Flying across Europe with a BROKEN engine! Smartwings 1125

[@MentourPilot]

Come join me for discussion on my Discord server! Sign up here 👉🏻 mentourpilot.com/register/#tiers

[@JanCiger]

Mentour, this isn't the first questionable incident of this captain. He was involved in an in-flight intercept in 2007 over Switzerland after loss of coms - apparently with the FO outside of cockpit for 20 minutes or so and the captain not responding to the radio calls. The press was saying he fell asleep, while alone in the cockpit ... He is a fairly legendary figure in aerobatics - former world champion, he was pretty much a household name in Czechoslovakia in the 1980s.

[@thomasdalton1508]

Hi Mentour! Can you please link to that translated report?

[@1bottlejackdaniels]

this crew reminds me of Hapag-Lloyd flight 3378 ...Petter, you should do a video about this Hapag-Lloyd flight = an absolute mess!

[@Rekuzan]

Honestly, I think you're being WAY too nice about all of this as most of us would like to have a few choice words with said Captain... Seriously, I don't think Peter has a single mean bone is his body! So by all means dude, let your fan-base handle the deleted expletives on your behalf in the comments section below! *deep breath* FFFFFFFFFFFF- *feed cuts to static*

[@MrPomelo555]

What is a « discord » server? And why the name « Mentour » It’s like « the tour of the men » inverted. 🙃

[@mikiqex]

Some additions: - The F/O was a student of the captain. I would say that made it for the F/O even harder, than just a rank difference. - After the incident the captain was banned from flying, but he appealed for alleged bias of the head of CAA and was able to continue flying as an ordinary pilot for some time, but ultimately he had to stop and wait for the psych. evaluation. - The captain used his own headset. - AFAIK he was a head of training as well as a head of flight operations. The captain has two successors - one for each job. Some Czechs call the airline "Smrtwings" - "smrt" means "death" in Czech. But to be fair, AvHerald logs several incidents, only two accidents and zero crashes, with no deaths and a single injury (a female passenger fell off an evacuation slide during uncoordinated evacuation, after a thick black smoke from a tug got inside the aircraft).

[@Mike-oz4cv]

I thought using your own headset is allowed? I think Mentor once mentioned using his own.

[@chillylizerd]

@@Mike-oz4cv Maybe it's a selectively faulty unit 😉😉

[@imanoob1984]

@@Mike-oz4cv yes, and then it's his fault the headset was faulty

[@greenkerbal632]

Or even worse: zmrdwings zmrd= brat

[@Kromaatikse]

I am so smart! I am so smart! S-M-R-T ... no, wait...

[@LeifNelandDk]

Basically the report said "If you think this was ok, you must be crazy"

[@LeifNelandDk]

@Vegan Zombie I beg to differ. His actions and answers did show severe misjudgements, questioning his sanity was a very reasonable thing to do. The report didn't *actually* call him crazy, it was my interpretation of reading between the lines.

[@puellanivis]

I recall hearing of a US-citizen in Germany that was caught driving so drunk that the German authorities could not believe he was fully mentally capable. The idea that someone-even while that drunk-could make such a dangerous decision was so egregious to them, that they were like, surely, there must be something wrong here. I think after evaluation it was informed to them that… frustratingly, this was not such a grossly atypical situation in the US.

[@brucewilliamsstudio4932]

I once flew for a company where the Chief Pilot was much like this guy..... wrote the manuals but they didn't apply to him. Go figure....

[@RyNiuu]

Or just the way aviation community roasts their members in official manner.

[@getik123]

@@LeifNelandDk Safety recommendations 1. ÚZPLN recommends to Smartwings, as on the basis of the flight a PIC's (pilot in command) continuing belief that its final decision-making process has been carried out "correctly", perform a psychological examination at the ÚLZ at the PIC. It's basically saying "If this pilot think he was doing correct during the incident, then the pilot should be examined psychologically" Tone is pretty set here.

[@shingshongshamalama]

Normal Final Report: "Let's not play the blame game." Czech Final Report: *gets out the flamethrower*

[@matehavlik4559]

Which is a good thing, I believe. And this wasn't even an accident, only a potential one, but this is how our culture works efficiently. Whereas even this very same playlist is full of disasters caused by the hubris of establishment dinosaurs, being cleared of blame by their Turkish, Moroccan, Korean and Indonesian companies..

[@rawexplorer8373]

Because the cap was a moron and got What he deserved

[@AnthonyLeighDunstan]

@@rawexplorer8373 I don’t agree. He should’ve been stripped of his wings. Definitively. That sort of dogged attitude can not be cured or trained out. His final response to the report betrays some degree of narcissism and that is a serious mental illness that ought to be kept far away from leadership roles. IMHO.

[@rawexplorer8373]

@@AnthonyLeighDunstan you dont agree with What? I agree with you that he is psycho, I even know ppl who knew him and confirmed so and as far as I know he was in the end stripped of his license and in the nut house which is good.

[@AnthonyLeighDunstan]

@@rawexplorer8373 it was in response to your statement “he got what he deserved” when at the time I was of the understanding that he was still allowed to fly. Sorry, I didn’t realise that that had all be carried out. Good. Haha, so then yeah, we agree. Glad the right degree of justice was implemented. 😬👍🏻

[@dantearaujo9703]

Man, all I ever wanted is someone trully professional talking about official reports, ty very very much

[@bizzzzzzle]

Dante Araujo then go to blancorilo channel

[@trimusketara1]

Bravo

[@johnh10000]

I thought it was good too. Well done Peter,

[@mbritton1984]

No one does it better!

[@behindthen0thing525]

You being sarcastic

[@jtidsskids]

"There is no place for pilots like these in modern cockpits.." trust me they were a menace in older cockpits as well.

[@timothylegg]

It reminds me of Northwest Airlink Flight 5719.

[@Gazzxy]

lets be fair they probably a meanace everywhere in their life

[@jtidsskids]

@Marek Borowski Ha ha, that is why they don't let passengers make decisions any more complicated than choosing tea or coffee. Just think it would be a lot cheaper to remove all those "unnecessary" engines along with backup hydraulics and electrics....!?

[@richardcline1337]

@Marek Borowski, I would never, ever want to be onboard ANY aircraft that you were even remotely in control of! If there is any chance of aircraft failure or possible harm to any passenger then that risk is NOT acceptable! When finances take precedent over common sense then that airline needs to be shut down for good!

[@kittenmatchvids6440]

​@Marek Borowski I can't tell if you're a troll. I will however humor your argument. When it comes to the whole 'airplane falling out of the sky and crashing' thing, there's no way to guarantee it would only affect the person whose 'life and decision' it would be to get on an intentionally unstable aircraft and/or flight path/ avoid third-person casualties. Furthermore, they would have to get enough of these suicidal/risktakers/cheapskates to board a flight to even contemplate making it profitable, as well as incentives for pilots to fly high risk flights. As a sidenote, in the case of the flight in this video, the passengers weren't even aware of the full scope of the situation, and therefore couldn't adequately consent to staying on course with the potentially very unsafe flight path in the sense of your argument. Eventually, it would also get to the point where blatant lax safety procedures could down enough birds which, even if created substandard, would wind up costing the airline more in the end. This cost would then be put to the passenger/customer. This is in addition to even if you theoretically get a full fight and do enough legal disclaimers/waivers/etc, there's still the possibility of not creating enough legal protections that consequential legal actions by plaintiffs (along with negative PR) would not also result in higher costs for the airline, and therefore the passengers/customers.

[@jirizlamal69]

Thanks for this great video. We in the Czech Republic are calling this airline "Smrtwings". In Czech, "smrt" = "death".

[@jakubjandourek2822]

Smartwings - the second biggest shame of our aviation.

[@EeeEee-bm5gx]

​@@jakubjandourek2822I sense a joke. Which is the first biggest shame of the Czech aviation?

[@jakubjandourek2822]

@@EeeEee-bm5gx Liquidation of ČSA. (Czech - formerly Czechoslovak - Airlines)

[@pete6891]

smrtwings! that is deadly!

[@johnneiberger]

I'm not even a pilot and this is one of my absolute favorite KZbin channels.

[@Kabup2]

Me neither, but he's talking about making decisions about critical situations, and I'm hooked.

[@julicum]

I was not even that interested in the aviation, but this channel thought me so much and made me be so interested. Thanks!

[@Kabup2]

@@julicum My son-in-law is starting a career in the aviation, that's how I start watching this channel, and now I'm hooked.

[@rationalskeptic1]

Seriously what is it with this amazing channel?? I’m not a pilot, I’m not interested in being one, but the way he tells these stories and the way he explains the details and mechanics behind what’s happening is just spot on. He’s a teacher with a gift! He’s got that “thing” that amazing teachers have .. it makes you want to listen and learn even if you never knew you did! So inspiring, I love it.

[@cathiebell8335]

I’m not a pilot and have no affiliation with the aviation industry but I love this channel. I have watched it grow and believe Peter’s accident explanation episodes are the best. I have learnt so much about aviation and think these episodes are absolutely fantastic.

[@williamwallace9826]

"We have to check if this person actually is sane." WOW! Yes, that's what I would certainly agree qualifies as a stunning rebuke.

[@publicmail2]

"He needs to be taken to a hospital...A HOSPITAL! What is it? It's a big building with sick people."

