NTSB: "Selfies" likely contributed to fatal plane crash near Denver

"For Sweden" (rallybeetle)
02/03/2015 at 12:54 • Filed to: Aviation, Planelopnik, Cessna, Selfie, Safety

!!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! reports that National Transportation Safety Board investigators suspect that !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! , operating under instrument flight rules, was partially caused by the pilot taking selfies. Investigators also found a GoPro camera containing video files of several previous flights.

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

The paper also reports:

"Post-accident examination of the airplane did not reveal any pre-impact anomalies that would have precluded normal operation," the NTSB said in their report, released Friday. "Based on the wreckage distribution, which was consistent with a high-speed impact, and the degraded visual reference conditions, it is likely that the pilot experienced spatial disorientation and lost control of the airplane."

Investigators found that the plane's crash was likely caused by an aerodynamic stall and "subsequent spin into terrain."

"It is likely that cell phone use during the accident flight distracted the pilot and contributed to the development of spatial disorientation and subsequent loss of control," the report says.

DISCUSSION (14)

ttyymmnn > For Sweden
02/03/2015 at 12:56

Rule No. 1: Fly the plane.

For Sweden > ttyymmnn
02/03/2015 at 12:57

But first, let me take a selfie?

ttyymmnn > For Sweden
02/03/2015 at 12:58

That would be Rule No. 0.

Brian, The Life of > ttyymmnn
02/03/2015 at 13:00

Rule #2: Keep flying the plane.

deekster_caddy > ttyymmnn
02/03/2015 at 13:04

Rule No. 6: There is NO RULE 6.

TheBloody, Oppositelock lives on in our shitposts. > For Sweden
02/03/2015 at 13:08

Darwin award winner right here. I wonder if he was doing a kissy face? Or maybe just a "I'M GONNA FUCK'N DIE!" face.

Chris Clarke > For Sweden
02/03/2015 at 13:32

cell phone use during the accident flight distracted the pilot

So a pilot using a cell phone in-flight is automatically assumed to be taking a selfie? I keep charts on my cell phone and could be just as easily distracted unfolding and folding paper charts. I also use a goPro on almost every single flight, and I don't see how that correlates to selfies or distractions.

For Sweden > Chris Clarke
02/03/2015 at 13:34

Maybe they were able to find pictures on the phone. Maybe.

Chris Clarke > For Sweden
02/03/2015 at 13:37

Maybe, but I think the Denver post took some unjustified liberties with their headline. Because media. I wonder how many car crashes everyday are cause by legitimate selfies?

Hey, y'all, watch this! > Chris Clarke
02/03/2015 at 13:39

NY Daily News says that the GoPro video showed the camera flashes going off.

For Sweden > Chris Clarke
02/03/2015 at 13:41

More than I want to think about.

Also, from the NTSB report:

The GoPro recordings revealed that the pilot and various passengers were taking self-photographs with their cell phones and, during the night flight, using the camera's flash function during the takeoff roll, initial climb, and flight in the traffic pattern.

Chris Clarke > Hey, y'all, watch this!
02/03/2015 at 13:45

According to the NTSB report, the accident flight wasn't recorded on the GoPro, but the flashes were from a previous flight, so there is no evidence that the pilot was using his cell phone to take photographs. In fact, they neglected to report if any photos were recovered from the pilot's or passenger's phones. I find it hard to believe that they recovered gopro footage, but no images from any of the occupants mobile devices.

Chris Clarke > For Sweden
02/03/2015 at 13:52

I'd say there's a good chance he did take a selfie, but there is no evidence to prove it. Either way, there are always a number of distractions in the cockpit and I can't see how taking pictures is any different than dropping your pencil on the floor. I would contribute more toward poor training and currency. Anyway, cockpit distractions is so 1970s Eastern Air Lines Flight 401.

For Sweden > Chris Clarke
02/03/2015 at 13:54

This also isn't a criminal investigation.