Was the TNFlyGirl Fatal Crash A Staged Act GONE WRONG? A fresh perspective on the tragedy // #74

Sean and Mike revisit this fatal accident with a fresh perspective on the loss of KZbinr TNFlyGirl in her newly acquired Beech Debonair. It appears there is evidence pointing to this crash being part of elaborate internet stunt that went horribly wrong resulting in the loss of two lives.
Here's the links we reference in the video, also links to Juan Brown's KZbin channel "Blancolirio" for a detailed analysis of this fatal crash:
• TNflygirl posted dumps...
• What No One Is Saying ...
• TNflygirl Fatal Crash ...
• TNFlygirl Crash 7 Dec ...
• NTSB Prelim Report TNF...
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Chapters:
00:00 Intro
02:25 TN Fly Girl story is worse than we thought
03:03 Pro-Pilot Playbook student's plane crashes
05:20 Consequences of bad judgement piloting aircraft
06:05 Other KZbinrs' videos about TN Fly Girl accident
07:01 Non-stop examples of bad piloting skills displayed by Jen Blalock
16:30 Mike's advice for student pilots and flight instructors on cross-country training flights
18:14 Sean's advice for student pilots in primary flight training
20:01 What can happen to us using automation even with driving a car
22:04 What navigation equipment Jenny Blalock TNFlyGirl actually needed to complete the simple 40nm flight on a VFR day
23:32 Money can sometimes allow a pilot to buy an airplane beyond their experience and skill level
25:15 Final words of advice for anybody currently working on their Private Pilot's certificate to become a professional corporate or airline pilot

[@mikeshort3838]

I don’t think it was staged. In some of the videos she is with a CFII. He is constantly doing everything for her. When he’s not flying the plane for her, she quickly gets in to trouble. On one approach she descends 900 feet below the crossing minimums. ATC steps in and cancels her clearance and asks it everything is ok, if they need any assistance. The CFII wasn’t paying attention for just a minute, and she quickly got 900 feet below min on the approach. Based on her reaction to ATC canceling her clearance, I don’t believe she even understood what she had done. Her videos (now removed) showed a clear picture into her flying skills and situational awareness. She had very little of either.

[@Skank_and_Gutterboy]

She did a very convincing job of showing that she has no business flying a plane of any kind. How do you get lost on a clear sunny day when the airfield that you took off from is filling your left window?! ( kzbin.info/www/bejne/oYK4hGBsiKeNsK8si=i6ZLigu6rtQxxSeG&t=282 ) She managed just that. I'm amazed she survived 400 flight hours.

[@teijaflink2226]

How isn't it it criminal that she was given a pilots license? And shouldn't you be able to fly without the constant help of a CFII. Absolute insanity, she was a total danger and could easily have killed even more people. And seems she herself didn't understand the seriousness, that flying is not like any other hobby but that you have to be a professional.

[@mikeshort3838]

@@Skank_and_Gutterboy I’ve read that she had 400 hours but I don’t buy it. I’ve seen most of her videos that are now taken down and it’s just one shit show after the other. I hadn’t heard of her until the crash. it popped up on one of my feeds the day after it happened. I looked her up and spent sometime watching her videos. At first, I thought this is some kind of joke. But every video was just more of the same. Then, the video of her driving her car. She literally blew through multiple stop signs, didn’t even really slow down. She drove about as well as she flew. It’s sad that someone signed her off and someone else passed her on a check ride. Those people had to know she was incompetent as a pilot.

[@factsondeck1552]

If the instructor didn’t baby her he’d be called a misogynist who hates women.

[@Skank_and_Gutterboy]

@@mikeshort3838 Yep, the way I found out that she even existed was when I saw a video saying that she crashed and the title said "social media star". Same thing, I went to her channel to check out a few videos and was like "OMG". One thing that I noticed was that the comments sections were just loaded with the stupidest syrupy "You go, girl, I just love you" comments. I think she or somebody with access was diligently scrubbing her videos of any negative comments, I literally found zero negative comments. I'm not a pilot and I was just appalled at the things I saw her doing in the cockpit, I don't know how none of them were seeing that. I guess it's all about chasing an image, nothing grounded in reality.

[@ice_fox]

One thing all aspiring pilots must remember: The concept of "Fake it till you make it" does not apply to aviation.

[@postersm7141]

Or motorcycles for that matter

[@TheFlyingZulu]

True... Although I do say for my checkrides; Luck counts, but don't count on it. lol.

[@pylt93]

Well, she did make it: to the NTSB archives

[@darrinsteven7002]

It can apply

[@wjatube]

I have re-watched her now infamous 'which way am I going video' and have concluded this was no stunt. No one wants to speak rude of the deceased but analyzing their speech, their decisions, their actions and confusion they were not acting. They were clueless and blaming the avionics for their problems. The dad was making honest mistakes by helping guide direction. He was sincerely eager to help his daughter even if it meant blindly looking how to adjust the heat and popping a breaker to reset the gps. But the point she hands him her Iphone and asks him to look for traffic in the area was a very authentic moment we see from many elder folks who are handed a smartphone and reject it saying they have no idea how to use it. So in conclusion these two gentlemen are being kind and giving this woman far too much credit for being smart/calculating enough to contrive a year's worth of drama when in fact the real drama was her complete ignorance. Thank god they didn't kill anyone else.

[@pac1261]

"Blaming the avionics for her problems." I think you nailed it. She seemed strangely detached from any sense of her own responsibility as a pilot, as though the plane and its equipment were some amusing thing that was happening around her. The part where she says she "died laughing" at her own ineptness with the avionics was especially chilling.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

@@pac1261 Narcissists and airplanes do not mix well. They never accept responsibility. Accountability is kryptonite to women.

[@Skank_and_Gutterboy]

@@pac1261 Yeah, not only was her situational awareness terrible, so was her lack of self-awareness. She was just positive that nothing would ever happen to her.

[@6821hominy]

Her dad had his own smart phone. I think how it occurred is that she handed him her phone to look at her flight “app”‘that is one to tell you where the local “ traffic” is. Another gadget she had in her arsenal. He did not know anything about the app & how to read it so he gave it back to her saying “ I don’t know anything about this”. She was out of her league & by the look on his face in other videos was a little concerned but that was his daughter - he should have intervened & told her she does not need to be trying to be a pilot when she clearly was not.

[@Skank_and_Gutterboy]

@@6821hominy No doubt. Just the fact that she was using her unqualified/unlicensed father as a co-pilot was really bad.

[@chawkinz]

I've watched all her videos, over 40 years flew with MANY students, instructors, airline crew members, etc. This person was not acting.

[@newking70]

She was over her head.

[@chawkinz]

Understatement.@@newking70

[@Skank_and_Gutterboy]

@@tdoheron No joke. 30 seconds of her almost hitting curbs and blowing stop signs is enough to convince me that she should not have had a plane or car license.

[@grizbizusa]

TOTALLY AGREE.

[@mytech6779]

​@@Skank_and_Gutterboy As a tangent, that she was allowed to drive is not suprising. A license is permission, not assurance of any quality. A certificate is assurance of some set of qualities, but not permission. Licenses are normally used for either generating revenue or limiting the number of participants. People get them mixed because sometimes a license will only be granted on some quality precondition, or permission will be granted for any of those with a particular certificate. But consider a business license doesn't mean you know how to run a business and fishing license doesn't mean you know how to fish, just pay the fee and get the paper. Alternatively you could get a certificate that the level of asbestos in your house is below a certain level, which is not inherently permission to do anything with it although it could be a precondition for converting it to a daycare or for a sale.

[@mgrantom]

I retired as an arson investigator in 1996 and was involved in thousands of investigations during my career with HFD. I got my pilot's license in 1978. I have been a practicing attorney for over 37 years and I have seen several of the videos that TN Fly Girl posted. My impression is that this girl was truly incompetent and what you see in her videos was not an act. I do question her passing her check ride in order to get her license. Clearly, she was more interested in creating content rather than being a good pilot. I think every wannabe pilot should start by reading "Stick and Rudder" and learning what makes an airplane fly. I agree that it is very difficult to watch this poor girl try to fly in her videos, but I don't think she was acting.

[@hoopslaa5235]

Nobody wants to say it but it needs to be said about women and attention seeking and praise and their desperate focus and addiction to clout and attention power dynamic. It truly is a sickness and mental illness. It needs to be categorized and classified. It’s a huge major problem with all young women today and social media and Facebook etc are just ramping up the attention addiction, it’s amazing.