[@Danno-df9hq]

@@publicmail2 Classic :D

[@krissp8712]

@@publicmail2 so a krankhaus then ? :)

[@Menstral]

A completely over the top response. I hope the pilot, his license,and his career all stay intact. I support the captain's decision. One person's expert judgment is worth a thousand rules created by mediocrity.

[@Sirikiller]

@@Menstral are you sane?

[@bret9741]

Your videos are incredibly educational. I’m a now medically retired Captain, Check Airman, Flight Instructor and ground school instructor. I no longer could hold a medical at age 41. I was in absolute perfect health putting in 10-15 hours of exercise a week and eating as well as possible for a pilot. I very rapidly developed a neurological movement disorder and that was the end of my flying. I would like to see an in-depth video on what pilots should know about their options if they loose their ability to fly. In the US, we have several paths that can make loosing one’s medical less terrible. In my case there was a company sponsored long term disability, a union long term disability and I could have purchased more disability from the unions plan, the company’s plan and I could have purchased private long term disability. I don’t know what’s available in Europe or Asia. Maybe you could just make a video that brings the possibility of loosing their medical based on statistics and what their options are when trying to get their medical back and what scenarios simply mean their flying career is over. I’m not an individual who can retire. I’ll most likely work until I die. I need to be challenged, to be productive and to grow mentally and professionally. So I took a small disability lump sum and went to look for work. In my case, I was never able to find a job that replaced my income. Potential employer loved the fact that I was a pilot. They spent a great deal of time interviewing me and it seemed that in some way, my being ex Navy and a Pilot made them feel as if I would never stay at a company like theirs. Finally I I decided to start a construction company. I build custom high end net zero homes in the $1.7-$4.5 million dollar price range. I really enjoy it even though I’m in constant pain (3-4 out of 10 pain threshold). Now. I only receive about $200,000 in my lump sum. It wasn’t enough to start a business so I did have to work for other builders for several years. Had I understood the long term disability industry, I could have had about $3.5 million dollars in lump sum. The monthly premium would Have been less than $600. Knowing this I’ve tried to talk with some of my friends who are still flying. Don’t know if it’s made them change their policies. Anyway, maybe this is a decent topic to cover.

[@I_SuperHiro_I]

I can relate to the need to work. If I don’t have plans, but I’m off for more than 2 days, I go stir crazy. I’m an engineer and idle hands drive us nuts.

[@Kelvin-ed6ce]

is it customary for pilots to get the loss of license insurance, and is it provided by the airline or you have to pay for it? And how much does it compensate for? Thanks.

[@victorpalamar8769]

This episode reminds me of a story: A 747 is flying from New York to London when the #4 engine shut down, so the Captain made this announcement to the passengers "This is your Captain speaking, one of the engines just flamed out so its going to add 30 minutes to the flight to London, sorry for the inconvenience". An hour goes by and #1 engine shuts down so he makes another announcement "This is the Captain speaking, another engine just flamed out so it will take another hour to reach London". In half an hour more #2 engine flames out so the Captain makes another announcement "This is the Captain speaking, #1 engine just died so the flight to London will take another 45 minutes". So a passenger says to the Flight Attendant "If the the last engine flames out we'll be up here all day!"

[@philkarn5661]

I first heard that joke back in the early 1980s, and I'm not even a pilot!

[@kevinheard8364]

Said in humor, "Thanks, Victor Borge"

[@wiredforstereo]

That makes me wonder how many engines a 747 could fly with and what would be the outcomes. I would imagine flying on only 1 or 4 would be pretty hard. IIRC, they used the 747 to test one of the newer bigger engines, one of the big Trents or GEs, and they were able to fly the plane with only that engine operating, but it was inboard.

[@gnarthdarkanen7464]

@@wiredforstereo In Take-Off, there's a speed at which they can NO LONGER "reject" taking off... SO for safety reasons Jets have to be at least capable of not only flight on 1 of 4, but Full-on Take-Off as well. It's certainly not recommended, so pilot's have extra training to handle the technical adjustments, BUT it IS imminently do-able. According to Kelsey over on "74 Gear" (channel on YT) Flying even on an outboard 1 of 4 is mostly inefficient as hell, and makes landing less than optimal... BUT Commercial Pilots already "Land in the Crab" regularly, so probably only a marginal addition to risk. ;o)

[@wiredforstereo]

@@gnarthdarkanen7464 I don't think you have proven your case. And I don't think that's accurate. They may be able to fly on one engine, but they most certainly cannot take off on one. If planes have a long roll out on all engines loaded, as we have seen, it beggars belief that one quarter of the power could pull it off when they already use three quarters of the runway. That math just doesn't work. I've also seen it tried on a simulator.

[@Stoic-of-Rome]

When an engine spools down for no apparent reason ,with no obvious failure precursors such as oil pressure/temp fluctuations or fuel pressure fluctuations, I would be concerned about fuel contamination and want to get the bird on the ground asap, preferably in a min power/glide descent profile in full expectation of losing the 2nd engine too at any time. Continuing the flight to near minimum fuel would be the last thing on my mind. Great video thanks.

[@captainchaos3667]

Or even lack of fuel (see the Gimli Glider).

[@tasmedic]

Simpler even than this is to apply the principle of redundancy. 2 engines gives you a redundant engine if there are issues, one engine gives you no redundancy, and that in itself is a reason to abort the flight and land as soon as possible.

[@thomasfink2385]

@@tasmedic Plus the possibly contaminated fuel would stop the next engine fast.

[@marbella-elviria]

the risk versus money discussion in poor countries runs diferent

[@cdreid9999]

​@@marbella-elviria planes fuel and even pilots cost about the same everywhere

[@jamescarroll6954]

Remember, the KLM Captain at fault in Tenerife was also a very senior Captain at the company.

[@williamsstephens]

Chief pilot and training officer, I think Mentour said.

[@MrSigmatico]

But unlike this guy that KLM Captain was under a pretty tight time constraint, I do not think this crew was.

[@kjelladrian3205]

Hadn't he also been appointed "Pilot of the year".

[@rebeccahylant7695]

Exactly

[@andykod77]

Yep he was a big blow bag

[@scottstocking6935]

Reminds me of another Chief Pilot who did not follow procedures on a small island airport called Tennerife. That incident did not end as well as this incident.

[@jimbeattieexperience]

Worst plane disaster in history... Specifically because of the captains arrogance 😢

[@jorgemak8202]

They were discounting their bills if it was a delay to arrive their destination

[@andrewthomas5348]

That was the first thing I thought of, too.

[@bizzzzzzle]

Jorge Mak I think you mean they were penalizing their checks, a discount on a bill is a good thing...

[@jorgemak8202]

Yea, that's correct Mike

[@andrewdavidson7656]

I remember when i first heard about this incident and was astounded by the sheer negligence of the pilot ignoring numerous safety procedures. The fact that he believed his experience justified making numerous safety violations tells me that his ego is out of control and he needs to have his wings pulled immediately. While CRM allows the first officer to challenge the captain, i can understand why he would be hesitant to stop pushing even though he should have continued.

[@marioghioneto1275]

Agreed, I think if I was in that situation, pretty much knowing that the captain would continue the flight no matter what, I would prefer just to shut up and try not to anger the captain even more, to avoid any possible fuckups

[@TheHobade]

There is no CRM in smart wings. Trust me, I did 4 years as a contractor. The f.o. Covered his ass as best he could

[@xiro6]

Maybe we need some kind of "recycling recertificate exams" every X(lot of them) flight hours,to avoid excess of "self-confidence". just like when a pilot didnt flight enough hours,but to avoid this kind of behaviours,that i suspect its waaay more common than we think ,just happens that not enough airplanes brake down/ATCs fail or Airports have failures to expose how much arrogance has grown on some pilots,just like in with the rest of the world.The issue is a commercial jet is flown by a manual,not by pilot experience,if i can explain what i want to say.

[@o2filmisfun]

Negligence !!!! No, sheer Arrogance!

[@o2filmisfun]

That’s the kind if Arrogant attitude that gets people killed. That man should never be allowed near any aircraft let alone a passenger airliner! Shame there appears to be no pilot passenger to threaten to broadcast his failures and force him to follow the procedures correctly!

[@DanaX09]

My favorite PA was the British Airways Captain saying “ we’ve lost all four engines, I hope you don’t find it too distressing” or something close to that. Nope, Captain we are all just chilling and waiting for the splash! As I recall he got everyone hope safe despite what might have been the worst PA on record. 😂

[@andreabartels3176]

British Airways 009, early 1980s, got into a vulcanic ash cloud over Indonesia. After the plane was cleaned, the cleaning crew nicknamed it "the flying ashtray", because of the mass of ash they needed to get out.

[@rebeccalindsay5795]

"Everything is fine apart from the small issue being that we've lost all 4 issues"

[@EeeEee-bm5gx]

Personally, I'd appreciate such heads up to morally prep

[@jbreezy101]

I know BAW009 pretty well.

[@tin2001]

Was that the guy that appears in an interview on this very channel? Fairly sure he says it during that video. Sounds even funnier with the British accent 😂

[@DjVortex-w]

The Tenerife accident is a horrendous example of what happens when the copilot is too intimidated by the captain to speak up and be assertive enough.

[@bubiruski8067]

It should be noted that it would have been wise, in the Teneriffa case, to inform the captain that there is traffic on the runway in progress. This would have highly eased the situation.

