of 5-6 aircraft was fit to fly in airways or in IMC due to defective deicing or radar and on some aircraft both. This could have been proven with 10 minutes work by a Flt Ops Inspector, but when reported nothing whatsoever was done despite their admitting it wasn't the first report of such chicanery they'd had filed. 10 years later I was still hearing of exactly the same going on in that company from its ex pilots. They even managed to have a wheels up landing with pax on a scheduled flight and never filed an accident report. And the CAA never did a thing despite that being reported too!
Good luck hoping they'll do anything to stop illegal charters by PPLs or on the N reg. Pigs will fly first.
I personally know of one UK AOC holder that was chartering a King Air on a private C of A in Africa while advertising it as fully UK licenced and insured and their crew included a third 'ghost' pilot whose name was logged for all the (great many) hours over the legal maxima. One of their pilots was renowned for performing aerobatics to wow his female passengers. Indeed he was almost famous for it in the community they worked for.
This was reported but the CAA decided it was 'too difficult and too far away to investigate'.
I also had dealings with a UK scheduled airline that didn't allow Captains to write defects in tbe tech log, instead these were listed on the back of your met paperwork and left for the next guy to read, 3 pages of them on some of the fleet. Not one of the fleet of 5-6 aircraft was fit to fly in airways or in IMC due to defective deicing or radar and on some aircraft both. This could have been proven with 10 minutes work by a Flt Ops Inspector, but when reported nothing whatsoever was done despite their admitting it wasn't the first report of such chicanery they'd had filed. 10 years later I was still hearing of exactly the same going on in that company from its ex pilots. They even managed to have a wheels up landing with pax on a scheduled flight and never filed an accident report. And the CAA never did a thing despite that being reported too!
Good luck hoping they'll do anything to stop illegal charters by PPLs or on the N reg. Pigs will fly first.
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snd - I do agree with your post and can feel your frustation but the fact remains with the level of CO in Sala's bloodstream both were almost certainly unconcious when the plane hit the water. Had the pilot been a 20,000 hour ATPL the end result would be the same (but we wouldnt know the cause as the plane would have more likely turfed in from fl150 and no bodies would have been found.) This doesnt change the legality of the flight but the cause of the crash was not down to a lack of qualifications.
snd - I do agree with your post and can feel your frustation but the fact remains with the level of CO in Sala's bloodstream both were almost certainly unconcious when the plane hit the water. Had the pilot been a 20,000 hour ATPL the end result would be the same (but we wouldnt know the cause as the plane would have more likely turfed in from fl150 and no bodies would have been found.) This doesnt change the legality of the flight but the cause of the crash was not down to a lack of qualifications.
However this was a grey charter where the passenger had expressed misgivings about the state of the aircraft.
He was an innocent party in this chain of events.
The owner of a maintenance company has also remarked it needed a lot done to bring it up to a safe standard.
Very few of us ever poke our noses in to other peoples business and instead turn a blind eye to something that may well be illegal.
From what I understand the owner of the Malibu had assigned management and charter of the aircraft to DH.
He in turn booked Ibbotson to fly the fatal flight.
However the owner must take responsibility for the safety of those who flew in it.
There are both criminal and civil actions on the horizon.
One thing for sure is any insurance policy will be invalid.
Last edited by Mike Flynn; 20th Aug 2019 at 17:07.
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snd - I do agree with your post and can feel your frustation but the fact remains with the level of CO in Sala's bloodstream both were almost certainly unconcious when the plane hit the water. Had the pilot been a 20,000 hour ATPL the end result would be the same (but we wouldnt know the cause as the plane would have more likely turfed in from fl150 and no bodies would have been found.) This doesnt change the legality of the flight but the cause of the crash was not down to a lack of qualifications.
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Further to my original post about what a PPL student should do, on a lesson today I noticed the aircraft is fitted with a stick on CO detector (changing colour dot type). I think this is probably best, as you may not hear an alarm.
I will certainly be checking it more frequently going forward......
I will certainly be checking it more frequently going forward......
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snd - I do agree with your post and can feel your frustation but the fact remains with the level of CO in Sala's bloodstream both were almost certainly unconcious when the plane hit the water. Had the pilot been a 20,000 hour ATPL the end result would be the same (but we wouldnt know the cause as the plane would have more likely turfed in from fl150 and no bodies would have been found.) This doesnt change the legality of the flight but the cause of the crash was not down to a lack of qualifications.
I’d be interested to know just how CO poisoning could have been detected, at the reported levels in a body that had been under seawater for so many days.
DI had no excuse, CO poisoning is no excuse. And the price was horrendous.
SND
Given the mention of the state of maintenance, was the aircraft even airworthy? Local organisation refused to release an aircraft (100 hourly) when owner pressed not to have certain work done. Owner relented, and paid.
So the detection of CO poisoning in "a body that had been under seawater for so many days" is not in any way remarkable or strange.
PDR
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CO poisoning produces permanent damage to red blood cells - it's a signature which remains and can be identified even in a long-deceased body and it gives fairly precise values of the scale. CO poisoning is not just a matter of lack of oxygen (as happens with CO2) - it is actually a poisonous gas. CO "locks" the haemoglobin in the blood such that it can't take oxygen even when it's present. If you suffer CO poisoning beyond a certain level even getting you away from the CO and giving you 100% oxygen via a mask won't save you - you will die unless you are given a rapid and massive transfusion of red blood cells (which is rarely possible).
So the detection of CO poisoning in "a body that had been under seawater for so many days" is not in any way remarkable or strange.
PDR
So the detection of CO poisoning in "a body that had been under seawater for so many days" is not in any way remarkable or strange.
PDR
Be lucky
David
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The piece regarding your local aircraft is irrelevant.
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CO poisoning produces permanent damage to red blood cells - it's a signature which remains and can be identified even in a long-deceased body and it gives fairly precise values of the scale. CO poisoning is not just a matter of lack of oxygen (as happens with CO2) - it is actually a poisonous gas. CO "locks" the haemoglobin in the blood such that it can't take oxygen even when it's present. If you suffer CO poisoning beyond a certain level even getting you away from the CO and giving you 100% oxygen via a mask won't save you - you will die unless you are given a rapid and massive transfusion of red blood cells (which is rarely possible).
So the detection of CO poisoning in "a body that had been under seawater for so many days" is not in any way remarkable or strange.
PDR
So the detection of CO poisoning in "a body that had been under seawater for so many days" is not in any way remarkable or strange.
PDR
SND