[@paulhallmark3643]

She made video of her driving a car too. A dash cam. She was a menace on the road as well. Watch for yourself.

[@mikes2082]

Running stop signs, etc.... saw that

[@eddylauterback1312]

That was her 2nd plane. She cut a turn off too quick, hit the grass, mud and messed up the landing gear. But she kept that off her channel. A picture is on the Debrief channel.

[@jcc6789]

I watched all her KZbin videos prior to to them being removed and even for a non-pilot, her cluelessness was glaring. On those videos and her instagram page videos it appears her primary focus is on appearance-laughing at her errors, playing with her hair, chewing gum, fiddling with the onboard technology - then posting videos and overlaying them with catchy music. All her content came across to me as simply to garner attention as to what she's doing and how she looks online. It's a horrific tragedy and honestly i was shocked her dad went up with her.

[@adotintheshark4848]

Well. she finally succeeded at getting attention..too bad her dad got some too.

[@kilnmaster]

That's so typical of all these social media platforms. I see complete idiots making themselves the "master" of a certain skill daily !!!!! My God when I was starting out on my career, I just focused on my passion and would never brag or even talk about what I was doing. It's the way it is now!!!!!!!!!! It is ridiculous, and all ages are involved not just the younger generation

[@kilnmaster]

​@@adotintheshark4848😅

[@pamshewan9181]

Agree. She was acting like she was a cheerleader in high school. She had no business in an aircraft

[@mytech6779]

She was playing make believe pilot, not doing the work to really be a pilot. I see this with a lot of women drivers and in the workplace, (No not every one, but a couple orders of magnitude higher proportion than with men.). They don't take the task with a serious intent of being good at it or making a living and saving for retirement, they are basically just playing house, pretend time with the image of what they think the job is for some spare shopping cash until they get bored and find a man who has taken it serious and can provide her part of his retirement.

[@sethtime9951]

This childish lady had no business ever having a pilots license and everyone involved in certifying her should be investigated.

[@johngreydanus2033]

No, it was an act, a damn good one, they have evidence pointing.

[@Mercmad]

@@johngreydanus2033 So her dying was an act?

[@goosubux]

She didn't deserve her license.

[@michaelsimpson9779]

I agree, her instructors who signed off on her qualifications are culpably negligent.....

[@johngreydanus2033]

Many say this; can anyone give a short answer on what that comprises of? Is there a written test, a practical test, plus the general observation of the trainee? Is there a paper trail for responsibility?@@michaelsimpson9779

[@chumbawumba1959]

At the end of the "which way am I going video" she said these ominous words: **"I died laughing at myself!"**

[@angeleka8465]

This hits different now that she is actually dead…. It’s such a shame but I do truly believe she was more in love with the idea of saying she is a pilot than actually being a proficient pilot! I am not a pilot by any means, and don’t know officially pilot terminology however I can tell as she fixes her hair in the videos and looks around at the controls with a deer in the headlights look this person should not have been able to fly a plane. Period.

[@dboss7239]

No gentlemen I disagree with your speculation that this was an act. She displayed lack of ability to safely drive a car in one video where she drove to lunch and almost had a collision by not following safe driving practice. She was in over her head, and had the ability to manipulate others into doing things for her, thus masking her serious lack of skill at piloting. Just because someone has a GC (General Contractor) license does not mean she knows how to build a house. You can rely on the skilled tradesmen you hire to skate by if you are good at sales and reading/manipulating people/clients. She displayed this tendency in her late videos, by shopping for flight instructors - until she finds one or more who will let her get away with incompetence and/or do the work for her. The problem with that mentality is once on your own with severe lack of ability, skill and knowledge, reality will quickly bite you. Also someone comments below/above that she appears to be dyslexic, and yes she (and her father) routinely and regularly move controls or get things in the wrong direction, like trim wheel, headings, directions and so on. A skilled manipulator could easily shop around for flight instructors and even examiners she could bend to her goals. And finally her final flight was to take the plane to have a new autopilot and some added avionics installed, again pointing to trying to cover for, or get around her utter lack of flying skill. But as with any form of automation, if you cannot do the task manually, you should never be allowed to, or choose to use the automated system.

[@darylsmioth1904]

I don't think she knew north, south, east and west let alone use a compass. She probably couldn't even read road maps.

[@johngreydanus2033]

CLICKBAIT for views, here we are!

[@travelwithtony5767]

I wholeheartedly agree with every word in your comment.

[@Skank_and_Gutterboy]

I forgot about that, she was blowing stop signs and all kinds of crazy stuff.

[@Skank_and_Gutterboy]

@@darylsmioth1904 No joke. In her infamous "I am lost" video where she was lost while overflying the airfield that she just took off from, she had no inkling that she was heading the wrong way until the sun hit her straight in the eyes. Just using dead-reckoning from the direction of the sun and time of day, nearly anybody could've at least gotten going in the correct general-direction and then fine-tuned it with a compass reading. Seeing that she couldn't even do this and how she drove her car in at least one video, it's shocking that a grown woman, business-owner, and licensed driver could be this clueless about the world. She drove that car like a 13 year old, OMG.

[@travelwithtony5767]

I’m just gonna say what everyone else is thinking: She was more interested in becoming Instagram & social media famous, than she was in becoming a capable and competent pilot, and that is abundantly clear to anyone that watched the numerous videos she took of herself piloting the airplane prior to the crash.

[@cleekmaker00]

I look at it this way; these 'Influencers' and 'Reactors' have one thing in common. They copy each other chasing Clicks and Likes. Reactors react to the same music, TV and Film their counterparts do to collect the Clicks and Likes. Same with these Flying Influencers. The big thing the popular ones have done with their Airplanes lately is... an Avionics Upgrade. What was TnFlyGirl going to have done to the Debonair? An Avionics Upgrade. So, in a way it was all about chasing Clicks and Likes.

[@dennisnbrown]

How in the hell did she get her license? Where is the responsibility of the certified flight instructors?

[@factsondeck1552]

Flight instructor doesn’t rant licenses. Which means she got multiple people to sign off on her even though she couldn’t fly.

[@Aleksandar6ix]

Sexual favors maybe?

[@johngreydanus2033]

I see this "sign off" comment so many times; I must Google for what the actual procedure is unless someone can summarize it here quickly? When I think of passing something, I think of a written test, combined with a practical test with all aspects covered. The way it looks here is that someone taught her to take-off, sign that, another taught her to land, sign that, another taught her navigation, sign that, all based on a one-time event. @@factsondeck1552

[@user-th7gd7ge4p]

gave a lap dance to the right person maybe?

[@ferngrows6740]

Excellent commentary Gentlemen. I live in the Rockwood TN area. Even though I have never been a PIC, while looking out of TNflygrl's cockpit windows during the flight described here, I could easily identify local landmarks from her seat. Additionally, the Rockwood Fossil Plant is just down the road, hard up against I 40 and it's smokestacks are an unmistakable clue as to where one is. I won't comment on her motivations but wow, the lack of situation awareness was frightening.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

"the lack of situation awareness was frightening." Especially since ForeFlight was running on her iPad right in front of her eyes.

[@flyingcarguy]

The thing that gets me is she supposedly had an Instrument rating. How do you pass that without knowing what way you are going?

[@davidmangold1838]

She was training for her instrument rating. She hadn’t taken the written exam and was having difficulty learning (mainly because of mediocre CFII and lack of the fundamentals of flight).

[@mikeb2611]

now that would have been really scary going up with her in the clouds

[@6821hominy]

She did not have an instrument rating. She was working on getting one but I doubt that she could pass but if she did the outcome sadly is the same. She was not competent as a private pilot whatsoever.

[@Sqeptick]

Definitely WASN'T an act. Let's not attribute cleverness to her deep narcissism. It was her narcissistic tendencies that made her post those videos of her struggling to perform basic PIC duties. If you saw the comments to those videos while she was still alive to read them, they were overwhelmingly positive and feeding her ego. In hindsight it's easy to say these videos would've been embarrassing, but in the moment she was getting praise and attention for them.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

Narcissists and airplanes do not mix well.

[@Skank_and_Gutterboy]

@@LaVidaLocaHomie People that follow narcissists like this on social media and think she's doing great don't typically do well in the world, either. Even a non-pilot like me should see that she's struggling, and that's being generous.

[@svenskanorsk]

Spot on

[@KSparks80]

Is narcissist the latest kewl buzzword on Tik Tok or something? Idiots throw it around and obviously have no idea of its definition.