[@suresh1957]

@Rob Bannstrom I think it is a tad simplistic to pin the blame on just 1 person, in this case Capt. Jacob Veldhuyzen van Zanten of KLM. Complex accidents such as these are often the result of a chain of events which culminates in a disaster. In the Tenerife case, KLM's crew overtime policies and crew fatigue considerations, the foggy conditions at the Los Rodeos airport, non-standard aviation phraseology used by ATC, one critical radio transmission being lost, Capt. van Zanten's towering figure in the cockpit smothering dissent from KLM Fligh Engineer Willem Schreuder etc. etc. are some of the elements that need to be factored in. Nationalism further colours the post-mortem of the accident with the Dutch version of the analysis exonerating KLM. But you are right about the fact that Captains of yore behaved like demigods and refused to have their authority questioned by other crew in the cockpit. And that was surely a factor in the Los Rodeos tragedy. And sadly, in many others as well. Hopefully, modern CRM training can address these issues.

[@Kajpajepolavailable]

@@suresh1957 There will always be bad weather and poorly equipped airports and all kinds of unfavourable conditions but none of them can serve as an excuse for a reckless or arrogant captain. He or she is the person in charge and bears all responsibility. If they cannot bear it, they should change their profession.

[@suresh1957]

@@Kajpajepolavailable Thanks for the reply to my comment. But the point I am trying to make is that usually, it is no single element that alone causes an accident but a plethora of related factors. Captain Veldhuyzen was but one element in this chain although a lot of the blame can be pinned on him.

[@DominickWalenczak]

@@suresh1957 I'd be curious to read the dutch version exonerating KLM. It would seem that the single most compelling cause for the crash was the take-off roll without clearance by the KLM Captain. Everything else was just contributory factors.

[@whoever6458]

I was in the fire department when I was younger and we had two sets of safety rules that we had to memorize during our early training called the 10s and 18s. In the beginning of my fire academy, none of us were memorizing them that well and we were laughing at some of them (like the one that says you should never sleep next to the fire line). So our DI yelled at us one day and told us that every one of those rules came at the cost of someone's life. After that, we all memorized the rules pretty quickly. I'm not a pilot because I can't afford the training, but I would assume from having seen a lot of the things that have come about as the result of accidents that aviation safety rules also arise at the cost of people's lives. The rules may seem silly to you, but they are only there because someone has died due to that mistake however small and obvious it may seem now.

[@fyrman9092]

Very true. I've been in a paid fire department for 20+ years and a majority of the fire ground procedures are there because someone did something wrong or someone died. I call these blood rules. Unfortunately, because of aviation incidents and deaths, improvements have been made...

[@jerrybryson8679]

@@fyrman9092 Safety rules are written in blood

[@liesdamnlies3372]

@@fyrman9092 I would say "fortunately," not "unfortunately." The aviation industry is one of the best at learning from mistakes and failures, and then fixing them. It means those incidents, injuries, and deaths are taken seriously, not as a cost of doing business.

[@Hugmir]

Could you link those safety rules?

[@whoever6458]

@@fyrman9092 I was a volunteer and then I went on into the medical field. I worked for Riverside County Fire for a while as a volunteer though and I loved it.

[@michaelabsher8341]

I once flew with a Pilot (rotor wing) who flew low over Denver (too low) and we noticed we were over a gun range (outskirts) at like 200 feet AGL. Same flight we ended up going into Centennial. Instead of avoiding the flow of fixed wing he insisted to go with the flow of fixed wing and he choose to hover at 20 feet (instead of the normal 3 feet or so) while taxing. We literally blew a small fixed wing around on the tarmac that was just sitting there (meaning it was stored). Our crew in the back kept calling about all the high winds we were creating (no doubt from out unusual high hover). Same flight he decided to fly a very low circle around the Denver "mile high" stadium and then buzz multi million dollar homes as we left (well outside of Denver) back to Colorado Springs. All on the same flight. I'd saw him (we were Medivac) not do a preflight when we came on duty once due to getting a call (days before the first mentioned flight). I went to higher ups with those complaints and it turns out he'd done the same low circle over the stadium the week before, during a game. Did they remove him from his PIC position? NO. Instead he was moved to Ft Rucker and put threw the IP course and taught students (last I knew of him/his career). Good to hear about how someone somewhere did this much needed review of this "pilots" inability to pilot...

[@copsan]

This is something that I have always wondered is why has the data recording of the black box voice recorder not improved and records vastly longer records - data storage had vastly improved over the last few years

[@paulstubbs7678]

The same reason the space shuttle's main computers were using ancient magnet core memory. By the time it is decided by the authorities, then the new device is designed, tested, flight certified, and produced, the plane will probably be nearly retired from service. So in all probability it will be all but too late, so just don't even think about doing it. And if you do, you will be laughed at as by the time it's ready, it will be antiquated junk.

[@realulli]

That stuff gets replaced when it breaks. Since it's designed not to do that no matter what, it doesn't. You have cargo planes flying that are nearly 30 years old, they have 30 years old flight recorders. When planes are built, they contain tech certified for that model. If you have a model that has been in production for a while, even that might need outdated by the time it's built, since that certification is expensive and is only re-done when it's absolutely necessary. So, if you have an incident today, you might be dealing with a 10 year old plane, flying with 20 years old tech...

[@neolexiousneolexian6079]

@@realulli Okay? So keep the legally mandated tape CVR, but add a $100 Android phone as a company-level policy, then.

[@realulli]

@@neolexiousneolexian6079 I'm not an aviation industry professional. I'm just an interested geek. I've read that quite a few modern planes already today record *MUCH* longer loops, just not in the armored *DR cases. It's already built into the control systems that they use (the one I read about keeps 30 hours worth of comprehensive flight data (not sure if that includes Cockpit voice data). (Also, the FDRs and CVRs that are currently installed have been digital solid state for quite a few years by now. They're really just reluctant to replace one of these devices, since it's not cheap.)

[@wolfen210959]

@@neolexiousneolexian6079 Sadly, despite all of the advances over the past decade with smartphones, I doubt there is one in existance that could survive and/or retain it's data, when subject to an airplane crashing. To put it bluntly, how many smartphones survive even being dropped from your hand accidentally, you invariably have to replace most, if not all of it, and especially you lose all or most of the data. The sad truth is, as has been stated earlier, the CVR and FDR systems they use are usually able to withstand pretty much anything, and it would probably be prohibitively expensive to design something newer that has the same survivability. In some cases though, and especially in this case, no matter how much time the CVR records, certain people will be aware of how to "overwrite" any incriminating evidence. It seems clear to me that, for what ever reason, the Captain was determined that the plane was only ever going to land in Prague.

[@stephenbland7461]

I remember my CRM training….in real life trying to persuade a senior colleague who may think that they know it all and are never wrong, that they may be mistaken, especially if it concerns a documented procedure, is a tricky thing to pull off without landing yourself in disciplinary for insubordination. And I was just cabin crew.

[@toastercatx]

Well, this certainly explains the number of CRM related accidents if employees have to choose between the certainty of disciplinary action and the possibility of a fatal crash. It should be international law that raising concerns about the safety of the flight cannot result in disciplinary action.

[@alexorjerry]

Yep I had this. My SCCM disagreed about a passenger having a seizure and attempted CPR on the pax, I had to physically pull her off the pax as I saw her lanyard and her friends saying it’s a seizure. I was stood down from duty for 3 weeks and had a disciplinary after that. SCCM carried on flying with no actions against her for violating first aid procedures. I no longer work for that airline

[@thorlancaster5641]

@@alexorjerry Was the airline United by any chance?

[@alexorjerry]

@@thorlancaster5641 Nah I’m not US based

[@rachmunshine9474]

@@toastercatx yeah like a whistleblower type thing. It should be anonymous.

[@ReghuKunnath]

I am a biomedical/electronics engineer. Aviation engineering is just one of my interests. I stumbled into your series and since then been addicted. It’s what I watch when I need a break or when I workout at the gym. Love it and I have learned so much. Thank you! Please keep doing this good work.

[@creektraveler3470]

What is most amazing is that the Captain’s license wasn’t pulled immediately even before the report was released. He’s a danger to himself and others.

[@jdrissel]

Yes, and he probably shouldn't be driving a car either. I wonder if they followed up on that.

[@markharris8929]

It was and he got it back. No doubt the F/O will be harassed out of the company too.

[@user-tb7rn1il3q]

@@jdrissel If the red brake light comes on while he’s driving (indicating a fault in part of the brake system) he will continue to destination even if it’s thousands of miles away.

[@jdrissel]

@Chelsea Chelsea I think he either had a TIA or a mini stroke or hypoglycemia or some other medical problem that was not detected. The sustained, persistent failure of judgement shown here could easily lead to things like driving without headlights at night, driving too fast for the weather, failure to turn on wipers or defogger as needed, or any number of dangerous behaviors. Remember that cars kill a lot more often than planes.

[@basta118]

I've just come across this video - the first one in the series of videos about incidents and accidents and I have to outline what a great path you, Petter, and your team have gone! In this video you basically tell about the incident looking into the camera, while your latest videos are true masterpiecies - they are like hollywood movies with graphics involved! I'm glad you once got this idea and started a very useful series of videos dedicated actually to how get being a better pilot! Thank you, Petter, for your efforts during all these years (starting from this particular video) and congratulations on your undisputable success in this field! 🙏

[@grumpygrandad1216]

I love these, you have a very “easy to listen to voice” and I thank you for spending the time and effort to do these for us, especially in between you very busy life. Safe flying

[@ambientcoot8715]

Seems a little shady he “forgot” to perserve the cockpit flight recorder

[@hilpowuxing8273]

woooopsie! I just accidentally just forgot to preserve evidence that shows that I am a dumbass and incompetant pilot, My bad sorry

[@gullygully69]

Interesting video this. I didn’t know this was a requirement till now

[@matsv201]

He also forgot he could get priority in Vienna.. he forgot to recalculate the fuel.... He forgot a lot of things that would not make the flight possible.

