![]() ![]() Bad information is like malicious computer code in a system -it can fire off an inappropriate or dangerous action at the worst time. It is essential to suspiciously examine and test every opinion or recommendation you take in against known valid sources before importing it into your operating system. It should never be a public thoroughfare of opinions, but firewalled from everyday casual inputs. Your pilot knowledge and skills should be a protected vault of trusted learning and techniques that has to be verified and correct. And guaranteed some unfortunate student is going to believe this video and show up for a flight test and fly this procedure as a model (it happens). It really could have been a perfect demonstration of “common student errors” instead. This maneuver was so far from correct it was embarrassing. In another case, I recently watched a well-credentialed online CFI from a bigger school (with a pretty well-produced series of training videos) teach and simultaneously perform a chandelle (presumably to help commercial applicants). The result was a very unhappy (and unsuccessful) applicant. But this totally wrong and dangerous information was a “poison pill” mixed in with useful hints. On a check ride a while back, a CFI applicant terrified me with a monster skid turning base to final and described it as a “slip to landing” – Game over, no replay! (Can you imagine him spreading this error to 20 new people a month?) His source was a 30K airline pilot online who very clearly described this erroneous maneuver as “an easy way to slip to final” – “just add bottom rudder and hold aileron out of the turn.” ( Please don’t try this!) The source seemed valid with credentials and lots of other useful information. And as humans we are often too willing to believe and reinforce our own personal biases – just look at our current political climate? Welcome to the world of YouTube (and the internet) as “aviation education!” The internet is a great tool to disseminate valuable information but we have to continuously remind ourselves it is also very good at propagating myths and fallacies. And the most attractive might be the most poisonous. The only problem is half are nourishing and good for you and the other half will make you sick and might even kill you. ![]() As a thought experiment, imagine you are at a food buffet with a wide variety of options freely available to you. ![]()
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