[@karynmoore5094]

Regarding kids not interesting in getting their drivers license when they turn 16, I have a theory. Since many kids aren’t riding their bicycles to school, to their friends’ houses, to sporting events, etc. due to their parents’ safety concerns, they haven’t experienced the joy and freedom that comes with independent mobility. We couldn’t wait to take that to another level by driving a car. Also, we had navigated our way around on a bike and had confidence we could handle finding our way anywhere when driving a car. Sad that many are missing the excitement of that rite of passage.

[@tiaking2002]

Interesting viewpoint. I have 3 kids in their mid 20’s and none of them have a license. They are very independent and have traveled the world without adults since their mid teens. They just aren’t interested in getting their license. Mind you, we have always lived in Cities with fantastic public transport.

[@karynmoore5094]

@@tiaking2002 Good point. I can certainly see how having great public transportation and allowing kids to use it independently would give them confidence and no real need to have a drivers license. We don’t have that in our city. The families I know in Chicago where they do have it wouldn’t dream of letting their high school age children use it without them present. Sounds like your children have had great experiences traveling the world and know how to navigate their way in it.

[@glennryan9770]

Learn the auto pilot on the ground not in the air when you should have your focus outside the plane. Flying in circles over the airport while you’re turning knobs and pushing buttons is dangerous in the extreme.

[@computerweenie]

In one of her videos when she was having problems her dad asked her about the circuit breakers and where they were located. They were down below him somewhere but he wasn't able to reach them. Who in their right mind messes with circuit breakers when you're trying to fly a plane?

[@mileshighclub5993]

Every time I have gotten a new rating private, instrument, multi-engine. I quickly found out how much I didn't know. It's not building hours, it's learning how to improve your skills.

[@robertvale9786]

My flight instructor would tell me after i got my tickets. And certifications that it meant i was NOW qualified to START LEARNING.

[@Island_Line_Rail_Productions]

Exactly! I have had my PPL for two years now and am constantly learning as I work my way through my IR training.

[@RealWoutLies]

I’m close to check ride. Every solo, I identify issues, what I can do better. My next solo, those are first on my list, followed by practice. It’s a never ending loop.

[@Yabadabado1234]

Absolutely great comment. I still haven't flown to Oshkosh because I'm honest with my limitations. Someday but only when I'm ready.

[@S2StrategicDefense]

Like I said on the first video.. it's a tragic loss. But she was an incompetent pilot and should never have been certificated.

[@dmimcg]

Why was it a tragic loss? So she could fly again and kill an innocent person?

[@S2StrategicDefense]

@@dmimcg anytime there's a fatal aviation accident is a tragedy. Aside from the fact that despite her inconpetence.. she had people that cared for her and tragically also killed her own father.

[@eds3421]

These days we have a tendency to try and explain the unexplainable by looking for conspiracies. If this was an act, she deserves an Academy Award. What is more plausible is she was over her head with regard to the aircraft and avionics given her experience. While TFG may have been a successful business woman, skill sets sometimes don’t translate to aviation. We will eventually know what caused this accident given the video, but we’ve seen professional pilots get tunnel vision when it comes to automation. And, I wouldn’t be surprised if this caught the TFG as well.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

I know a ton of PhDs and MBAs that can recite all day long like a parrot but they have ZERO common sense.

[@gramparob]

One thing I learned about flying with autopilot in my Sling Tsi was that if you are on autopilot and try to fight the ailerons the autopilot will fight you back to some extent and you will feel it. However, if you pull up or down, it feels normal for several seconds because the autopilot is only adjusting the electric elevator trim. I had a busy VFR departure out of Concord NC and I was thinking not autopilot, but since it was busy I put on the autopilot to take off some of the workload. After a couple of heading changes for traffic departure told me to climb up 500 ft to avoid traffic, then another heading change. Somehow in my mind I didn’t have it locked in that I was on autopilot and I pulled back on the stick to gain that altitude. Being distracted with heading changes a few seconds later the stick got very heavy and ATC yelling at me “Why are you descending!” Instead of 3500, I was at 2800, and I’m pulling hard on the stick. I had the presence of mind to hit the autopilot off button on the stick, looked at the trim indicator and it was full deflection down!?!! How did that happen? I recovered, and hand flew it up to the assigned 3500ft. I went back to the Garmin flight logs and realized what had happened. If you have elevator trim autopilot, you can fool yourself into thinking you have control of the plane. Then slowly it runs away from you. I have experimented with it since and demonstrate to all of the pilots I fly with. It’s surprising how much altitude deviation you can get into. And if you turn off the autopilot, it won’t recover to the assigned altitude, and leaves you with full deflection trim and a lot of force, or a rapid accelerating descent. Maybe something to mention…

[@adriannye]

Her aircraft did not have electric trim.

[@dhvoith]

I was a flight instructor in San Diego in the late 80's. There were lots of wealthy students. These people were intelligent, successful, and driven. Not used to failure. They were some of my most difficult students. They wanted all training events to be perfect and making a mistake was not an option. If they screwed something up they became incredibly frustrated and difficult to work with. They expected to get their ratings in a minimum amount of time. Some of them already had high performance aircraft and some had jets on order. Not a good mix. Learning to fly and being proficient takes time and dedication. Mistakes are inevitable so you learn from them and move on. You can't force proficiency.

[@wallywally8282]

The most tragic part is apart from killing her own father she truly believed that getting back into her plane to go fly time and time again and go screw it up once more was ok?🤮 For me 45 years of driving planes I’ve seen some terrible pilots who should not get out of bed but Jenny made them look like Space Shuttle drivers!

[@Skyhawk945]

Please consider all those instructors and examiners that signed her off as competent. She was following her dream and just kept going after it. Those signatures enabled this outcome and they should be accountable.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

Space Shuttle drivers that can dock in a solar storm with their hatch windows glazed over.

[@user-kb8gh5jv9t]

“driving airplanes”…🤔…you shouldn’t🤦‍♀️

[@chuckufarly65]

You fly a plane not drive it.

[@cruisingal2]

Nice summary. I said this elsewhere, after reading someone speculate this, and I will say it here. She seems to exhibit dyslexia. Besides that, it just seemed that the instruments and everything about flying was overwhelming her. Her mind just didn't move at the speed a pilots' mind needs to function at. And I think the scariest moment was when she asked Dad to look for the fuse box, which he didn't find (perhaps on purpose....)

[@weaviejeebies]

I have ADHD, and she gave me the "fellow traveler" vibe. Of course I have no direct knowledge of whether she actually did or not, but her driving is a pretty good indicator imo of someone who is undiagnosed, untreated, or both. Dyslexia is a common comorbidity, as is hyperfixation on one aspect of a task to the exclusion of everything else for small periods of time. I felt somewhat like the fiddling with the autopilot falls into that category.

[@cruisingal2]

I agree with that possibility. The swapping of several things that I observed a few times.... east/west, gear up/down, instrument confusion, and the mere fact she didn't just use her compass to back up what she "thought" which would have gave her a clue....@@weaviejeebies

[@roamingirl]

@@weaviejeebiesFellow traveler vibes! I like that.🩷

[@rachmunshine9474]

@@cruisingal2 Im no pilot or expert in anything involved, but I have ADHD pretty severely, I think people around me would say. And I know up from down and East from west unless you turn me around or something 😂

[@cruisingal2]

I think she was dyslexic. I looked it up and she even had spelling mistakes. Here are a few signs that describes her: And while all adults mix up their left and right, if this is a consistent issue for you, it could be a sign of undiagnosed dyslexia. Dyslexia can cause issues with spatial reasoning. People dealing with dyslexia can have issues reading maps, following directions, and confuse their left and right. @@rachmunshine9474

[@christinevandegriend1773]

Will there ever be any official accountability for the CFIs who signed off on the late Miss Blalock's checkrides, etc.?

[@codyjaybditw]

Money doesn’t equal intelligence unfortunately.

[@edwardcat5247]

trump

[@lazydaisy2292]

​@@edwardcat5247 stop

[@ED-es2qv]

Yes it does, just ask any rich person. Everyone poorer than them is lazy or stupid, and everyone richer than them is lucky or cheating.

[@johnpooky84]

@@edwardcat5247*Biden

[@Skyhawk945]

Nothing to do with money. She wanted to learn to fly so she hired a instructor. She wasn't competent but she was signed off at least 8 times as competent. Those signatures should never have happened.

