My Ice Story on the new "Reider Report"
I was honored to be the guest on the premier episode of the new "Reider Report" podcast sponsored by Avemco. Click here to hear my story of an encounter with structural icing in a Piper Seneca.
Recommended Viewing: Dealing with Sleet
We suddenly hear the sound of sleet on the windshield! It is loud and disconcerting to say the least. What should we do? This brief video illustrates the most likely scenario of the conditions producing the sleet. It then lists the options available to the pilot and identifies what is usually the safest option. Sponsored by Avemco. Click here to see the video on YouTube.
New InFo from the FAA
The FAA issued a new Information for Operators (InFo) on January 22. "Spatial Disorientation (SD) Training for Pilots" addresses the continuing issue of general aviation crashes resulting from SD. Check it out on the FAA website by clicking here.
Free Virtual Safety Presentations Available
As you plan your late fall and winter meetings for your pilot group, consider including a virtual guest speaker. We can provide a safety presentation, valid for Wings credits if you choose, free of charge, courtesy of Avemco. For more information or to schedule, contact gene@genebenson.com. Click here to download a copy of our current presentation catalog.
Cognitive Tunneling: Note the pilot looking at something on the panel while the airplane is low and misaligned with the runway.
Cognitive Tunneling
The more common term for this adverse condition is “tunnel vision.” But that term is inaccurate because much more than our vision is affected. It is a state where our focus narrows so intensely on a single stimulus or task that we become "blind" to other critical information, even if it is right in front of us.
The human brain has a highly effective and very complex survival mechanism. The mechanism can do more than just help us survive. It can direct our focus and help us solve complex problems or complete delicate tasks. But sometimes it can do its job too well.
When the brain perceives a threat, the amygdala shifts the brain's resources away from the prefrontal cortex, the area responsible for logical reasoning and "big picture" thinking, and toward the brainstem, which handles instinctive survival. Problems arise when either the incorrect stimulus is the point of focus or multiple stimuli need attention.
We can think of the thalamus as a gatekeeper. Normally, it filters out irrelevant stimuli and only allows pertinent stimuli to reach the conscious mind. Cognitive tunneling begins when the prefrontal cortex attempts to solve a high-stakes problem and signals the thalamus to tighten the filter and allow fewer stimuli to pass through. If the filter becomes too tight, important peripheral stimuli may become classified as irrelevant. The brain inhibits the processing of potentially important data resulting in a loss of situational awareness.
For the general aviation pilot, it can lead to a loss of control while attempting to close a cabin door that has come unlatched or while troubleshooting a landing gear issue while on approach. It can filter out a landing gear warning horn and result in a gear-up landing if the pilot is struggling to stabilize an approach in a gusty crosswind. It can filter out a stall warning if a pilot is focusing on maintaining a tight turn to keep a ground object in sight. It can lead to a CFIT crash if it filters out proximity to terrain or degraded forward visibility if a pilot is attempting to “scud run.” It can lead to a loss-of-control situation if a pilot flying a glass cockpit airplane experiences a minor malfunction and begins scrolling through sub-menus and system pages without regard to the airplane attitude.
We perhaps can broadly categorize causes of cognitive tunneling as task fixation, continuation bias (get-there-itis), and glass cockpit overreliance (doing computer things rather than pilot things).
Once we are aware of the dangers of cognitive tunneling, we can take some steps to help prevent it from taking over. We just completed the first step, which is to gain awareness. Building and maintaining proficiency through developing procedural memory is also key. An example would be developing procedural memory for adjusting the track over the runway
Take a Deep Breath
When things are going awry and a person seems to be overwhelmed, we often hear someone say, “Take a deep breath!” The person is suggesting that the person take a step back from the problem and then approach it from a fresh perspective. That advice is given often and perhaps with little thought. But it can be very effective and there is science behind it.
Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly briefly shifts the brain and body from a high-arousal, scattered state into a more regulated state, which restores conditions for sustained attention. Our cognitive science article in our “Squawking Human” section deals with cognitive tunneling and explains how we can become focused on one thing and miss the big picture or something that is critically important. There are numerous examples of that happening to GA pilots and many of those had a bad ending.
So, in any phase of flight, if we begin to sense overload or feel overwhelmed, remember to hit that reset button by taking that deep breath and letting it out slowly.
