As a pilot, one should always be prepared and ready for the unexpected to occur. With this in mind, Matt Hammer, a New Jersey based private pilot who is working on his commercial certificate and instrument rating, has written a guest post on Plastic Pilot about an in-flight incident involving the mixture control. Specifically (and during a recent cross country flight), Matt turned the mixture knob only to have the entire mixture knob along with a good 8 or so inches of cable came out of the panel and land on the airplane’s floor.
Without recounting the specific details of how he handled the incident (more of an annoyance than a serious emergency), Matt mentions three important lessons that every pilot should take note of and remember during any unexpected event or emergency while flying:
- When something unexpected happens, the first step is *always* to fly the airplane.
- Assess the situation. Is it an actual emergency? Are you in immediate danger? What’s the most logical thing to do to arrive on the ground in one piece?
- After you’ve decided on the best way to handle the situation, COMMIT to your plan. Don’t second guess yourself unless it’s glaringly obvious that you’ve made a mistake.
Remembering these three simple pieces of advice will go along way toward keeping you safe the next time something unexpected happens while flying.