[@markkoven2968]

Personally I think you are giving her wayyy too much credit. While an interesting theory, I bet if you had been able to watch her many other videos before they were taken down, you would have a different take. They showed a person who should have been failed in getting a pilots license. My favorite was one where she either didn’t know her instrument panel had lights, or didn’t know how to turn them on at a Dusk/Night flight. Her Dad turned his phone light on so she could see her instruments… at which time, she took 15 plus mins trying to find the airport, mostly because now she was night blind because of his bright white flashlight. There are LOTS of people that are given a drivers license that shouldn’t have them, yet are good enough to pass the tests…. the shocking part of this is that her CFIs and a DPE let her get by with poor habits and skills. I believe one comment I read nailed it in that if she had been under a Female CFI and had a Female DPE, things might have been different. Many of the videos taken down showed the CFI doing sooo much of the communication, navigation and operating of the aircraft instead of making her learn it. I think they would have not been so lenient and swayed by helping the woman in the tower syndrome, to her own detriment. Also, just a small correction, Deb’s are not $500K planes… you can pick ones up like this for $75k-150k.

[@Hjerte_Verke]

GREAT POINTS. Many people are just good enough to pass the test, and that is "good enough" only because they crammed the night before and then forgot most everything the day after the test. People think possession of a pilots license (much less a drivers license) conveys competence, but a person can muddle their way through and pass without really knowing anything. It's so easy to drive because there's roads and you just follow the road, plus there's only 2 dimensions. Completely different in the air and the two skill sets are really not similar.

[@aviatortrucker6285]

After watching that cross country video with her dad, it appeared that she did not even know how to set up her navigator. She turned it off at one point. So she had no flight plan in the system. She did not set any heading bugs or did she have a sectional chart. She just decided to get airborne and somewhat head where she supposed wanted to go. She was only concerned with turning on the auto pilot. She believed magically it was supposed to take her where she was supposed to go. If she knew how to set up the Garmin 430 which I think is what she had, she would’ve at least been able to fly the magenta line. One of the aircraft I fly has a GTN 650 and I sometimes I go to default navigator screen, which is like an OBS with distance, time and DTK. It shows no map, and I have to find my courses that way without using a moving map. A moving map shows great situational awareness, but if doing so, one should have a sectional on their lap, or at least nearby to coincide with a see on the moving map as opposed to what they see on the physical chart. As a truck driver, I do that with my GPS and Rand McNally Atlas by my side.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

How hard can it be to follow a magenta line on an Ipad with ForeFlight right in front of your eyes ?? Pilots delivering airmail in a Stearman 100 years ago did it all in their head along with a compass and a stopwatch.

[@aviatortrucker6285]

@@LaVidaLocaHomie sure you can follow magenta line if you set one up. If you watch the video, she’s not even looking at her flight plan or dealing with the garment for third. She basically took off and said I think I gotta go that way. You don’t see anything of her setting up the DG or discussing a pre-takeoff briefing of what she’s going to do and which way she’s going to fly. She was busy stroking her hair playing with the sun visor and occasionally trying to get the auto pilot working without verifying and briefing that it was on GPS steer or the heading bug.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

@@aviatortrucker6285 I hear ya. It's almost like she had a death wish. No traffic scanning, no instrument scanning, no preflight, no checklists, running stop signs, unable to turn on a garmin, unable to operate a garmin, unable to hold a flight level, unable to stay on course, unable to operate an autopilot, crashed her piper trainer while on the taxiway, transitioned to a high performance plane while she was still in the crib with very, very low hours. First and foremost and above everything else you fly the plane.

[@aviatortrucker6285]

@@LaVidaLocaHomie although overall 400 hours is considered low time compared to what an airline pilot obtains in their career, I received my instrument, commercial and multi engine ratings by the time I was around 400 hours total time. I remember the first time I flew a very long cross country right after I obtained my instrument rating. I believe it was somewhere in the neighborhood of 483 nautical miles, although the weather was not IMC, I filed, and at that time I was in a complex airplane with nothing more than a wing leveler. This meant it had a system to keep the wings level, but there was no navigation or pitch control as a modern day auto pilot. This was back in the day when you actually had NDB routes and primarily Victor airways. I learned very fast that number one it cost a lot more to fly IFR because ATC will vector you 20 miles off your route just to avoid traffic, and even at 8000 feet you get in a situation that you run out of navaid. This was back in 1989, so there was no GPS at that time. The only RNAV you had was a system that electronically moved the VOR station in line based on the radio and distance to the station. It did this by calculating where you were in relation to the station and making it as though they were in a perfect row. So the space between two VOR’s was so great, I believe over 200 miles apart that I eventually had no navigation electronically. The VOR’s could no longer be received at that altitude.Thank goodness it was VMC and I just descended to 3500 feet and followed the freeway. She couldn’t even do that if you asked her to show it on paper.

[@thomaswest5931]

@@aviatortrucker6285 Thanks for the memories! Started flying in ‘90 and it was a different time in so many ways.

[@superroo_sti3351]

It really hit home when you mentioned “looking out the window watching our parents drive.” When I stared driving when I was 16 I was beyond ready. Driving only looking at the freeway signs. Correcting the car in situations it was almost 2nd nature.

[@computerweenie]

When I learned to drive and received my license, I was not allowed to have passengers in my car the first three months. My parents felt that distractions especially with little experience would lead to an accident. I didn't agree with any of that at the time but will say with a little luck, lots of skill and paying attention to ever changing conditions have left me accident free for more years than I like to think about.

[@schubeto]

Guys please try to keep information factual to really educate people. A 40nm trip is not considered a X-Country by FAA regs, needs to be over 50 NM. A Debonair is NOT worth $500,000.00 they average between $75,000.00 to $170,000.00. Also Posting a second video because "we did not have all the information" does not help anyone learn anything because many of the "opinions" will incorrect. Speculation will get pilots in trouble, factual information helps prevents accidents.

[@paulD427]

That video of her flying in circles was wild all I kept thinking was if your lost level the plane get it straight and look at your compass and figure out where you are, not to mention she took off from an uncontrolled airport made a callout about departing direction then went the opposite way immediately that alone is crazy if there was other traffic around.

[@D.J.Trump2024MAGA]

all she had to do was follow the interstate below her.

[@hb1338]

@@D.J.Trump2024MAGA A brief look at the sun will help you to get within a few degrees of the correct course.

[@branchandfoundry560]

@@hb1338 You may be shocked how many grown people cannot tell you cardinal directions AT ALL, let alone relate them to sun position. I'm serious, not being provocative. There's a growing mindset of "What the heck do I need to know that for?!?" Like they do not understand the relevance to daily life anymore. Realizing I sound very old saying this, but I'm 48. Plenty of people my age who have no knowledge of nor desire to learn basic skills, all the while spouting, "They don't make guys like that him anymore." It blows me away, but I encounter this almost daily.

[@robertvale9786]

She posted a vid, a YEAR prior, where she accidentally turned off the Garmin and couldn’t work the autopilot…….same stuff in that last video. She’s telling us that IN A YEAR, she didnt learn to turn the darn Garmin on ? (Heck, google it on the iPad or iPhone she had , nor learned how to operate the autopilot correctly in re trim and linking to nav. Meanwhile, asking her dad (non-pilot), to try to reset some circuit breakers as she couldn’t reach them……what could go wrong there, turning off random circuit breakers (under the co-pilot dash area- so labeling is hard to see)…..and allowing her dad to confuse her by saying they were going in the right direction as the freeway was right underneath them…..until she finally noticed, on her iPad, that they were following the freeway alright- IN THE OPPPOSITE DIRECTION! Cant even use the magnetic compass? Geez. No wonder her college degree is in HR and is a waste.

[@mowtivatedmechanic1172]

Last sentence. LMFAOOOOO

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

I'm a PhD ! I don't need a cookbook !!

[@animula6908]

She used her degree to build two successful businesses. Doesn’t qualify her to be a pilot, but later she achieved that as well. I get that you hate her for reasons unrelated to her flying, and you’re enjoying that she had a fatal crash. But you really don’t have that much reason to look down on her.

[@MattMajcan]

its a common error in human psychology to assume that things must have been intentional. sometimes people are just really that incompetent and its hard to understand.

[@huntsail3727]

I understand what you are saying but I disagree. It is not surprising, it is all too common in our society for people to operate machines (automobiles, bass boats, jet ski's, motorcycles, ATV's, even table saws, etc.) without knowing the fundamentals or how the basic mechanical functions of the equipment work. Accident's with this backstory are all too common. Sad.