[@jasoncentore1830]

He didn't want them to know what was on it

[@marcusbjerknes8049]

Yeah, this tells it all. The captain should never be allowed inside a cockpit of a commercial aircraft again.

[@brianwmsn]

This report went into the amount of detail that it did for a very practical reason. If they had reported "just the facts" of the flight, this Captain would have been able to manage any other potential fallout by virtue of his position. No CVR tape (as he knew the continuing to Prague would cover the previous tape and wipe out any recorded discussion), so it would be his word against anyone else's. His decision to continue was a perfectly rational decision for a Director of Flight Operations. Due to the huge conflict of interests, I think the DFO should never "fly the line". The pilots of each flight should make all decisions based on safety, and cost considerations should never enter their minds. Edit: Decisions should be based on the safest completion of the flight. Anything can be considered, but don't compromise safety to save a few pounds/dollars/crowns/shekels, etc. -- or to save face!

[@sarowie]

I hope that the authorities take deleting evidence as worse then anything that could be proven with the evidence. Note that overwriting the CVR it self in such a case is a criminal offense. Yeah, it does not prove any misbehavior in the air - but a pilot unable to follow the most basic of instructions while on the ground after landing proves the inabilty to follow basic instructions, SOPs, legal requirments etc. in a *low workload, non critical situation*, proving inability to operate under higher workload or with higher stakes.

[@gaynorhampton6293]

I am not an aviator, however I find these videos fascinating. I had never known what knowledge is required to fly. Very brave people are good pilots. When we board a plane we put our trust in the hands of the professionals. Thanks to all for what you do.

[@juststeve5542]

Sounds like the Captain really wanted to go to Prague. Maybe he had a hot date? Not tripping the CVR sounds really really dodgy...

[@Hans-gb4mv]

Not tripping the CVR sounds like he knew how much trouble he would be in.

[@carschmn]

Destroying evidence

[@Trevor_Austin]

Steve Evans - In this case maybe but generally so many things are going on you often forget to pull the c/b.

[@Bellboy40]

@@Hans-gb4mv He was in it up to his eyebrows anyway when they got through investigating his actions.

[@jimmyj5557]

Captain is old school. He is like F... the rules. I know my shit.

[@kekkelpenneypeckeltoot5700]

So he told investigators that he is not only omnipotent but omniscient as well. Definitely crazy.

[@johannageisel5390]

Yeah, that's fucking crazy! I mean, just add 1 other problem to the mix and let him not have enough thrust to rectify the situation and it could become a "concatenation of unfortunate events" type of catastrophe.

[@NeilRees-jr2mf]

What were you doing ( sitting on the toilet reading the O's in the dictionary ) ?

[@Spacemongerr]

​@@NeilRees-jr2mf Those words are not that unusual, English is not my first language and I know them well. Watching atheist/religious debates might have helped me ;)

[@greghanson5696]

In July 2020 the airline had demoted captain Pavel Veselý from his post as chief pilot in charge of flight operations. Veselý was accused by the police of a general threat in June. Prosecutor Stanislav Potužník finally decided that there was no crime and the case was handed over to the Civil Aviation Authority. The review at the office was designed by Veselý himself.

[@petegaslondon]

Oh .. Dear Mentour's too much the gentleman to do it, but I DO think its ok and appropriate to name and shame in a case like this? Though he doenst like 'lifetime bans' I sure what to see this guy's learned SOME kind of lesson, and aint just wriggling...

[@EliAviator]

Obviously, money was the main concern. Landing ASAP would mean sending the maintenance crew, with a new engine to Greece, with all the consequent expenses. Unfortunately most of the low cost companies struggling with a budget in the recent years.

[@АлексНиков-л2с]

not only low-cost - almost all airlines

[@az.................]

Surely you could ferry the plane back to Prague on one engine.

[@TheGhostGuitars]

This is false economy thinking. Keep on doing that. Sure you might get away with it a few times or more, BUT sooner or later something serious WILL happen. Then the airline would stand to loose way more money than what was saved or made. More than a few airlines have folded because of this.

[@АлексНиков-л2с]

@@TheGhostGuitars you dont understand how it works - it`s REAL economy thinking - noone cares in long term - leasing & insurance cover this - they need money right now - thats it

[@fyrman9092]

@@az................. ferry flight is another set of rules in the US. There is limited crew on board and NO passengers.

[@musicnotenshi]

Great idea for the series. Perfect place to discuss some "minor", incidents, that not getting into the spotlight, while still could bring much to learn. Great video, as always, hope there is only few of such captains like the one in the report.

[@jacobrzeszewski6527]

I gotta be honest, there’s got to be a Darwin award available for any pilot capable of being recommended a psychological exam after a final report.

[@MicrowavedAlastair5390]

At-Risk Survivor, if he passes the psych exam. The Darwins have rules.

[@ronysanjaya9807]

Nope. Darwin award list won't accept a breathing candidates 😅

[@illussiat]

@@ronysanjaya9807 no they grant the award to people living all the time. They just can't be able to breed

[@kjelladrian3205]

Too late, I believe. I believe he had already breeded. There's more to come ...

[@andysPARK]

Darwin award is a cynical metaphor to say that a person ought to die, not fit for survival. It's not clever nor civil to say it about a person.

[@kefkaZZZ]

“ I wrote the rules, therefore they do not apply to me“

[@MrKotBonifacy]

I think it goes more along the lines "I wrote those rules, and I know how much redundancy for the sake of safety I had to put in there, just to be on a safe side (and to cover my arse should anything happen), and I know how wide safety margins I had to put there too". It might be subconscious, but I think for those guys know what is safety envelope and where the "real danger" zone lies, so they might be tempted to "push the envelope a bit". In this case, as other have pointed out, there were a conflicting interests, or rather priorities, as this guy was a Director of operations, or someone like that. Combine this with with "slave driver" mentality of the company, and the whole situation, and the question "but why the hell did he do that?!" becomes somewhat less enigmatic. Also, others mentioned here that KLM pilot on Tenerife, who was (AFAIR) a Chief of Safety Board of KLM (or whatever they call it - the "funny" thing was, after that crash journalist tried to call him to get his comments on that crash...), and yet he did "that stupid thing" - why? Again, my guess is that in Tenerife case again this "hey, I know how much redundant safety procedures are there, and I'm feeling like trying my luck a little... erm, I mean, 'I feel everything will work out all right'" attitude kicked in. He (that KLM pilot) also was under some type of "time pressure" (a risk of weather turning worse, the risk of exceeding his flight hours limit, which would force him to stay for a day at the destination), and that was (AFAIK) also probably the reason he decided to take extra fuel at Tenerife, so he could save an hour or so of refuelling time at the destination. Which turned out to be, LITERALLY, a fatal decision, as with less fuel he could probably miss (i.e. clear) that other plane - maybe just by inches, but still "close shave" is better that fatal encounter... Well, we'll never know what was on his mind, but clearly he pushed the envelope a bit, and in given (unforeseen by him) circumstances it turned out to be "a bridge too far"

[@xheralt]

Not pulling the breaker seems sus to me. I think he was counting on it the CVR to "accidentally" be overwritten, he had to know that flying as far as he did on a dead engine was going to get looked into. He knew better, he knew he was in the wrong, and he was IMO trying to destroy evidence. I'm glad the airline threw the book at him.

[@MrKotBonifacy]

@@xheralt Looking at the WHOLE situation it looks more to me like this guy's situation was "a Greek tragedy" sort - i.e. "whatever you'll do, you're screwed". In other words, he was (IMO) made kinda scapegoat by the company ("to err is human, to forgive is... not a company policy"). Let's put the entire blame on him (easy-peasy in this case) and no one talks about how the company is run, and how employees are driven like slaves. Side note - it just occurred to me, there are many, or some, "underlying similarities" (i.e. hidden "initial" causes) between this case and the case of Canadian National Railway Hinton train collision - basically, a company chasing dollar and putting safety aside - but I digress here. Yes, the pilot should have landed at first suitable airport, and no one could blame him - OFFICIALLY, that is - for doing that. But "if you want to beat a dog you'll always find a stick", as the say... And to me it seems that one has to ask himself "but WHY the pilot did what he did, even if he knew perfectly well it was wrong, against the rules, and just plain stupid"? Such blatant disregard for rules and safety (and common sense) has to have some "reasons" behind it, methinks - one does not act "like that" on a whim... Mind you, this guy did not even report properly to ATC what really happened, which means (or looks like) he tried to conceal the problem from the very beginning - again, WHY? - even though it would be perfectly OK to land the plane in such circumstances. Well, "perfectly OK" from SAFETY perspective, but not necessarily so from "company profit's perspective" - after all, it was a "budget carrier", where profit margin is "as thin as mosquito piss". But anyway, that was a flight through Europe, densely populated area with all kind of airports and landing strips a stone's throw away from each other, so when the real sh!t happens (like, the only engine still working goes kaput) "I'm still OK, sorta kinda" - and I'll still be able to glide to safety (fingers crossed...), and no problemo, amigo. Hakuna matata, as they say... Anyway, to me "the official story" is just that - "an official version of the truth". This guy got kicked, hard for what he did - and probably rightly so, but this is pretty much like MAK's (Межгосударственный авиационный комитет, or "Interstate Aviation Committee") "investigations" into air crashes - whenever pilot dies in the crash, the blame is squarely put on the pilot. A rather simple procedure to follow, Soviet style: 1. The accident is always pilot's fault; 2. In case it seem like it was mechanical failure, refer to point one. OK, 'nuff of this rant. Cheers!

