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Aviation Safety Research Project Abstract
Pilots, thank you for visiting ATMEsafety.com, the home of my independent aviation safety research project. This project began after I started noticing troubling trends among certain multi-engine airplane accidents. Upon further research, it became clear that I was on to something. The following defines a type of accident which continues to occur at a rate of nearly one accident per month in the United States alone, usually with fatal consequences.
“A loss of control accident in an Asymmetrical Thrust Multi-Engine (ATME) airplane as a result of loss of engine power or thrust (which may be either a full or partial loss), or with one engine inoperative (including simulated inoperative), or in any case when thrust asymmetry exists. The accident results when the control inputs made by the pilot (if any) are insufficient and/or incapable of preventing the induced airplane upset, and/or the control inputs aggravate the airplane upset, which is unrecoverable before impact with the surface.”
This is what I have termed the Asymmetrical Thrust Induced Loss Of Control, or ATILOC accident, and they are currently a serious threat to aviation safety. You and other multi-engine pilots more commonly know them as “VMC roll” accidents.
What makes ATILOC accidents, and their precursors, called Thrust Asymmetry Events (TAEs) so dangerous, is the scope of pilots and airplanes that could be at risk. ATILOC accidents and TAEs occur exclusively in Asymmetrical Thrust Multi-Engine, or ATME airplanes. All quintessential “multi-engine” airplanes are ATME airplanes. This means, whether you fly a Piper Seneca, Embraer 175, or a Boeing 747, they are all ATME airplanes, and, by simple aerodynamic design characteristics, none of them are immune to ATILOC accidents.
Ultimately, the only defense against the threat of ATILOC accidents, is effective pilot training. I think the accident rate speaks for itself here: Pilot training with regard to ATILOC accident prevention is currently not effective, and I have decided that it is time to do something about that. To understand why, I compiled and studied over 200 accident reports in the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Aviation Accident Database (this data will be available at the Accident Data tab above when the report is published). It did not take nearly that many examples of ATILOC accidents before shocking trends became apparent. My conclusion is that these accidents are evidence of deficiencies in pilot knowledge and skills which have failed to teach pilots what they really need to know about how to avoid falling victim to an ATILOC accident. Furthermore, this deficiency is systemic; meaning, there is no pilot, or type of operation (including airlines) that are not at risk. An ATILOC accident occurring in a transport category airplane could put hundreds of lives at stake.
Tragically, there were many pilots, and their passengers, who were simply unaware of how much they were at risk until it was too late. A sizable number of victims had levels of flying experience which many of us would have looked up to as mentors. In fact, among the accidents that I studied, the top one-third of accident pilots’ total flight experience ranged from 6,500 to more than 33,000 hours. Ladies and Gentlemen, this shocking statistic proves that you absolutely cannot rely on flight hours, or number years flying for that matter, to determine if you are at risk or not. I propose that your use of the future resources on ATMEsafety.com is the only way for you to reduce your risk as much as possible.
Thank you for reading the abstract. I hope that I have earned your attention, as it is my goal to save the lives of tomorrow’s victims. I kindly ask for your subscription here (or at the tab at the top of the page) to be notified about updates to website publications. Subscribing is 100% free and I will never share your email.
Thank you,
Alexander J. Grzelecki – Founder, ATMEsafety.com