[@timringgenberg2844]

I agree. I was selling a table saw and the person who was interested really had no idea what she was doing. I told her I wouldn't sell it to her own safety. Watching some of her flights it was scary to see her lack of ability when it came to flying. The video of her flying in circles over the airport she departed from while trying to fly east in itself, frightening. She was lost and yet she should have been able to see the runway that she just took off from. I wonder just how good was the instructor was that she was getting lessons from.

[@user-mp9rd4hg8b]

"It was so bad I thought it was an act. I don't know why she would post something like that." That's because she was so bad, she didn't even KNOW how bad she was. She had no synth of direction, no spatial awareness and seemed to be unable to think in the abstract. She was failed by her instructors and whoever signed off for her to solo.

[@Froggy.175]

I never exercised the idea of this incident being an “act” prior to this podcast, but after watching this (and being a student pilot), I’m positive that I wouldn’t even be able to solo at my school if I was lacking the skills she displayed in her videos. No hate and I feel full empathy for her and her family for this tragic accident, but this is NOT the norm for your average private pilot. This is a terrible tragedy that could’ve been prevented and should remind us all to stay safe in the sky and even on our day to day routes on the roads too. Thank you for speaking on such an important topic guys, I really appreciate it.

[@HoltAircraft]

be aware, that you might pass your Skills test one day and then after a break you just wont be as sharp as you were, I recently had 6 months off flying due to a change of job and wow I felt rusty! like i scared myself, but my instructor was like "you're good to go" but I just didn't feel as up to it as before... so I start off with small flights , local flight to get back up to snuff

[@Froggy.175]

@@HoltAircraft I had the same thing happen when I first started working on my PPL. I was docked for 5-6 months while waiting on my Medical. My first flight back was terrifyingly terrible. Took a couple lessons of just pattern work to get back into it.

[@RealWoutLies]

Student also, could it be? Was she just making content? Watching her play with the AP, I don’t know.

[@DougBowman6]

Learn the stick and rudder skills. Agreed screens are making us stupid in certain skill areas. Save the magenta line for a backup or later on in your pilot journey.

[@erintyres3609]

24:59 You recommend "stay off of Foreflight", but there is a great benefit in knowing how to use it well. A student who gets all flustered when the other student left the GPS set for "track up" vs. "north up" needs to learn how and why the map looks so different from usual. He needs to learn how to set the correct mode. He needs to learn the advantage of working all this out on the ground before takeoff. And he needs to learn the importance of not losing situational awareness. During every check ride, in flight, the examiner asks the applicant to fly to an airport that was not in the original plan. Whether using Foreflight or paper charts, he has figure out how to get there, turn in the correct direction, look up the needed frequencies, etc. Any applicant who can't correctly do that will fail the check ride.

[@FromSagansStardust]

Any of us who learned to fly 40-50 years ago, when asked 'paper or plastic' will answer 'paper'! (And, some of the younger readers might not get the humor there)

[@drethanplasticsurgery]

TNFlyGirl was a blatant example of hazardous attitude (resignation, anti-authority, others). It is the PIC responsibility to be master of the aircraft. No passengers should be allowed until mastery is achieved. We now know a poor understanding of dead reckoning skills and an over-reliance on automation in a complex aircraft is deadly.

[@Skyhawk945]

Please consider the responsibility of the 8 signatures in her log book that enabled this accident. She never should have been signed off on anything and that's the dangerous failure/break down. Bad instruction, incompetent examiners, and those signatures created the accident chain.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

Anti-Social Personality Disorder and airplanes do not mix well.

[@jamesrobertson4035]

I've watched LOTS of her videos and rarely heard her talk to ATC, with CFI aboard, or her Dad aboard, or call out & perform checklists. (And yeah, doing SEVERAL 360's with departure airport in view is crazy!) In my mind, keeping up with comms & checklists provides a quick first impression as to if someone is a competent pilot. There are plenty on youtube who really shine, and it's fun to watch! It all looks too intense for me to pursue; I'm happy enough being a retired hang glider pilot! 😊

[@alk672]

It wasn't an act. If you just watch some of her training videos you can immediately tell that was exactly the expected result of the kind of training she received. Every student/private pilot makes incredibly stupid mistakes in their airplanes, and if nobody ever corrects it - how are you ever even supposed to know that flying in circles around your departure airport is a big deal? You're not.

[@PilotJoeFL]

Just my opinion, but there is no way this is an act. Both the DPE and her CFI that signed her off need to be investigated.

[@Skyhawk945]

Spot on!

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

CFI is now flying for the regionals. He's too big to fail now.

[@PilotJoeFL]

@@LaVidaLocaHomie definitely not to big to fail now. The government doesn't care, they will find you and come for you if youve messed up.

[@danielreuter2565]

Interesting theory but I went back and watched a bunch of her videos before they were taken down. She really was that stupid. She didn't even know how to trim. It's also been discovered that she crashed her previous Cherokee, which I didn't see mentioned on the channel. Maybe NTSB will get access to that video as well.

[@6821hominy]

I heard about her damaging her Cherokee. Why did someone not try to talk some sense into her from getting the Beechcraft? Especially her father who witnessed her lack of piloting first hand? He did look nervous in a few videos. She asked him for help-a non pilot! The outcome was not a total surprise.

[@danielreuter2565]

@@6821hominy of what I saw of the father, he seemed to think he was much smarter than he was. Kept offering advice and being a distraction. Seems these people were pretty deluded about their own intelligence.

[@johnpooky84]

@@6821hominy Before they were taken down, I saw in the pre-crash comments of some of her videos, that there was one guy who was giving her really good advice, and they were actually emailing each other. He had offered to fly with her on the flight that ultimately was her last, but she declined, and took her dad instead.

[@danzimmermann9122]

My piloting is limited to X-Plane 12 and radio control. With that said, I'm failing to understand how someone can be given a pilots license without apparent basic understanding of how to use a compass.

[@robertvale9786]

…nor basic parameters of flight surfaces and what they do.

[@mowtivatedmechanic1172]

It’s called a vag hina my bros. It’ll get ya places ya shouldn’t be.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

The same way an actress can be given a movie part with zero acting ability. It's based on her performance doing other things. It's not called a cockpit for nothing.

[@HoltAircraft]

Skills fade is a factor, after a break you are just not as good as you were, and after you get you PPL there is no test to study for so a lot of pilots start to regress on the basics.

[@brianbrian5842]

Bro if you're fairy good with x plane you probably could have saved her aircraft. That's how bad she was. She would have been better off flying x plane for a few more hundred hours just to work on her general aircraft handling/airmanship.

[@alk672]

You're asking the wrong questions by the way. The question shouldn't be "if this was an act - why did she perish", the question should be - "if this was not an act - why did she not post a video of her checkride".

[@scapilot1980]

DPE's do not let you film videos of your checkrides. At least none that I've ever met.

[@alk672]

@@scapilot1980I've seen quite a few recorded checkrides on the internet, so maybe... maybe not.

[@scapilot1980]

@@alk672 I've only seen mock orals and stage checks given by chief flight instructors.

[@alk672]

@@scapilot1980I've seen a flight portion of a checkride during which the DPE asked the student to demonstrate forward slip to landing, and the student asked what that was. The DPE showed the student and passed him. I often wondered why that was on video, but whatever I guess.

[@ddavidone6538]

They need to seriously investigate her DPE. Her CFI as well. When I took flying lessons many years ago, as you progressed through the curriculum, you would have periodic “checkrides” with the head instructor of the school. This was just to make sure you were where you were supposed to be in your training. It also got you use to checkrides even though you couldn’t really fail so to speak. I say this because she obviously slipped through the cracks and had absolutely no business holding a certificate. I was lucky enough to have a CFI that wasn’t just trying to build hours to get a job.

[@danh4097]

The Debonair, depending on condition and avionics configuration should be in the $ 72,000 + to about $178,000 approximate range top end. To much aircraft for this pilot's skill level

[@jllucci]

I think a piper cub was about her maximum performance limit and even then she'd be lost with no autopilot.

[@banjo2019]

@@jllucci You think a tailwheel bush plane requires less skill to fly than a Debonair? Welcome to KZbin’s comment section folks. Everyone with a keyboard is an expert.

[@jllucci]

@banjo2019 No. I wouldn't dare put her off field

[@RestorationsbyPhil]

Really? Twice they say a Debonair is a $500,000 plane.