[@mynameisgladiator1933]

He's the perfect modern liberal.

[@Joe..3.8.0.9_]

Clip that captains wings ! He endangered the crew , passengers , and ground aircraft and people That' was / is the reason the flight manuals are written Which are written , tested and approved by multiple qualified people He placed himself above everything Excellent video thank you very much Joe Navy veteran 🇺🇸🇺🇸

[@thomasm1964]

He also potentially endangered other traffic by descending without permission or deviaiton from the airway.

[@danielschein6845]

Even worse - That captain helped wrote the procedures that he himself ignored.

[@TheShellshock67]

I do not want to be in an aircraft where this captain flies. If he really thinks he did not do anything wrong... There is something seriously wrong with the captain.

[@alexdhall]

Finally got to the video where this all this began. Amazing how far you've come in these videos over four years Petter (and team)!

[@joebrown1382]

Glad to hear you say that pilots like this should be weeded out. Flying is a serious business.

[@rongaul8169]

Given the current economic situation, good time to let him go. Lots of other pilots looking to fly.

[@alandaters8547]

A very complete and professional job of describing an alarmingly unprofessional and dangerous set of decisions- Great Job! The blessing is that all are alive!

[@atifwqs]

Totally agreed on your final remarks about such arrogant/incompetent pilots. We have had some recent accidents of our national airline due to huge mistakes, unprofessionalism or call it blunders of such pilots, which you have covered in your vlogs. Thanks to EU for banning this airline in their airspace, the major push I can see to bring our house in order.

[@mihaelavbelj8542]

If you are talking about PIA. I agree with you 100%. Sad to see such a loss of life to a totally incompetent/arrogant pilot.

[@PresScott2008]

Loved this. Please continue this type of video. No specific incidents to request, just more!

[@MentourPilot]

On the way

[@surferdude4487]

I would think that when an engine fails, the pilot's first responsibility is to land that bird ASAP. Even if the plane is still perfectly manageable on one engine, you never know what other damage that engine failure might have done.

[@wilsjane]

As a chartered engineer for more than 45 years, (not in aviation), I can assure you that everything that you said was correct, particularly your final sentence which is key to the whole incident. The second engine and the rudder were put under stresses that were untested during normal flight and the controls were in an abnormal configuration that they had never been tested for over prolonged periods. I can see that the captains years of experience could allow him to make mental assessments on items such as fuel burn, but they should have been verified by calculations. Above all, descending without correct communication with ATC was a totally unacceptable risk. I feel sorry for the captain, but being in a senior position, he should have immediately spotted everything that I have mentioned (and a lot more as well). Landing at the first available safe airport with a runway long enough to stop without reverse thrust should have been his first thought.

[@gnarthdarkanen7464]

@@wilsjane I know it's and old thread, BUT a few points can't be let go... There's also NO actual known CAUSE for the engine failure,which similarly CAN creep into other systems... Electrical issues CAN "move" knocking stuff out along the way... A fuel issue can flame out one engine AND explode in the other... Debris ingested could be from anywhere at 30,000 BUT isn't SUPPOSED to even BE at 30,000... AND THEN we get to whatever this engine's flaming out could actually cause that we ALSO simply do not know. AS to the Pilot. Kelsey over on 74 Gear ( channel on YT) mentions the "Chief Pilots" regularly when ATC "tattles" on problem pilots in "stupidity" incidents. Their job is to be on the phone number the ATC gives you to call in (You NEVER want the ATC to tell you to call those numbers)... It's for your own "private bitch session" which may even get you additional training mandates or grounded on the spot... I DO NOT feel the least sorry for the guy if he's actually even like one of those "Chief Pilots". This was clearly arrogance, regardless of any risks, perceived or otherwise. Arrogance is fine in a bar or club, to think it attractive... whatever. It's got no business in Commercial Transportation, and I think it a public menace even in ordinary street traffic. ;o)

[@wilsjane]

@@gnarthdarkanen7464 Your final final paragraph reminded me of the time when a fairly newly appointed first officer had to fly with a relief captain, after his scheduled captain called in sick. After the flight, he was amusing the cabin crew by telling them about the dear old lady who told him to do the check lists by memory, then allowed him to fly, but told him not to bother with that contraption (the autopilot) on a 50 minute flight. He said that she seemed to be on another planet. You can imagine the look on his face, when one of the cabin crew mentioned that she was the airlines chief pilot. a few days later, he received a letter from HR, telling him that he had passed his first assessment, mentioning that he had a professional attitude and a pleasant friendly personality. He nearly fell through the floor, but mentioned that if he had known her position, his nerves may have got the better of him, causing him to mess things up. Perhaps it is no surprise that the airline (a major international) has flown for more than 50 years without a crash or incident involving injury. The chief pilot was a legend, having previously served in the military, where her role was teaching pilots to take off and land on aircraft carriers without ending up in the water. She may have looked relaxed, but she never missed a single point. Can you guess the airline.? Clue, you never see them on any accident videos. 😊

[@gnarthdarkanen7464]

@@wilsjane I'd have to "cheat" and look up stat's to tell you the airline fairly. These vid's and Comment Sections are an evening pass-time and I haven't seen enough air-disasters to say. (haha) The story sounds vaguely familiar, maybe something when I was kid touring the Airport on a school trip or something. There were a few "notorious" tricks employed for things like surprise inspections and spot checks... AND I'm ex-Navy, so that she was formerly a Navy instructor doesn't surprise me. Showing up with acts and routines to "test character" as well as using plain clothes to lower everyone's guard is kind of "regular business" until we screwed up (of course). I had the Base C.O. administrate my first "Basic Defensive Driving" exam (in a bus no less), AND SHE commanded me to parallel park between another bus and HER Cadillac. "It's fine to know the answers in the book. Traffic gives you stress. I want to see you with a little heat." were her words. "Can you function when the REAL world isn't like the picture? When you're under actual PRESSURE???" ;o)

[@wilsjane]

@@gnarthdarkanen7464 To save you the research, the airline is Aer Lingus. While everyone else panics, they just carry on. All of their crews live in the same area as their home airport, so they are more like a family. When one of the girls spotted a late arrival diverted into Shannon after it was closed for the night, she jumped into her car and reopened the airport. No one bothered that her night dress was about 4 inches below her skirt, or that she and the crew of the arriving flight did the immigration and customs checks. They would have known all bar a few passengers anyway.

[@mikewarbin5776]

Great job. I'm a VFR pilot. Must say, you truly never stop learning. Your videos really have opened my eyes.!!! Looking forward to my IFR training !!

[@lylerodericks]

Process and protocol are so important! Such a red flag if a pilot thinks they are above the rules

[@alexnila4751]

I have come across your videos (seen about a dozen so far) and it felt wrong not saying just 'thank you!' It's such a fantastic job you are doing with these videos by presenting events so clearly, professionally and most importantly, using a plain language that almost anyone can follow.

[@MIXTAB1]

There’s a horrific accident that happened to Dana air very similar to this story. the captains actions on that flight were eerily similar to this story. Unfortunately for the dana air passengers and crew members as well as several third party people on the ground, it did not end as well as this outcome was…. basically, the captain from Dana air had the same issue, lost an engine enroute and decided to continue the flight rather than diverting or returning to their departure airport. They continue to cruise along, then began the decent per usual. When suddenly in a miserable stroke of bad luck (and horrible maintenance practices) with runway in sight mere miles away, the remaining engine failed…… With not enough altitude to glide into the airport, the crew found themselves in a situation where they knew they weren’t going to make it and were going to have to put the plane down somewhere for an emergency landing. Unfortunately for everyone on board and the poor 30/40 plus third party casualties, the air port was completely surrounded by an urban environment. Nothing but housing, and buildings below…. Literally nowhere to put the plane… no highways, no rivers, no fields… Just city…no chance to even attempt a landing. So of course the plane continued to glide gradually falling 50-100 feet per second until it eventually crashed into an apartment complex kxlling all on board as well as 30/40 people on the ground. Just awful✌️💯 if the second engine had remained working another minute or two before failing, they could have glided to at least within the airport perimeter. So damn close 😔 bottom line is, pilots like these have no business flying. You lose an engine, there is NO OTHER CHOICE to make than to divert to the nearest suitable airport. NO DEBATE ✌️💯

[@rogerhuber3133]

I'm retired after 40 years as a commercial A/C Inspector. I have read many accident/incident reports as well and agree with you, however I think knowing only what you have reported this Captain has some serious issues and needed this verdict. His personal experience and knowledge of the particular A/C doesn't over ride the QRH and he made many serious poor judgement calls here. He's a dangerous man to be at the yoke.

[@skyhawk_4526]

I really like this idea for future videos, and I understand only dealing with those incidents and accidents where the final report is out. It's never good to speculate before all the facts are published. I often used to read GA related NTSB reports when I was flying because I wanted to learn what not to do! There's a good saying about that. "A smart person learns from their mistakes. But smarter people learn from other people's mistakes."

