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"There I Was" - Lessons From Our Colleagues In The Field
This is exactly what I was hoping for when I first got the idea for this web site. 
Fog Has been a contributor to numerous HEMS accidentsContributions from EMS Flight Crew: sharing their experiences that we can all learn something from, start a dialogue about and use to keep us out of trouble when a similar set of circumstances presents itself and we're not sure what to do. This very first 'experience' comes from FlightRN911 a flight nurse with 18 years of flying under her belt. Send your story's in, or better yet post them on our forum page and let others learn as we all strive to put 'safety above all else'.
Many years ago, I was on a patient flight crossing over an area that is as flat as flat can be where you could normally see 100 miles or more.
On this flight, we had marginal wx, which got worse at dusk. We had a fairly new pilot with a lot of second seat hours in a blackhawk but not many in a single engine EMS heli.
As we flew our visual reference became the lights of the road we were following with significant fog (to the ground). After about 15 minutes of following lights with another 30 minutes or more to go, the pilot decided to turn away from the lights towards where he Knew a small town airport was and we immediately were inadvertent.
I had no idea where we were and I was pretty sure the pilot didn't either. My medic partner was scared silent. The pilot was refusing to land after putting us into a hover over what the pilot stated to be the ground. I could see the ground for brief seconds. He would get close then move saying I am gonna try to get us closer to a road which he thought was there,but none of us could see. He landed twice and moved twice. After the second time I insisted he land and stay put after expressing my significant discomfort multiple times. On his third landing I called the lead pilot on my cell phone and put it up to the pilots ear so he could here the "DON'T MOVE IT AGAIN" and I opened my door telling him I was standing on the skids and not moving until he shut down. This time we could see a road (barely) about 20 yards away and he was going to move it again attempting to get closer to the road. I felt like we were on the ground, safe and had a ground truck in route to get us and the patient, so I didn't want to push the luck we already had.
In debrief, this was discussed extensively. (Unfortunately this pilot was later involved in a injury crash in that aircraft).
My partner didn't speak up out of inexperience and fear. I was beyond feeling scared and very pissed.
A bad situation with luck on our sides. SPEAK UP and understand the dynamics of all possible situations.
I learned a lot from this.
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Comments
A very good story with a positive outcome. It would be awesome if there were more outcomes like this than the CFIT stuff that is going on. I think that the comments related to the FNG is relative, but I would like to study the effects of JetA on the central nervous system. I think too many FNG's have JetA-itis and just do not realize how dangerous this job can be if safety is not your number one priority each flight. Besides just keeping ourselves safe we owe it to our patients, our profession, and our families to strive to get over the JetA-itis and start taking an active role in getting educated as medical crew by the pilots on what can kill you. I am not talking about learning to fly the helicopter or trying to cut in on the pilots territory, but ask for tips about weather forecasting, aircraft limitations etc.... If pilots are familiar with the area they are flying in they usually are pretty darn good at weather forecasting and interpretation. Many pilots are willing and can teach you some good information if you have the right attitude and don't act like a know it all or as if you already have a pilot license. The goal is to obtain needed information to make you a more informed decision maker and keep you safer.
I was a student pilot getting ready for a solo. Being in the middle of a divorce I had not slept well the night before and was running about five minutes late on my paperwork preparation to fly a solo cross country. I had plenty of time to fly my route with some time to spare, but my instructor wanted me to fly patterns at our home airport before my slot ended. He was rushing me and really riding me about getting out to the bird for pre-flight. I was tired, annoyed and rushed - not a good combination for a student pilot, let alone any pilot. As I was preparing to radio the tower my request for takeoff I realized I couldn't remember the weather identifier, I thought it was India but was not sure. Despite the fact that I knew the collective had a tendency to 'creep' up I took my hand off the collective (frictions off) to switch the frequency to ATIS. So far no problem. I quickly put my hand back on the collective. Once it was confirmed as India I removed my hand from the collective to switch back to tower. As I was leaning all the way forward (I have a difficult time reaching the instrument panel in the R-22 and have to lean all the way forward) the helicopter popped up and spun about 90 degrees before I could get it under control. I stabilized and completed the pedal turn and set the bird back down again waiting for questions from the tower as I was parked right in front of them. Nothing came from tower and after I assessed that everything was OK I had a great flight. I was thankful I was running a few minutes behind schedule as my chief had just taken off in a bird that was facing mine just before this happened.
I went inadvertent IMC once in an R22 while solo,I had no AI, a pure VFR ship. I should have died that day and somehow did not, it scared me more than anything else in my life. When I broke out I was over nothing but trees so was forced to stay aloft till I found a clearing. As soon as I saw a clearing that bird was on the ground. I regret that I got myself into that position but glad for the experience, it raised my personal WX minimums considerably.
I agree, reading actual stories like this area an excellent tool that we can use for discussion and training, not just FNG's but senior crew that may have allowed their tenure dull their involvement. Nice work.
This is a great lesson. Many times when I quiz my crews, especially the newer ones and play the role of the defiant, cowboy pilot ignoring their concerns or requests, they have no idea what to do. This story is a great real life lesson that can empower crew members to take an active role in their own survival. Thanks FlightRN911.
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