Question: Is it illegal to crash an airplane?
Now that most of you have spit the coffee onto the screen, wondering if I've
gone bonkers; this is a question that came up in a class yesterday.
When I was asking some young aviators the "Error or Violation" question, one
pilot, whom I would label a "wise-cracker, or smart-allec", said that since
there is no written policy stating that it is against the rules to crash the
airplane, it's only an error, and must be forgiven. That the aircraft was
destroyed, and some people died, is why it is called an "accident". For that
he should apologize.
I told him this is the same type of logic one uses when violating the
"intent" of the rules. "If it is NOT against the regulations, then it is OK
to do what I am doing"
Does anyone know of regulatory guidance that clearly states "Crashing the
airplane is prohibited"?
Greg Deen
HTI, C-130 ATS