[@MentourPilot]

Correct

[@AmtrakFan6905]

There is a saying “if you walk away from it,it’s a good landing!🛬

[@kjiptavskumboogie]

@@AmtrakFan6905 i dont think the landing was the issue here

[@pianogal853]

I've been watching several of these videos and glad to see where they began. I'm an aircraft mechanic instructor and like to use crash videos as examples of what could happen. This channel is my favorite for that.

[@RJ9mech]

One of my early lead mechanics did this as well, especially for young mechanics who didn't seem to get the gravity of our job. This guy gets it--for a pilot! 😁 By the way, I like your channel name PianoGal. I find it quite amusing to play Chopin for colleagues and/or customer mechanics after a long day of breaking pin extractors!

[@ryanroberts1104]

I find it shocking in 2020 we can still only record 2 hours from the cockpit! They should be able to log every word ever said in the cockpit for the entire life of the airplane! My 4 year old phone can record a conversation longer than that...

[@lanaereinertsen9981]

EASA will be mandating a 25 hour flight recorder starting in 2022.

[@awnutz]

Couldn’t Google tell them?

[@AviationNut]

There is still planes flying that only have a 30 minute cvr.

[@benghazi4216]

"My 4 year old phone can record a conversation longer than that..." And then surviving an impact at a thousand km/h? I don't believe you, only a Nokia 3310 would survive that

[@ryanroberts1104]

@@benghazi4216 That is not that big of deal. If they can keep moving electromechanical parts safe in the current system then shock proofing some non volatile solid state storage would be really easy. Probably significantly more reliable than the current system. It is genuinely pathetic we still use this antique shit in airplanes when we obviously have more than enough technology to do better - at almost no cost. They constantly replace avionics and all their other equipment like GPS and even engines, but we still use 1970s data recorders. That is just stupid! We can install WIFI in old planes and not a damn modern voice recorder??

[@nrasmussendk]

One of your best videos ever. More like this, please, Petter.

[@illimanisnow]

This incident is somehow reminiscent of the tragic accident of LaMia 2933 , where almost a complete Brazilian football team, along with other passengers, perished in Colombia. The pilot was also part owner of the airline, and his decision not to call emergency was based on economic reasons, and his attempts to cover up the fact that he didn’t have enough fuel to make it to his destination without a costly stopover.

[@jackielinde7568]

This reminds me of Ron White's routine talking about a flight from Flagstaff, AZ (FLG) to Phoenix, AZ (PHX), when one of the engines cut out. "The guy next to me is *losing his mind*. I guess he must have had something to "live for". He says, "Hey man, if one of the engines goes out, how far will the other one take us?" I look at him. "All the way to the scene of the crash! Which is pretty lucky, because that's where we're headed! I bet we beat the paramedics by a good half hour! We're haulin' ass!"

[@sheldoniusRex]

I've watched that gig at least ten times. His delivery is so good on that segment I still bust a gut every time even though I've seen it enough to repeat it verbatim.

[@paulstubbs7678]

Now imaging running a version of this over over a plane's PA - by the captain - it 'may' bring up the passenger angst somewhat.

[@ThunderChunky101]

Lelz

[@JC-gw3yo]

Ouch...but Ron nailed it

[@Ojisan642]

What a crazy story. 99.99% of the time I am impressed with how flight crews handle emergencies. Sending this guy for psych review seems like a good idea.

[@gooner72]

I've been going through your back catalogue of aircraft incidents videos as they're really in depth and interesting and I've only realised that your intro music contains "Kennedy Steve" in it, that's fantastic as he's an absolute LEGEND!!!!! Great work Petter, I really enjoy both of your channels, they're amazing!!

[@mbican]

This makes me so angry as a Czech. I remember reading a discussion on a news website at the time of the incident. Most of the comments were congratulating to the pilot 🤦. He risked collision with another aircraft and he risked running out of fuel. Part of the Czech culture is insane

[@fhs4137]

That's one hell of a reality check on your ego, when your self-evaluation of your skill level gets authorities to order a psychological examination on you.

[@kiranchandy9]

Yes, this is a very important example of a Senior Piolet abdicating his safety training/rules to assuage his own ego, It is most important that even a single rule oversight must be taken very seriously, that's WHY they are PUT there, especially for a senior seasoned piolet not to comply when responsible for many souls in his charge, to ignore such rules is criminal? Good lesson Peter and observation to point out to us the public. A very well constructed video, which kept me interested, informed and entertained all at the same time, your talent in this regard is huge …?

[@carschmn]

I don’t think the head pilot had any problem with his headset. He just wasn’t listening. He decided the cost of an emergency landing was too high to the company and decided to risk a crash. It was a business decision. You should do one on Eastern Airlines 212. It led to the sterile cockpit rule.

[@SpyGeorgilis]

It wasn't so much a problem with the headset, as it was a problem with what sits in the middle of the headset when it's in use.

[@caricue]

I was working at Disney World a couple years ago in security and got assigned to work with this young guy that I had never met. He immediately started trying to give me orders, and got indignant when I "declined to acquiesce" to his demands. I pointed out that neither of us was a manager or senior in any way (not counting age), and that I was going to do exactly what I wanted. It was a tense couple of hours until his shift ended and a normal person took his place. If we had been in a cockpit, I suppose we would have died because this control freak just wasn't going to play nice.

[@TJAnttola]

@@caricue Thats when you knock the shit out of the captain and tell ground that he just passed out and might need an extra medical ;D

[@encinobalboa]

Smartwings is a budget carrier so there is always pressure to minimize cost. Passengers have to be housed and then another plane dispatched to pick them up. Engine repair at a remote airport is never inexpensive. Not saying the Captain made the right decision, he did not.

[@SpyGeorgilis]

@@TJAnttola Or you could just squeeze the PTT button and say "Mayday-Mayday-Mayday, I have one engine out AND an incoherent Captain!"

[@syedahmed1729]

That Captain should be fired and not allowed to fly.

[@angelreyes6332]

Fired? I would say a criminal investigation should be in order for promoting a potential incident.

[@tsarssa]

Angel Reyes , Syed Ahmed if you watched to the end he did lose his job, and a criminal investigation case was opened. Along with being forced to undergo psychological questioning of decisions.

[@bizzzzzzle]

Eren Azizoglu umm, he said nothing about that in this video, I just double checked after reading your comment. He only said psychological evaluation, said as far as he he knew he was still with them but not as head of operations.

[@kyr217]

I think he knew very well what he was doing, but chose to do so for financial reasons. IMO he should be punished, but the airline should be investigated too.

[@fplancke3336]

@@bizzzzzzle He does say it, at 26:05 "There is now a criminal investigation against the Captain"

[@christophersheppard1747]

Amazing beyond belief. I had a sense of your increasing anger (as was mine) as the story unfolded and this illustrates your wonderful passion for the industry you are such an integral component of! Thank you, God speed!

[@simpleminded1uk]

About twelve years ago I was on a KLM flight from Amsterdam to Athens where a fellow passenger decided that it was a good idea to pull out the blind, the inner window and the surround, and then start kicking at the flat for all he was worth. It was about a week after the Air France flight from Brazil had been lost, and anxiety was high. Along with a lady paramedic from St Paul MN, I incapacitated him and we restrained him for the rest of the flight. I recieved a nice letter from KLM, but was surprised it was not in the news. Are incidents like this more common than we might expect? I wonder if there was a report generated about the incident.

[@johnk5763]

The incident described here would have never been known about, but for a remark by a Budapest traffic controller which made it to an aviation website which investigated. Without that Smartwings would have "get away with it' and we would be none the wiser. Interestingly, Hapag Lloyd 3378 (2000) ended with a court conviction for the pilot who pressed on with a non-retracted gear and crash-landed, out of fuel.

[@tommyrjensen]

My mother is nearly 95 and she has to be taken care of in a nursing home. She does not see or hear much, and she has a hard time to understand what is happening around her. The airline in question should place more people like her in the left seats of their passenger plane flight decks. She would never give any commands to endanger the safety of the aircraft, and she would never initiate a cover-up to fool the investigation of an incident or accident. EDIT: yeah, and I don't mean left seat in the passenger cabin either, I mean row 0 at the pointy end.

[@matthewrodd3985]

Cheers Petter. I'm really liking your videos, very informative and it's quite educational. Although not a pilot and have no ambitions to be one I am really loving your content. I work in a Cardiac Operating theatre as a Clinical Perfusion Scientist and I wish my colleagues would adopt the same approach to the incidents that happen in an operating theatre that happen in aviation accidents.... The fact that all incidents in aviation are investigated whether near misses ot actual accidents is a credit to your industry, healthcare could learn a lot...There is very little simulation scenario done in healthcare

[@gordslater]

Investigator: "you're nuts" Pilot: "yeah! they are massive arent they?" Investigator: "hmm, that's not what I meant"

[@paulstubbs7678]

Ah, so that's what cockpit CRM is.

[@cunever]

How about a dig into history: which accidents led to the founding of national agencies that look into accidents and try to derive recommendations from them (like the NTSB in the US)?

[@KDill29]

Yes!!

[@mawmawvee]

This was an amazing video and I am glad there is someone like you who can look at things objectively and relay it to us in a way we can understand. I'm so happy I found your videos. Thank you for taking the time to help us better understand flight.