[@mowtivatedmechanic1172]

@@RestorationsbyPhilmaybe with a turbo prop conversion S/

[@Ifly1976]

I’m just beginning my journey to becoming a professional pilot. I attend a small 141 school here in Tennessee and soloed last week after 11 hours. I watched several of TN Flygirl videos because I live near where the accident happened and I was curious. I was simply floored by what I saw, based on what she posted it simply defies reason how she could have obtained her certificate. She wouldn’t have even been able to pass a stage check at my school, never mind obtain a certificate. I hope the individuals who signed off on her training are held accountable. The FAA needs to drill down on how such a deficient pilot could have obtained her certificates AND endorsements. From everything I’ve heard around town, she was a very nice woman, but we all saw what we saw. It’s a shame that the people who are supposedly professionals enabled this by certifying her. Perhaps the FAA should make an example here.

[@rbbeac]

I intentionally made both of my kids navigate as I drove in order to prepare them for just such an occasion so as to not get lost in town. There were times that I might even drive a couple miles out of the way until they recognized that something wasn’t right so that they would know how that could happen and how it felt to recover.

[@scotto7924]

My older brother used to do the map reading whilst dad drove, mum wasn't that good with the maps. Anyway, there was an almighty argument with my brother saying we were in fact on the A38, then dad pointed out there were two ways to go on it.

[@RobertSmith-wj7zf]

@rbbeac I got my daughter a gas powered go cart when she was 9. I wanted her to learn the physics/feel of braking, turning, accelerating and stopping. She was way ahead of her peers when she started driving a car.

[@Fly19one]

I so appreciate this video and your conversation around Situational Awareness. I'll never forget a flight early on in my F-15E Mission Qualification training where I was way behind the jet. My bubble had popped! My IP told me to stop what I was doing and look the big window. What a difference maker in that moment in helping me regain my SA. I have kept that with me ever since and have passed that along to so many students. It's way too easy to get sucked into all the screens inside and forget to look out the big window and fly the airplane. Our GA technology is amazing and can be a huge tool to help build SA, but it can also be a killer when it's our crutch. Keep round dials alive in training :) -Gozer

[@reefsandrunways]

The CFI, if one can even call him that, in one of her videos was absolutely clueless and had no business even holding the certification. It’s an embarrassment to the profession.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

Well, he's now flying for one of the regionals. Salute your First Officer next time you fly on his aircraft.

[@reefsandrunways]

Sadly, they are even skipping the reqionals now. He is probably in an Airbus or 737 somewhere; even worse.@@LaVidaLocaHomie

[@factsondeck1552]

She’s a licensed pilot. Did she get over on both the CFI and the assessor in her check ride ? There’s clearly more to this story. I don’t think this is about the CFI he has no issues flying and is doing very well. So why is it that he felt he couldn’t correct her ? 🤔

[@JoshuaTootell]

20:45 To be fair, I did the same thing as a 15 year old, at first. I didn't grow up with a "screen". I rode a bicycle all over town. I also grew up the son of a truck driver, and I learned to navigate with a Thomas Guide. But at 15, getting behind the wheel, I was overwhelmed with responsibility and forgot the basics of how to get home. Easy to forget what it was like when you were still learning something totally new. I've got over 40 years of wisdom now (prior military, raced motorcycles, etc), so flight training has been pretty smooth and fast. But it is still overwhelming when something totally novel comes your way, especially at 15. (Got my license on my 16th birthday. Had my car when I was 13. I was very motivated)

[@RobertSmith-wj7zf]

@JoshuaTootell I’m 62. When I was a kid, in the trunk of my car was a Rand McNally road atlas for every county I would venture to. Today, if my nav system broke, I’d be screwed.

[@AviatorAngela]

Hey, guys. Been a couple of weeks before I could log into the membership, I've been busy and sad to miss the calls! Thanks for covering this. I think it absolutely is chilling to see how many hours and how she struggles with what seems like basic stuff. Awe, I missed last week 🤗 I gotta watch the replay 💖

[@nicklindsley7866]

People with no sense of direction take a long time to know when they are lost. People with a good sense of direction know immediately.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

It's called the sun rises in the East and sets in the West.

[@prutz9092002]

To state that she was that calculating to stage anything would be giving that woman WAY too much credit.

[@ED-es2qv]

There are a lot of very good, useful people who simply don't have the constant awareness to fly or operate a boat in a current. Some of them are brilliant people, it's just not in thier skill set to handle emergencies or even a constantly changing situation like a boat or airplane. It shouldn't be shameful to be told that piloting is not for you.

[@paulhallmark3643]

OK, I posted yesterday. I've thought about it over night. I've come to these conclusions. My opinions. I've seen her videos. Driving a car and flying a plane. Here are my observations... she is (was) a rich little Daddies girl with a sense of entitlement and expected everything to go her way. How long did it take her to get her license? Almost a year from solo to check flight? Did she earn it or did Daddy Deep-Pockets add a little bonus to the envelope for the instructor? Described as a "successful business woman"? Or, did Daddy pay the bills and keep her business afloat? Is everyone trying to polish a turd? Was she a spoiled little brat of a rich girl who wanted a new Cadillac Escalade for her Sweet Sixteen Party/Extravaganza, and got it! Did she earn the money to buy the new Debonair, or did Daddy Deep-Pockets buy it for her? Did she have aspirations of being another Paris Hilton? Useless, but desperately wanting to be famous? A KZbin Queen? Social Media Celebrity? She drove her car as if she expected everyone to yield the right of way to Her Majesty. She believed she should be able to master the skills required to pilot an aircraft with ease. It wasn't so. She was inept in that aspect. Yes, she and her father died. It was hubris. He enabled her behavior.

[@johnsmith-ht3sy]

What would be interesting is interviews of men, yes workmen who did work for her businesses. Her businesses where in the construction industry, did she understand what a left hand screwdriver is and a sky hook. Stuff boys learn when starting the job. Workman carried her in her business world.

[@aproudamerican2692]

*I could be wrong but this is what I believe.* TNFlygirls merchandise for sale said # BossGirl. I believe that she had this Boss Girl mentality that women can do anything so she refused to admit to herself and to her viewers that she couldn't do everything and piloting her plane was to difficult for her. There is no excuse after 400 hrs to be that clueless to what dhe was doing. She just wasn't getting it and she should not have been flying. *PERIOD!* Was her instructor affraid of being cancelled for failing her because she was a woman? Possibly. She was exhibiting all the clues trainers are taught to look for to tell him that she wasn't qualified to get her solo pilots license. Having that BG mentality cost her and her father their lives. *🙏🏻Rest In Peace🕊* We've all seen people that can afford super fast car but then wreck them because they don't know how to drive em. This was TNFlygirl. She could afford to buy the faster plane but she didn't know how to pilot it. *Don't let your bank account get you ahead of you abilities.*

[@user-rx5tn8dv7y]

I am not an instructor, but I recall taking a flight with a student pilot in his C150 about a hundred fifty miles or so cross-country. He was scared about the navigation aspect. At run-up, I shut off all avionics except the radio, and made him navigate with a sectional and dead reckoning. His confidence and competence level increased significantly. Since that time, I have made it a habit even when flying with licensed pilots. To you pilots out there, give it a try! You will be surprised how fun it is, and what you get out of it.

[@TheFlyingMasterChef]

Just found your channel guys and LOVE it. Sean, I am from Hamilton and now live in Middletown. LOVE that you are close by. I was in flight school back in the 80's (Hawthorne College) in Antrim NH (8B1) but the school shut down before I was able to finish. Was doing a 4 year degree after transferring from Miami U. I grew up flying with my dad and he taught me the 'fly' the plane when I was just 8. Couldn't reach the pedals though. LOL I flew with him everywhere. (one of our 4 planes was a Dr. Killer....dad was a VET...but we didn't die. lol) I have flown with friends that own planes a few times over the years and still remember so much. I fly simulators all the time and while not the same, it does allow me to keep up with actual pilotage. I want to finally (at 56) finish up and at least complete my private. I had about 34 hours when we had to leave and had passed the written with a 98. Possibly get my instrument rating and maybe even commercial and CFI. However, when I have asked several local flight training centers they all push Foreflight and all the gizmos available now. I learned on charts, E6B and rulers. I hate flying glass on my simulator (though not as much as I did 5 years ago) and honestly don't want to fly glass IRL. You can dump me anywhere in Ohio, SE Indiana, Northern Kentucky, New Hampshire, VT and I can fly to anywhere I need to go. I love dead reckoning and will really miss VOR flying as it dies out (if not already dead.) I have flown many hundreds of miles VOR to VOR and never once got lost. If you know of anywhere locally (or if you teach) that doesn't push the glass and computers for private I would love to know where. Maybe talk with you sometime... Thanks for your time.... ~ Greg

[@eire711]

It is difficult to put yourself in the shoes of other people who think and act differently then what is considered normal behavior. That is why the outliers are case studies and the norm is understandable with simple common sense.