Accidents discussed in this section are presented in the hope that pilots can learn from the misfortune of others and perhaps avoid an accident. It is easy to read an accident report and dismiss the cause as carelessness or as a dumb mistake. But let's remember that the accident pilot did not get up in the morning and say, "Gee, I think I'll go have an accident today." Nearly all pilots believe that they are safe. Honest introspection frequently reveals that on some occasion, we might have traveled down that same accident path.
This mishap occurred in Texas in September 2025. The Piper PA46 Malibu was substantially damaged during the gear-up landing but the 54-year-old, 3,633 hour pilot and sole occupant was not injured. The pilot reported having 1,070 hours in this make and model.
NTSB Photo
The NTSB report includes the following: "During the descent to the destination airport, the pilot noticed that another airplane had departed from the runway and was climbing to enter the traffic pattern. The pilot decided to extend his traffic pattern entry to visually observe the other airplane and to provide separation so he could land. During this time, the main landing gear warning horn activated due to the engine power reduction that occurred, and the pilot then activated the main landing gear warning horn mute switch. The other airplane performed a touch and go, the pilot forgot to extend the main landing gear, and the pilot proceeded to land the airplane. During the gear up landing to the dry asphalt runway, the airplane departed the runway to the right, impacted two runway signs, and came to rest upright on a flat grass field. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the underside of the fuselage."
NTSB Photo
The NTSB report continues: "The pilot reported there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airframe or the engine that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot further reported that he should have performed a final landing check on short final and that he allowed the avoidance of the other airplane to distract him from his normal landing procedures and flow."
NTSB Photo
The NTSB probable cause states: "The pilot’s failure to extend the main landing gear prior to landing, which resulted in a gear up landing. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s distraction during the approach."
NTSB Photo
The pilot submitted the Form 6120 to the NTSB. In the Narrative History of Flight section, he entered the following: "Flew VFR solo from home airport in Rockwall Texas on flight following. On descent to KRFI Longview approach notified me of inbound traffic to runway 35. I informed approach I had them on my traffic display, approach cancelled flight following and gave me a switch to the CTAF. I called my position and made radio contact with inbound traffic. Another plane then appeared on traffic display coming off runway 35 and climbing to pattern. I widened my pattern entry and proceeded south looking for the new target. I announced I'd be making a 360 to maintain separation give the plane in pattern time to land. My gear warning horn went off due to power reduction, which I cancelled. At some point I heard them announce position then turn base. I finally picked them up visually while I was a couple miles south, saw I had plenty of room with the inbound traffic from south, proceeded to land on 35. I watched the plane in front of me do a touch and go, lifting off when I was on approx 1 mile final. My plane contacted the runway with radar pod, yawed slightly right, full left rudder wouldn't keep it on runway surface, plane skidded on belly to a stop in grass just beyond taxiway C after hitting two airport signs. I announced the crash on the radio, pulled the firewall fuel cutoff, turned off the master, removed seatbelt, opened the door and exited. I had no injuries. No fire or smoke noted."
Mastering the obvious, the NTSB stated the probable cause of the crash as the pilot's failure to lower the landing gear. Looking a bit deeper, the distraction and possibly cognitive tunneling, in search of traffic, is a contributing cause of this crash. But the real cause of this, and similar mishaps, is the lack of a guardrail. That guardrail is knowing and following, on every approach, the stabilized approach conditions. It dictates that we abandon an approach if it becomes unstabilized. One condition of a stabilized approach is, "The aircraft is in the correct landing configuration." Another condition is "All briefings and checklists have been accomplished." Click here for a thorough review of the stabilized approach concept on the Vectors website.
Click here to download the accident report from the NTSB website.
Accidents discussed in this section are presented in the hope that pilots can learn from the misfortune of others and perhaps avoid an accident. It is easy to read an accident report and dismiss the cause as carelessness or as a dumb mistake. But let's remember that the accident pilot did not get up in the morning and say, "Gee, I think I'll go have an accident today." Nearly all pilots believe that they are safe. Honest introspection frequently reveals that on some occasion, we might have traveled down that same accident path.
The 70-year-old, 407 hour, private pilot and sole occupant of the Grumman American AA-5B was not injured in this taxi mishap. The event happened in January 2025 in West Virginia and resulted in substantial damage to the airplane.