[@prabjotsinghvirdi4471]

There is a similarity between this case and the case that Happened in Mangalore (India) on May 22, 2010, except that in the case in Mangalore led to an air crash. It is quite saddening that certain pilots blinded by their "MACHO ATTITUDE" take such dangerous decisions. Please tell people about Mangalore air crash as well. Thank you.

[@TheGhostGuitars]

I'd use the term: hubris. Macho is but a small subset of hubris. Thinking that one is above the laws rules and common sense. Feeling that one is a total master of all situation and everyone else is wrong. Even if one is wrong one then blunder/bluster ahead, expecting your position and seniority will shield ye from all consequences. NOPE.

[@OGchaibhai48]

The Mangalore crash had nothing to do with being macho- the pilot was fatigued & the weather conditions also played a big part....!

[@prabjotsinghvirdi4471]

@@TheGhostGuitars agreed

[@prabjotsinghvirdi4471]

@@OGchaibhai48 The captain didn't go around, even when the first officer insisted many times as they were very high in their approach. That's being sort of MACHO/HUBRIS.

[@stevedavenport1202]

This is so sad.

[@Halli50]

Being a "company-minded" PIC obviously has it's pitfalls. When the company bottom line becomes more important than the safety of any given flight, the company should cease operations - it is no longer a safe operator! This can sometimes become quite an insidious problem, as this case study proves.

[@MIXTAB1]

Alaska 261 comes to mind… that crash sticks with me more then others

[@thomasanoop76]

I'm not an aviation professional.. I'm a surgeon :).....what's drawn me here is that there is a parallel in decisions taken in real time and their ramifications.... I'll take some lessons home from aviation... CRM, learning from accidents, technical advisories etc.. Somehow I found this much better than air Crash investigations which was more dramatised..... Kudos..

[@ijf03208rek]

I'd love to hear you cover that DHL A300 that was struck by a missile in 2003. Those pilots did some amazing work to get it back on the ground.

[@Romeojulietless]

Scott, there are a few videos online on that incident, incl NatGeo I believe

[@johnp139]

“Are you sure that your telling us everything?” “Not exactly, we’re also out of coffee” PASSENGERS PANIC

[@MentourPilot]

😂😂😂

[@carschmn]

Oh no not the coffee!

[@Stettafire]

Jokes on you, I'm a heathen who can drink both tea or coffee, mwhahaha.

[@Potoum]

Pretty sure that's a joke from the movie airplane with Leslie Nielsen

[@adb012]

​@@Potoum Airplane! 2 actually

[@pierrekaninda894]

Good day Sir I am not a pilot but a medical doctor I enjoy yoir series On this one now I believe this case should hv been "a jurisprudence " one amd the attitude with the skill of the pilot be taken in consideration This may happen in the medical field There are emergency procedures to br performed in theatre within limit strict standards but what do you do when the same emergency happens out of a theatre room and far from medical facility For me that Capitain ..his cool and his calm showed he mastered the situatio Does now this mean that there never been a crash while pilots were following proper procedures Thank you and congratulations for your beautiful programs Merci beaucoup et Bravo Capitain Mentoir

[@yxeanget-any]

Mentour pilot is always the most awesome channel.

[@jflans600]

check out Mini Air Crash Investigation channel

[@yxeanget-any]

jflans600 sure

[@joeangell5652]

Totally agree!

[@rogerwilco2]

This guy should not be allowed to fly again, or make decision on others flying.

[@davidsinclair7439]

Wikipedia claims he was demoted from being head of flight operations to just being a pilot, which is insanity.

[@PfizerRN_NavyReserveCaptain]

​@@davidsinclair7439 He should have been demoted to "Unlicensed"

[@PfizerRN_NavyReserveCaptain]

@@JR-playlists Maybe just GOP white supremacists in general would cover it better? Don't just limit your scope of a good idea to the GOP white supremacists in the military and in law enforcement.

[@wilsjane]

@@PfizerRN_NavyReserveCaptain Now that Donald Trump has been demoted as president, he should take up a career as a pilot. I could imagine him slumped on the captains seat with the stick in one hand and a checklist in the other calling it fake news. Meanwhile, he would be bullying the first officer and telling him to tune the radio channels to allow him to tweet on Twitter. Reality, perhaps not.......But it would make a great comedy sketch, 🤣

[@gorillaau]

@@wilsjane I like the idea of various alarms blaring with Trump yelling at them "Alternative facts". Perhaps demand a recount of the of the fuel tank quantities.

[@johncrowder700]

I really have no interest or reason to watch your videos. However, your ability to teach and explain complex situation in a manner that anyone can understand is amazing. Without any real humor worked but your videos are extremely easy to watch. You may be the best teacher of all time. Thank you for your videos and effort.

[@SHADO3DMC]

Started watching Kelsey, Great Guy, He had you on his 74 crew, now, I'm watching you also..

[@MentourPilot]

Excellent! Kelsey is truly a great guy

[@missyroades4533]

Same here

[@_CJ_]

Thank you very much for covering this. As Czech I was reading about this in news and I was thinking what would you think about it. Now I know and I was right that this was very bad... There was article just few days ago and this guy is still flying the planes... It is completely insane that his priority was "company economy" over people on board... It's clear for me that this guy should not fly anymore as it was not mistake in a split second decision but pure hazard (could be bad fuel, he had barely enough fuel to Prague...), trading luck for skill...

[@richardhoating23]

I seriously question this captain's mental acuity, as well as his ego, and sanity. He is probably a complete narcissist, along with a"God Complex". His actions on this flight were not a mistake, in any sense, or way. Nothing he did about the way he reacted to this emergency was indeliberate. He was extremely aware of what he was dealing with, and yet chose to ignore not only his company airline policies, but broke the law by placing the lives of potentially hundreds of innocents at risk. He not only should have been FIRED from his job, and company, but should also have lost his license to fly commercial jets!...

[@Raznah]

I have been watching videos on this channel non stop for a few days now. Had to take a moment and leave a comment. I just want to say thank you for these reports and your entire work on these videos.

[@abbysnowmist]

Thanks for explaining this incident. I hope you make more of these kind of videos in the future. Your explanations are really clear.

[@MentourPilot]

You are more than welcome!

[@chrisbentleywalkingandrambling]

Really enjoyed this. I would hate to get a Captain like that. I know that the Captain has seniority but you would think any Pilot would declare a Pan after losing an engine.

[@j2simpso]

Can't declare PAN or PAN PAN whilst in the air unless you're a pilot with PAN-AM. Otherwise you could be fined for impersonating another airline! 😅

[@rawexplorer8373]

You can have a million hours in the cockpit but you will never ever have a crystal ball. If an engine fails you dont have X ray eyes to see What exactly happened there. It can be a malfunction of the engine itself yet it can also mean a fuel contamination and a possibility of the remaining engine failing as Well. Then he can show off his seniority by landing a large jet plane without engines in the middle of the Alps🙃 *heavy sarcasm

[@ShenLong991]

I also fought the first officer could put him off the command. But on the other hand.. it is a 2-person job for a reason.

[@Banglish123]

They literally threw his own book at him. Gotta say I really love all your videos. Much less dramatic than the USTV equivalent, but so much more human for it.

[@antoniobuccheri5159]

I really hope I'll never be flown by such a pilot... it's terrifying to think that someone like that is flying passengers and it could have happened to me too

[@jonandersonmd7994]

So, just what are "the odds" ???

[@gerardomartinezoficial2091]

Basically, the Captain has a wrong concept about what CRM means. He never discusses with his FO which actions they could’ve taken for passenger’s safety. So he flew for two hours a plane with a broken engine and never intend to land in a suitable airport wow like the report says it was insane.

[@godfreytumwesigye]

I don't fly planes and I don't expect to ever do so but I can't stop watching your educative videos. Than you. You are such a great teacher

[@iannarita9816]

It sounds like the safety board was saying in polite bureaucratize: "ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR $%++%# MIND"

[@TheGhostGuitars]

If I was on that investigation board, I'd recommend him being cut loose from all avaition PERIOD. And have him turned over to custody w/o bail for criminal proceeding AND have him committed to the most "uncomfortable" mental institution I can find.

[@iannarita9816]

No just declare him mentally unfit. Remember his actions did not result in physical injury or death. Though they could of. Learned lesson don't trust him again.

[@TheGhostGuitars]

@@iannarita9816 I agree, however it's a fact that if one still has contact within the aviation industry (even if it's a "desk" job) that dude could eventually be placed back in the cockpit. Or do / not do something indirectly that will affect the safe operation of the planes. Mentally unfit is a good starting place, but aviation has no place for anyone with such attitude and behavior as shown by this "pilot" in any way or manner. Imagine the damage if someone like that is placed in ANY positions of responsibility and inevitably makes decisions inconducive to safety. A person with a history of skimping corners in maintenance? Nope. Supply? Hell no. Finance? Nuhuh. Administration? Are ye kidding? No. He needs spend a long time reflecting on the errors of his ways, whether it be behind bars or in a padded room, away from the planes.

[@tedferkin]

@@TheGhostGuitars He sounds like a classic narcissist. My father has had quite a severe form of this that caused him some really deep personal problems, luckily was not a pilot, and nothing he did in his professional career seemed to have been affected by it. People who thinkg they cannot make a mistake, should never be placed in control of an aircraft, the potential issues they could get themselves into could be fatal to many people.

