The Only Way To Fly
Dr. James Merritt
2 Timothy 3:15-17 8-1-99
INTRODUCTION
1. Whenever I think about the last day of JFK, two words will always stick with me: "Graveyard spiral." From all indications it was a graveyard spiral that took the life of John F. Kennedy, Jr. The graveyard spiral is a series of ever-tightening turns that corkscrew a plane toward earth. It is the leading danger when new pilots leave clear weather for clouds or darkness.
2. An inexperienced pilot will lose his bearings and the plane will begin to turn without his even knowing it. By the time the force of gravity begins to warn the pilot the plane is falling, the instinct to pull up only makes the spiral worse.
3. I was fascinated to learn that 83% of all fatal accidents happen when new pilots fly in bad weather, lose their bearings and spiral to the ground, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.
4. There were three sets of initials that kept flying across the television screen when this tragedy took place: JFK, VFR, and IFR. VFR stands for Visual Flight Rules, and IFR stands for Instrument Flight Rules. The difference between those two letters (V) and (I) may very well have cost Kennedy his life.
5. All kinds of excuses have been given as to why Kennedy, his wife, and sister-in-law were even in that plane to begin with. He left too late, the sky was too dark, the plane was too new, the visibility was too poor, the pilot was too inexperienced.
6. But the amazing thing is this: Any and all of those problems would have been overcome if JFK had been flying IFR rather than VFR. That is, if he could have read his instruments and relied on his instruments, he probably would have landed that plane safely. In fact, Bob Arnot, a reporter for NBC, made the same flight just fifteen minutes before Kennedy and landed safely. Why? Because he flew IFR.
7. We, too, are on a flight called life. We, too, have i ...
Dr. James Merritt
2 Timothy 3:15-17 8-1-99
INTRODUCTION
1. Whenever I think about the last day of JFK, two words will always stick with me: "Graveyard spiral." From all indications it was a graveyard spiral that took the life of John F. Kennedy, Jr. The graveyard spiral is a series of ever-tightening turns that corkscrew a plane toward earth. It is the leading danger when new pilots leave clear weather for clouds or darkness.
2. An inexperienced pilot will lose his bearings and the plane will begin to turn without his even knowing it. By the time the force of gravity begins to warn the pilot the plane is falling, the instinct to pull up only makes the spiral worse.
3. I was fascinated to learn that 83% of all fatal accidents happen when new pilots fly in bad weather, lose their bearings and spiral to the ground, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.
4. There were three sets of initials that kept flying across the television screen when this tragedy took place: JFK, VFR, and IFR. VFR stands for Visual Flight Rules, and IFR stands for Instrument Flight Rules. The difference between those two letters (V) and (I) may very well have cost Kennedy his life.
5. All kinds of excuses have been given as to why Kennedy, his wife, and sister-in-law were even in that plane to begin with. He left too late, the sky was too dark, the plane was too new, the visibility was too poor, the pilot was too inexperienced.
6. But the amazing thing is this: Any and all of those problems would have been overcome if JFK had been flying IFR rather than VFR. That is, if he could have read his instruments and relied on his instruments, he probably would have landed that plane safely. In fact, Bob Arnot, a reporter for NBC, made the same flight just fifteen minutes before Kennedy and landed safely. Why? Because he flew IFR.
7. We, too, are on a flight called life. We, too, have i ...
There are 20500 characters in the full content. This excerpt only shows a 2000 character sample of the full content.
Price: $5.99 or 1 credit