[@AudioMasters]

I had some thoughts along the staged lines myself. I still haven't figured out how you get lost and still have the airport you just took off from in sight. I mean even if you get disoriented you have a DG which should have been set before you powered up for the takeoff roll and compass sitting there on the dash. Not to mention all the fancy navigation gadgets she had at her disposal. And hint hint the autopilot will follow the last set DG bug heading. So none of what she did makes any kind of common sense. I have used that century 2000 autopilot before and its not that hard to use. I know the autopilot worked correctly because i saw her shoot a localized approach at TRI where im based and it did fantastic until she disengaged it. Then she was all over the place and ATC told her to leave the airspace. And on another note she lost her alternator on that flight while turning out of the airspace and the CFII had her do a 70 mile scud run for home. LOL Now a CFII teaching a student pilot to scud run think about that for a moment. There are a lot of things about this girl and her instructors that dont add up and the NTSB or FAA needs to have a close look at them all.

[@callisto8232]

To see the airport she just took off from she would need to look out the window. She rarely did that. Her lack of simple directional awareness was really astonishing.

[@ladybearbaiter]

You should not even consider a pilot license if you cannot tell the direction by looking at the location of the sun. The starting time of the flight she did with her Dad was about 10:00AM. The sun would be rising from the east to be directly overhead by noon. If she had some common sense, she would have known which direction she was heading. Also, she should have been able to tell by the highway, runway and topography below. I think she was focused more on standing out than her safety and responsibility.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

How hard is it to understand beforehand you will be flying East on a heading of around 90 ??

[@CLdriver1960]

IMHO, she was not acting. This was yet another ‘Swiss Cheese’ model of threats that resulted in her demise. She was a successful businesswoman, put a lot of attention to her YT videos, and put her flight preparation last. She seemed to rely heavily on the autopilot and gps, and when there was an issue, she was overwhelmed with by it, rather than reverting to the basics. To your point, this also happens to trainees in complex jets with unfamiliar avionics. Hopefully, this accident will serve to reinforce the concept of using levels of automation, and when to go back to basics, to GA pilots. This is especially important when dealing with complex aircraft. Great discussion guys, subscribed!

[@55tmilam]

I’m not a pilot but my uncle owned a commander and I’ve flown many hours with him. I’ve been very interested in this story and after watching some of her videos I was amazed at just how bad she was! Lost with the runway still visible and behind the airplane from the second she taxied on the runway.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

You forgot crashing a Piper trainer while on the taxiway.

[@JamieTransNyc]

I sure get tired of people trying to use the term "Cognitive Dissonance" withoug having any idea what it means. They think it makes them sound intelligent, but it merely reveals how desperate they are to appear educated.

[@JJP242]

Maybe I'm a dork... I probably am... but I don't even have my PPL and fly in a PC sim pretty regularly and HATE using the GPS. I will intentionally hop in planes w/o it and do realistic cross-country flights from my own local airport using nothing but VOR and heading. I don't know the correct way to flight plan, but I'll figure out my fixes, intersection on 2 VORs headings and all that and fly VFR to different airports around me. It's not hard. Heck, even my 5-year-old son knows what direction to drive to get to daycare! It's crazy!

[@sawdust466]

I am old (72) and flying much less. Sold my last plane. I am using Xplane 10 and love navigating with the VORs. Also using outdated sectionals and navigating with the compass. While I was flying I used avare and the compass to navigate. Worked very well. If you start getting training, you are already way ahead of the game….

[@PrestigeWorldWide777]

So glad I earned my Private and Instrument rating before ForeFlight existed. I still remember my CFI sending me out on my first cross country solo in busy airspace, 5 miles visibility and haze. On the way there, ATC asked my to follow a VOR radial inbound and on the way back I had to navigate around approaching weather. So grateful that I had an instructor who was willing to teach me and prepare me for anything.

[@PILOTCIRRUSASIA]

Foreflight has nothing to do with tracking a VOR though and is standard training for the ACS

[@Cougracer67]

Regarding the video where the instructor was doing almost everything for her: He appeared young enough to be her son (she was about 45). Was he thinking of her as his Mom? Young guys often view their mothers as ancient, over the hill.

[@bxpress6507]

I appreciate you guys putting it out its for safety (PSA) in publishing this video..for me when i knew her father was in the videos i thought maybe he was a pilot helping her learn to fly..after watching the videos i was horrified at some of his comments that were not advisable..yes the question of doing things for views came into my mind but there is a possibility this is real which makes me ask how did she get her license in first place.

[@supermotosize]

No just a really poor pilot flying WAY behind the airplane.

[@FailureatRetirement]

Wow, there’s a lot to unpack here. I have watched all of the videos you mentioned and I have had basically all of the same thoughts as you. I’m glad to see that I’m not the only one wondering about it being an act. Here’s my feeble background, in 2000-2001 I was a student pilot in my dad’s 172. I accumulated 35 hours before circumstances stopped me. I will freely admit that while I was flying I really don’t remember using the compass very much unless on a cross country of an hour or more. Most of my flights were within 60 miles of home, both day and night (I actually had a lot of night hours), and I never came close to getting lost a single time. I mostly navigated by just looking out the window. Also important I think, the 172 had a Loran in it. I did use it for flights of about an hour or more. The first time I thought I would use it I sat in the plane, in the hangar, with the manual, until I had it figured out completely. I also made notes I could refer to if needed. She should have done that with her AP but she obviously didn’t. She had her head inside the cockpit so much that I’m surprised she didn’t have an issue sooner. She apparently lived in that area, how could she get lost? Why couldn’t she find her way back by looking outside? How could she not do basic things like hold an altitude? Or airspeed? I watched 1 1/2 of her videos right after the crash and had to stop it was so scary. After watching the dumpster fire video I started wondering if it was all an act for views. If, in reality, she knew exactly what she was doing the whole time but was sandbagging for the camera. Think about it. The best argument I can come up with for it not being an act is that it’s pretty extreme to take it to the point of getting yourself and your dad killed. However, plenty of great pilots eventually find the one thing that gets them in trouble and that would have been really easy for her to find. I just have so many questions but this comment is already too long. Funny what you said about kids being lost. When my kids were about 12 I realized the same thing about them. I started playing a game with them where I asked them to navigate us back home. I would call one of them out and follow their directions no matter which way it took us. If we were just lost and going the wrong direction I would cut them off after about 15 minutes and explain to them where they went wrong. It didn’t take long for them to get pretty good at the game.

[@donallan6396]

The flight track of Blalock's flight looks like my first attempt to draw something on an Etch A Sketch . That may sound cruel and insensitive, but she was dipsy-doodling around both in altitude and track in airspace occupied by other airplanes . It is shameful and unethical that CFIs took money from Blalock for training when it was clear that she would end up in a situation that would lead to her demise.

[@stephenmaulden8307]

Did she actually post it as a live video? Just wondering was it posted later off of the recording?

[@brianbiggers9611]

I like how you guys did a shout out to the other channels that you watched. Respect

[@neskyz4259]

I owned a 1961 Piper Colt with ZERO technology...just an Ipad and a portable battery charger. It had a transponder and an old VAL comm radio that barely worked. Hand flew it from Hartford CT to Crestview FL...almost 1000NM and didn't get lost. Owned two Piper Cherokees that I also flew from Hartford CT to Fort Myers FL and didn't get lost. No autopilot and no GPS. Just ForeFlight on an iPad. This is absolutely tragic and a black eye to GA. You set up your flight and plan ON THE GROUND! It appears she just pulled the plane out of the hanger, hooked up her cameras and took off. Absolutely horrible for her family to lose a daughter and a husband/father in one accident due to complete negligence. She should have stayed with her Cherokee, upgraded the avionics in it, flew it for 400-500 hours, worked on her pilotage and then stepped up. She had less than 100 hours TOTAL TIME before stepping up into a complex high-performance Debonair. It's just unfathomable!