[@Quasihamster]

@@tedferkin One lesson I learned in flightsim: I never ever EVER make a mistake. Only sometimes the earth doesn't move out of the way fast enough. I mean it's not that it couldn't see me coming is it? Stupid thing there!

[@FutureSystem738]

Thanks Petter, had not heard of this one before. Great coverage, and from my perspective as a 30k hour captain- very well described and explained. You should do a report on the A330 which flew all the way back to Perth (Western Australia 🇦🇺) with a failed engine with severe damage and very nasty airframe vibration, rather than land at the nearest suitable airport. I THNK it was an Indonesian carrier from memory?

[@xvlp]

I really appreciate these in-depth incident dives! They're helping me learn how to be a better pilot, and is a great supplement to the Air Crash Investigation series that I love too :) Keep doing them!

[@CristianKlein]

Another question, that popped up in my head since you mentioned that "the report could not rule out that the captain wanted to save costs." How well are captains shielded from financials when making cockpit decisions? Do you, for example, know the cost of a diversion or a go-around? Are there know cases of captains "getting that promotion later" due to erring on the safe side? Do captains feel an obligation toward the bottom line of a company, perhaps to save their own job? Sorry if this is a complex or sensitive question. IIRC, the Tenerife Airport Disaster final report concluded that the captain might have felt pressured by financials.

[@MentourPilot]

All very good and relevant questions but not enough time or space to elaborate on it here. All captains have to take economical decisions and we have to motivate all we do. When it comes to safety though the rule is VERY clear. If we think that safety is in doubt, we safeguard the passengers, crew and aircraft. That’s it.

[@Trevor_Austin]

Cristian Klein - Pilots are their own worst enemies. We are very goal orientated and also don’t want to let anybody down. We are also “helped” to make decisions with company communications such as a cancelled flight will cost $250,000, one passenger missing a connection costs $10,000, a late bag costs €100 and so on. However... good Ops. Controllers like Pieter Visser (real name) think safety and crew first, then legal, then company and then balance costs against passengers, normally siding with the passengers. Damn good question.

[@ajthegreat2006]

Interesting that they push you to think about cost to install subliminal pressure I guess. I’ve worked in two industries that have done the same. I won’t say which in such a public place incase I am identified but you would be astounded just as I am within your industry. I imagine the airline would face much higher costs for things like, an airplane falling out of the sky and killing a street of people. Or the compensation from killing 200 passengers, but I bet they don’t press those figures home, much like my experiences didn’t either. Sad when people running companies put profit before safety/people’s lives

[@Pentium100MHz]

@@ajthegreat2006 A plane crash would undoubtedly cost the airline much more than the emergency landing, however, it is unlikely that the second engine would fail and even if it did, it probably would have been possible to land the plane with minimal damage. Then you compare the guaranteed cost of, say, $100k vs a small chance of $100M and decide that the chance is small enough to just risk it. Obviously it is wrong to do this, but people still do it. People do that in a lot of circumstances, even something as simple as texting while driving - obviously crashing would be much more inconvenient than stopping to text, but what are the chances it would happen, right?

[@starcraftguy1]

Have a look into LaMia Flight 2933. The captain was co-owner of the airline. Being a pilot and co-owner doesn't mix when the pilot worries about the companies financial situation. It played a major role in the decision to continue to destination even after fuel starvation, instead of diverting to a closer airport. The plane crashed with 71 of the 77 passengers/crew killed.

[@johntavares3147]

This is an excellent performance review regarding CRM in the cockpit and he shows the level of critical thinking and analysis, that is required to both command and operate any commercial aircraft safely. He presents this very potentially dangerous incident in such a graphic manner and gripping manner, that you just can't help, but feel as though you are closely connected with what is happening throughout this flight. This is one of the best, if not the best recounts of what not to do and what to both do and follow. This video should be mandatory and instructional in highlighting professional attitudes and behaviours to all future budding airline pilots. In my opinion, this gets a 10 out of 10 rating from me. Thank you.

[@speedbird-bw5cq]

There is absolutely no place for arrogance in aviation.

[@rongaul8169]

This issue goes way beyond arrogance. Even an arrogant person will cave when the evidence is laid before them. He felt he was above the physical rules that govern how a plane flies, just the fact of a stronger head wind, would have doomed the flight.

[@EphemeralProductions]

exactly. Arrogance gets people killed, especially in aviation but in ANY circumstance, really.

[@andrewvancleef2482]

There is no place for that wall paper either :D

[@daveluttinen2547]

There is an adage: "There are old pilots and there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold pilots." That is all I will say.

[@xtensionxward3659]

exactly ! sometimes we follow the rules and we still get fucked ! now imagine being arrogant with 180 lives depending on your clear headed judgement ... you should be close to a buddha monk with your psychology AND a highly intelligent trained person if you are going to carry lives over the sky with a machinery that could fail in many ways on its own dude aviation responsibility is even more heavy than being a surgeon

[@martinbohac7187]

We call Smartwings after this flight Smrtwings. Where smrt=death in czech language. Btw the chief pilot is not out of service and undergoing psychic evaluation. Thank you for this man, LOVE THIS.

[@LukeMettamGaming]

I flew on a Smartwings 737 around 5 years ago from Birmingham to Tenerife. After landing as we got to the gate I noticed something happen that I had never seen done before in all the flights I've taken, I noticed ground crew open the engine cowling on the right engine. It was probably nothing but it seemed odd.

[@jemand8462]

It reminds me so much of doctors. The experienced old ones sometimes think they know everything and don'T have to care about new information or guidelines and the younger ones (mostly women) don't have the courage to question him or criticize.

[@vandijk1698]

Yes all older doctors are sexist bastards! You go girl! Thanks for the input...

[@jemand8462]

@@vandijk1698 You got that wrong, first, I'm a guy and second I didn't even say doctors or old doctors are sexist. Sexism is a word that has lost its meaning nowadays anyway. You could say I'm sexist against young female doctors, but I'm not because I'm a young male doctor and what I'm saying is basically empirical evidence. Young female doctors NEVER criticize, they only complain to male doctors hoping those will criticize the doctors.

[@SomethingBeautifulHandcrafts]

Sounds like this was almost a future episode of Air Crash Investigation.

[@looseycanon]

It could still be. While the plane did not crash per se, this repport could still attract producers attention, because this is somewhat similar to "Titanic in the Sky"... only with completly feasable runways to land on, which were "overshot", serious CRM issues and blatant arrogance on captains part.

[@fyrman9092]

It makes a good case study for what not to do in a single engine failure situation. Doubt the plane was ETOPS rated. While the PIC thought he had the situation under control, another unplanned event( hydraulic, weather, etc) could've doomed this flight...

[@Yora21]

"I don't need to follow safety regulations because I have enough experience" is how you challenge the record for worst aviation disaster of all time.

[@michaelbujaki2462]

It would be, but none of the passengers would have been aware enough of the danger to remember the flight number.

[@MeriaDuck]

I prefer the tone of voice of mentour over about any tv show, especially when concerning aviation.

[@andrewpinner3181]

Thanks Mentour, l watched this video again as per your recent YT memo. Obviously this is an older video, but still perfectly explaned. The accident / incident videos produced by yourself & your team (as of Aug 2024) have come on in leaps & bounds - super slick ! Congrats & thanks again.

[@lucygreen9243]

That's so scary. Experienced cockpit crew totally disregarding established protocols when dealing with such an emergency. Hope to God there aren't many such idiots still at large

[@mikerodent7390]

I just did a search on this (2021-05-25): this is, incredibly, the most recent piece of info about this man that I can find: "As of July 2020 the airline had demoted captain Pavel Veselý from his post as chief pilot in charge of flight operations. ***He continues to pilot Smartwings flights***." [emphasis mine] What is described here is clearly (in my opinion) criminal behaviour. Veselý should (in my opinion) have been charged with criminal, reckless endangerment on landing at Prague and should now be serving a 15-year sentence. There is something very wrong with the regulation of the aircraft industry currently, at least in Czechia (and presumably Czechia is pretty similar to everywhere else). SmartWings continues to operate. I just sent a message through their website asking if Pavel Veselý was still piloting (as any kind of flight crew) on 25/5/2021. If I get a reply I'll update this post...!

[@kenet88]

He is still piloting (cpt.) for Smartwings. He was cleared of reckless endangerement charges by the prosecutor in October 2021.

[@ajhawley-thomas8679]

@@kenet88 and all I can think k of as a reply is "WOW" and maybe "why???"

[@kenet88]

@@ajhawley-thomas8679 Cpt. Veselý was actually the one who made the "expert" report for the police basically stating no one was in any real danger. Police just took it at face value. Why? It might be connected to the why the heck is he still piloting for Smartwings question. From this point onwards it is my speculation. He might know some dirt on the co-owners of Smartwings who are very well connected. They probably just asked someone in charge not to dig too much. And for the police it was the smoothest course of action. Just say "expert" analysis states everything is peachy and go with it. Case closed.

[@kukuxumusu82]

Absolutely love all of your videos. From an avid flyer, flight sim nerd, and software engineer background absolutely love your analysis, broader lessons learned that applicable across all kinds of practice (including building software) and human psychology. Thank you for spending the time to apply your unique mix of talents and sharing this content with the world. BIG FAN!

[@djs2006]

This is exactly the level and kind of details that I want to hear about these extraordinary flights. Had something happened, such as running out of fuel, the captain would have been charged criminally, assuming the plane did not crash and kill him.