NTSB Photo
The NTSB report includes: "The pilot stated that he was taxiing to the end of the runway in preparation for takeoff. During the taxi, the pilot noted a fault message on the GPS. While his attention was focused on the GPS, the airplane departed the edge of the taxiway, rolled down a hill, and came to rest in trees and brush. Both of the airplane’s wings were substantially damaged."
NTSB Photo
The NTSB docket for the accident includes the following memorandum: "(the pilot-name redacted by GB) stated that he was uploading his Garmin GPS with the lasted update. While the system was uploading, he decided to taxi to the end of the runway and prepare for takeoff. While he was on the taxiway, the Garmin GPS indicated a fault in the upload. He focused his attention on the GPS and was not paying attention to where the airplane was going. The airplane departed the edge of the taxiway and rolled down the hill and into some trees. Both leading edges of the wings sustained substantial damage."
The NTSB probable cause states: "The pilot’s distraction during taxi, which resulted in a taxiway excursion."
NTSB Photo
This is a perfect example of cognitive tunneling as described in our "Squawking Human" article above. We must remember that taxiing deserves our undivided attention. Attempting to perform other tasks during taxi may seem like we are making better use of the time the engine is running. But anything unexpected happening while performing an ancillary task can provide a distraction and possibly lead to cognitive tunneling and a bad ending. Resolving to put our full attention into the task of taxiing is putting up a mental guardrail against distractions. Like guardrails along a road, this mental guardrail may have prevented this pilot from literally going over the cliff.
Click here to download the accident report from the NTSB website.
Accidents discussed in this section are presented in the hope that pilots can learn from the misfortune of others and perhaps avoid an accident. It is easy to read an accident report and dismiss the cause as carelessness or as a dumb mistake. But let's remember that the accident pilot did not get up in the morning and say, "Gee, I think I'll go have an accident today." Nearly all pilots believe that they are safe. Honest introspection frequently reveals that on some occasion, we might have traveled down that same accident path.
This crash involved a Piper PA-28R-180. It happened in Wisconsin in July of 2024. Neither the 64-year-old, 2,002 hour Commercial Pilot/CFI nor either of his two passengers were injured. The NTSB report includes: "The pilot reported it was his first time landing at the airport and he was having difficulty locating it. Additionally, skydiving operations were in progress at the airport. Due to the distractions, he did not complete the normal downwind checklist and forgot to lower the landing gear. On final approach, another pilot announced he was on final for the opposite end of the accident pilot’s intended runway. The other pilot made a short approach and cleared the runway by the time the accident pilot was on a ½ mile final. The accident pilot did not visually confirm the status of the landing gear cockpit lights before landing. Upon hearing the warning horn for the landing gear, the pilot immediately lowered the landing gear and tried to remain airborne until the landing gear fully locked down. The airplane touched down before the left and nose landing gear fully locked down. The airplane departed the runway to the left and came to rest upright in the grass. During the runway excursion, the left wing impacted a runway light which resulted in substantial damage."
NTSB Photo
The NTSB accident report continues: "The pilot reported that there were no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airframe or the engine that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot further reported that he should have performed a go around when the other pilot was landing and that the accident was a combination of fatigue, distractions, and coming into a strange airport for the first time."
NTSB Photo
The NTSB probable cause states: "The pilot’s failure to extend the landing gear before landing due to distractions and his failure to conduct the Before Landing checklist."
NTSB Photo
Like in our first accident example this month, the pilot did not use the guardrail provided by the stabilized approach criteria. Again, the approach is not stabilized until all checklists have been completed and the airplane is in the correct landing configuration. What really raises the eyebrows here is the pilot's decision to attempt to extend the landing gear when so close to touchdown. It seems most likely that this mishap could have been avoided had the pilot executed a go-around immediately upon hearing the gear warning horn.
We apparently see continuation bias at work here. As humans, once we begin a task, in this case, the landing, we have a strong tendency to complete the task even when substantial evidence indicates a different course of action. The pilot mentioned fatigue in his statement and fatigue can provide a boost to continuation bias. Fatigue is a factor in the daily lives of many people. Any steps we can take to avoid flying while fatigued will help us to be safer pilots.
Click here to download the accident report from the NTSB website.
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