Risk Management Magazine

As Army aviators, we’re sometimes required to fly in unfamiliar areas with in-depth restrictions and guidelines. We must learn to slow down — not just rush in and get the job done. I believe the extra training flights we took as a crew to further familiarize ourselves with the area helped us tremendously. I’ve talked with other pilots who said they were not given that opportunity.

The moral to this story should scream out to the reader, but I will make it clear. It pays to know your aircraft’s limitations.

The sound was unmistakable — like a snap followed by an immediate right yaw and the sickening realization something had gone horribly wrong. My heart raced, but it was at that moment that my years of training kicked in. I had one job: keep my cool and get my crew and passengers out of this alive.