[@jessicasnaplesfl7474]

I watched the TNFlyGIRL video on the Pilot Debrief channel and found it painful to watch. I'm not a pilot but common sense told me this girl (1) should have read the owner's manual, and (2) she should have TURNED OFF THE AUTO PILOT! It was hard for me to believe that she posted videos of her flights real time, when she was still very much a novice pilot, and in this video in her brand new airplane, she had no idea of what she was doing. I was shocked that she got lost and realized it only when she noticed she had flown back over the airport she just left! I don't recall if she spoke with ATC during the flight, but once she determined she was going in the wrong direction, the rest of her flight consisted of her trying to gain control of her aircraft to get on course to where she wanted to go. She had no idea of how to work the autopilot and her obsessive attempts to do so made her situation worse, leading to her final dive into the ground. The data recorder showed a series of rapid ascents and dives, getting worse with each set, followed by more ascents and more dives, (much like a roller coaster), until her last dive, where she was out of control and unrecoverable. Pilot Debrief had a lot to say about her flight instructors who signed off on her displayed "skills", allowing her to qualify for her solo flights and pilot's license.

[@gcharouhas]

No, she wasn't acting for the sake of getting more views, but I don't think that stopped her from posting the embarrassing episode anyway. Looking hopelessly inept didn't seem to matter. But what apparently did matter was her success on KZbin.

[@Svartr.HrafnSvartr]

I've never been in a plane, so I absolutely do not know the mechanics of piloting (except for what my Air Cadet husband has shared)... but that 'successful' short flight video was crazy. Whether it was for views or not, to be THAT distracted by all the navigation trinkets she had available to her and NOT just use eyes, brain and common sense is unbelievable. I think the whole timeline leading up to tragedy was potentially a situation of, 'Too Much Plane/EGO, Too Little Skill/Experience' (which I've witnessed in the equestrian field)... Peaceful Restings, Jenny & James.

[@markhumphrey8894]

Sean spot on brother 21:10. Kids are staring at their screens constantly. I always say "If I have a tank of gas, I can go anywhere without a map." Just go discover your region and take note of road signs and landmarks. Hell I still remember land marks in NC from years ago and I live in NY. I swivel my head in a car as much as a pilot and I'm not a pilot. Be aware of wear you are at all times. Great video and analysis. Thanks for posting.

[@arthouston7361]

I think the idea that this might’ve been staged is an attempt to portray that this woman was smarter than the evidence would lead us to believe, because you have to plan a staging of a stunt, and having watched the other videos, and having worked as a flight instructor myself, along with being a commercial pilot, this girl should not have been flying that airplane. She wasn’t ready for it, and she apparently wasn’t taking aviation seriously enough. Your first job as a pilot is to return safely to the runway. Making a video while flying is probably the 30th or 40th item that you would consider spending time on.

[@dreamcreator2552]

I don’t think she was even capable of flying a 172 or a Cherokee. Who gets lost at their home airport? Sad deal…

[@paulw4310]

As a 25+ year airline pilot and former CFII, I truly believe that turning flight training into some video production in extremely counterproductive; most especially in weaker students. If you're serious about getting your rating, you can hold off on the vid posting until you truly know what you're doing. If I was instructing in the "KZbin age", there's no way I would permit it. None! Secondly, her instructors overly coddled her...badly. Lastly, unless she lucked out and had the best aviatin' day of her life, I can't see how the DE passed her. On my private ride all those centuries ago, my DE told me, "When you land, I want your nosewheel splitting the middle of the centerline markings. When I sign you off, you're legal to land on any old narrow strip that you choose and I want to know that you can do it!" PS Pilots with under 750-1,000 hours shouldn't even be touching an autopilot. Learn to stick and rudder, then play with the gadgets. Yeah, I'm old school...but I'm still alive and my ticket is totally unblemished.

[@edmeier2030]

Instead of asking someone on the ground about the autopilot, she wanted to learn to fly entirely on camera, which means she wanted to learn it in the air.

[@GWNorth-db8vn]

That's not how you learn to fly.

[@howebrad4601]

I saw the video you referenced and i really dont think it was an act. I truly think she was that situationally unaware that she didnt know where she was. Further unaware enough so that didnt occur to her how publishing that video would look. Truly a tragedy that someone signed off and put her in the air when not ready

[@dreamkrusherjay2869]

The worst part of it is she's saying she doesn't know where she is, and we can all literally see the airport she just took off from as she has no idea where she is... If that autopilot is that jacked, turn it off and land the plane... As you said, it was as 40nm cross-country in perfect VFR conditions, from an airport she was heavily familiar with, to an airport she was heavily familiar with. It's horrible that her and her father lost their lives, but people truly need to learn that aviation isn't for everyone, and there's no shame in that.

[@glennryan9770]

A sectional, E6B and understanding there use is real handy if your electronics break. If your nav electro is quit,do you know where you are?

[@sleeplessinthesummit8505]

I CALL B.S. she was a new pilot. she was unfamiliar with the aircraft. she didn't understand the autopilot and severely over corrected while on auto pilot. It's sad, but she was poorly trained.

[@CruceEntertainment]

When I got into multi engine instrument rating, that is where things started getting really challenging for me. At a certain point, the complexity of flying more complex aircraft and in complex situations really does require a certain talent that not everyone has.

[@elderbob100]

The woman was apparently on anti-anxiety medication as are 25 percent of women in the US today. Instead of reacting to a dangerous situation she is calmly going through the motions as if it will all work itself out. Pilots should not be allowed to fly when using psychiatric medications.

[@SambarSlayer]

Hard way to learn that purchasing a pair of Aviator sunglasses doesn’t make you one!

[@PicardoFamily11]

A lot of these pilots on You Tube and other social media just give off "influencer" vibes. They don't seem to be trying to teach anything or provide any other content besides "look at this pretty, attractive person fly a plane."

[@PeterGunn1958]

She was one of those types that wanted to look/act/talk like a pilot without having to put in the hours. Wearing the aviator sunglasses and the jacket etc. and slinging pilot lingo were what she really seemed to be into. Thank God she didn't kill anyone on the ground, tragic but I don't really have much sympathy for her, she was a menace to aviation and quite possibly would have had a worse accident (with more people injured or killed) in the future in my estimation.

[@robch4414]

Not staged. Just someone who has never been told or has never wanted to hear "you're just not cut out for this".

[@dalemullins4562]

I saw that vid where she and her dad almost stalled fiddling with that auto pilot and when she kicked the auto pilot off the plane lurched downward and she grabbed the yoke. scary.it was so far out of trim and she had no idea. also that 40 mile trip. it did seemed fake, she kept saying "is east this way?" ( big giant compass 16 inches from your eye balls)and she turned the opposite way. even I could tell which way was east and she kept saying it, "is it this way?" then turn the wrong way. I was like no way.

[@MADDOG100ful]

Great content I was thinking about so much of these items that you're talking about in the past thinking how could this possibly even happen I learned how to fly over 50 years ago in a plane that had no type of Advanced Technologies as they have today and she flew around half lost all the time and I thought this is got to be for KZbin followers because how could any instructor or FAA person watch those and not call her up on it so you need more training or you need grounded for something seriously wrong very sad situation and ridiculous of this even happened

[@jon-helgramite2478]

"Best Actor in a Dramatic Mini-Series" ?? Hardly Reality Acting requires exceptional talent to remain in character and consistent for long periods of time. There is less evidence of acting ability than there is evidence of aeronautical ability. She was consistently and tragically behind the airplane. Period.

[@johnpooky84]

"Reality Acting requires exceptional talent to remain in character and consistent for long periods of time." I wouldn't call it "Reality", if you have to act, and remain in character....

[@aviatortrucker6285]

I have to make a comment here on why I think it’s not an act. If you look at some of her videos when she is driving her car after she’s either gotten off the airplane or before she gets on it she rolls through stop sign she doesn’t signal, etc. Some people are like that. In that I mean they get their license they’ve done all that they can do and then they basically mental block out with all the other things in their life. She had a couple of businesses. She had a lot of things on her mind according to her, and she also had an image to keep and tons of make up to use. So when you put all that in perspective, you got somebody that is so flabbergasted with things that they basically forgethow to tie their shoes. I think she overwhelmed herself, and was one of those people that really did things mechanically, and not with reason. She just expected the autopilot to fly the plane. She didn’t video her preflight, instrument and GPS setup, flight plan or anything else required to have a successful flight.

[@TonewoodArtOne]

I do mot beleive it was an ACT. She did not Aviate, (maintain altitude, trim, adjust power, scan ANY instrument) If she were planning a "Holy Sh*t" I'm lost act she would at least stabilize the airplane. Navigate, already discussed. Communicate, no evidence of this either. I beletve this was a result of incompetence.

[@waterboy330]

Imagine what it was like for her having to navigate to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

[@LaVidaLocaHomie]

Imagine what is was like for the toilet.