The media told us about the shrapnel from the failed engine that pierced the 737's window and resulted in one passenger death. The media are hailing Captain Tammie Jo Shults as a hero. And that's a perfectly natural response. But I'm inclined to agree with the pilot when she said she was just doing her job.
From time to time one of the cable channels will broadcast a show featuring passenger plane pilot training. And the one I saw showed pilots flying a simulator in which the trainers threw at them every possible disaster they could think of. The pilots had been taught how to respond, and they were graded on how well they put that training into practice. Click here for a three minute Youtube video of a Southwest Airlines training simulator doing its job. In the featured segment one engine conks out while the plane is taking off.
Given all the bad things that can happen, the loss of one engine in a two-engine jetliner is not as catastrophic as it might seem. The 737 is supposed to be able to fly with only one engine, and in this latest in-flight-emergency, the plane and pilot did their jobs.
This blog post isn't intended to take away from the glory the pilot received or will receive. But she was really just doing what she was trained to do. Hopefully, the airline training programs will continue demanding top tier results from the pilots.
The real heroes are the trainers who taught Ms. Shults how to deal with the situation she found herself in.
Three cheers for those unsung heroes!
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11:03 AM 4/19/2018
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