Four family members killed in Christmas Eve plane crash in Florida

[shenmue]

http://www.cnn.com/2017/12/24/us/florida-plane-crash/index.html

[Laffy Kat]

1. Tragic.

Poor judgement cost five lives.

[flotsam]

2. Despite the Sheriffs unfortunate remarks

if the pilot was instrument rated and the plane properly equipped there should have been no problem.

[Laffy Kat]

4. Poor weather condition can make even IFR unwise.

Ground fog is one of those conditions. So is ice, obviously. But it's true it's too soon to know for sure.

It's been a loooooong time since I took my written, but I think they might need to be under tower control too. Current IFR pilots your opinion? I never even practiced IFR.

[bluevoter4life]

9. Not a pilot

But a controller. You do NOT need to be under tower control to fly IFR. When the tower is closed, the facility responsible for Approach Control services will normally issue you your clearance, which is usually good for 30 minutes from issuance. He may have tried to depart SVFR with the intent to pick up an IFR clearance en route.

[Laffy Kat]

10. Thanks for the clarification, bluevoter4life.

Appreciate it.

[VMA131Marine]

3. Too soon to know if that's the case

The airplane didn't even make it beyond the airport boundary so, if it got airborne at all, it wasn't for very long nor could it have gotten very high.

It's unlikely the NTSB will be able to determine a cause unless there is clear evidence of a mechanical failure because there would not have been any data recorders on the aircraft.

An instrument rated pilot should have been able to handle the conditions but it wouldn't be the first time a non-IR pilot decided to take off in conditions beyond their capabilities.

[Laffy Kat]

5. Except usually they're physicians, not lawyers. nt

[VMA131Marine]

6. All it takes is money and an ego!

[pdxflyboy]

7. If the fog is really thick....

You get disoriented when you lose sight of the runway centerline. We have minimum takeoff visibility requirements at my airline for this reason. If you are an instrument rated private pilot, I think that your minimum required takeoff visibility is even less than an air carrier's because you are not carrying people for hire...but I'm not quite sure.

[Zorro]

8. Flew in to Tampa 5AM this morning

The fog was exceptionally thick, and got worse driving east.

[csziggy]

11. I grew up in Bartow and the fog can be very dense

Some winter mornings we would get inversions, holding the cold damp air down to the ground. The fog could be so dense you couldn't see the ground you were walking on!

At least these days the fog is not black from the smudge pots burning fuel oil to keep the orange groves warm. Back in the early 1960s that was a big problem - our walk to school was four blocks and by the time we got there, the insides of our nostrils would be black from the smog.

To make the fog worse, the Bartow Airport is in a low area with bluffs around two sides and a river on a third side - perfect setup for serious fog!