I wonder if the 'black hole' effect got them, maneuvering off shore to land? It could be more of an 'instrument turn' depending on conditions.
No kidding. I treat night flying (especially over water) like IMC.The black hole effect is very real! I don't fly to unfamiliar airports at night unless they have a visual and/or instrument glide slope available... and I always use them
I wonder if the 'black hole' effect got them, maneuvering off shore to land? It could be more of an 'instrument turn' depending on conditions.
No kidding. I treat night flying (especially over water) like IMC.
I did a VFR departure over the water once in Hawaii at night - crystal clear - no moon. Very disconcerting and easy to screw up if you aren't ready for it.
Looking at the track, it appears it may have flown out of KGLS (Galveston)? That's about a 450 nm flight direct, and if they took a few detours it could have put the fuel level pretty low. Looking at the track, they definitely did NOT go direct, and with all the twists and turns they made, the fuel was probably pretty close to empty.
but if they pushed it, ran out of gas AND had a black hole situation, that's just a recipe for disaster.
I think a lot of people are assuming an IFR rating. If the pilot was VFR only, it's a good chance he had never flow in complete darkness. I know that around here, even on a moonless night, it is still easy to fly night VFR.
I've never heard the term "black hole", although I understand what it's talking about. Honestly, I can't say that I would have considered the darkness if flying out over the ocean for base, it's not something that gets talked about frequently.
I think a lot of people are assuming an IFR rating. If the pilot was VFR only, it's a good chance he had never flow in complete darkness. I know that around here, even on a moonless night, it is still easy to fly night VFR.
I've never heard the term "black hole", although I understand what it's talking about. Honestly, I can't say that I would have considered the darkness if flying out over the ocean for base, it's not something that gets talked about frequently.
I think a lot of people are assuming an IFR rating.
East side of the field is kind of dark due to a golf course, west side is well lit, south side where they were approaching from is very well lit and you really should carry a bit of extra altitude because of the condos on the beach.
I wonder if the 'black hole' effect got them, maneuvering off shore to land? It could be more of an 'instrument turn' depending on conditions.
The FAA database that I saw showed this accident pilot getting a private pilot's license in 2014. If so I'd say he's a somewhat newer pilot. That could be a factor.
Things come up that one may not be specifically trained about, over time experience can smooth out surprises. I hear mention of 'better training'? How often have we heard the phrase 'license to learn'?
As we've also known, some lessons have a learning curve that's straight up, only one chance.
Even without an instrument rating, private pilots are supposed to know how to fly by reference to instruments without a visible horizon. They should also be aware of solid-VMC situations where the need will arise (not just over water--unlit land can pose the same problem), and be sure to be proficient before encountering such conditions.
We took off from HOT after dinner, it was a moonless night, I told my wife, "you look traffic, I'm watching the instruments." And I did the entire trip. I was lucky, I definitely wasn't prepared for or expecting that.
But, I did have good training from a conservative minded retired full bird colonel.