The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recently issued a safety alert emphasizing the importance of properly managing low-altitude engine failures.
The alert follows five crashes in which multi-engine airplanes experienced the unexpected loss of power in one engine. The pilots had up to 18,000 hours of flight experience, but the NTSB found that experience was not enough to prevent a loss of control accident during an engine-out event.
Pilots should be honest about their one engine inoperative (OEI) operations knowledge and their ability to recognize and handle an OEI situation, the safety alert said, and should know the recommended procedures and checklists for their airplane.
“Remember that a loss of one engine is a 50 percent loss of power, which can reduce climb performance by at least 80 to 90 percent and [create] asymmetrical thrust,” the safety alert said.
The alert also recommended pilots ensure they have proper training, avoid distractions in the cockpit, and do not allow perceived operational pressures to diminish their focus on safety.
The NTSB also issued a second safety alert that cautions small, older airplanes with key-type ignition switches can become worn, making it possible to remove the key from a switch position other than the OFF location.