here we go again...
ok...i have just spent the last hour and a half reading thru this thread that i started. i started this thread to send my coldolences to
Sam's family and friends, it has gotten way out of hand. as has been mentioned here COUNTLESS times, everyone has an opinion, just that an OPINION! of course this is an aviation forum and this is where we discuss aviation issues....but just like with a tv program or radio station, if you don't like it...DON'T COME HERE! if you want to express your opinion then do so. we all have opinions, we're all free to express them, even here. lets stop all the personal bashing, especially towards the family.
since i am paul's widow, i will take the position of being the person that says i knew him best, and try to speak on his behalf. we spent the last 8yrs devoted to each other, and i watched him become the aviator that he was. he LOVED everything about flying and aviation. he lived it, breathed, ate, drank, slept it. i even encouraged it...its wonderful to see someone that you love live thier dreams. i will say that paul did not die doing what he loved. he LIVED doing what he loved, he died trying to save his life and get home to his family.
paul was a professsional from beginning to end. he would never fly if he wasn't on top of his game. how do i know? i was there on the occasions that he called in sick, fatigued, etc and refused to fly becuase he didn't think it was safe. did he know the risks? absolutely...he flew anyway because not flying would have been like amputating his leg...he would have felt that life was pointless.
avbug, you keep saying that its always the PIC's resp. for everything and that we should stop blaming the plane...well since paul is not here we can't ask him if he takes resposibility for the crash. since he flew almost an entire pattern and crashed on his turn to final, i can only assume that he was confident in his ability to land that plane. I have to believe that, and i will go on believing that until the day i die (hopefully NOT in a plane). since NONE of us were up there with him, we will NEVER know what really happened on that last turn. we have nothing but specualtion. i don't think that any pilot's family memebr would jump right up and say "it was all his fault, he would take total resposnibility for killing himself. no, really, he would" is that what your family would say??
i would like to give some of you a glimpse into what kind of man/pilot/aviator paul was...i recently found a letter that he wrote to me on our 2nd anniversary. the anniversary was in april and i had just earned my private certificate in january of that year. i'm not going to type the entire text but there are some parts of it that shine light on just how he felt about being a pilot...
"you are part of an elite group and you should be proud of your performance and the skills that you have learned. although the only thing that you receive for your accomplishment is a piece of paper, you are entitled to much, much more."
"it is my wish that you continue with your learning and become a master of aviation like many of us have and some, including myself, are still trying to do. you are not just a person with a pilot's certificate, you are an aviator."
"always be proud, always learn, always be safe, always take a little extra time to embrace what you are and what you are doing."
if paul were here, i know that he would have been enough of a man and a pilot to take responsibility if the accident is determined to have been his fault. since he is not, NONE of us are in the position to speak for him...only on his behalf. would he tell me to run out and get a lawyer, prob not...he detested law suits. but if there is something REALLY wrong, he would expect me to find some answers. i can't just sit here and digest that paul successfully flew a crippled plane for a crosswind, downwind, and base leg, and then suddenly became a sh*tty pilot. something went wrong and i, to the best extent possible, am going to try and find out what. if it is determined that its 100% pilot error then i have no choice but to accpet it. will i love paul any less or think any less of him? HELL NO!
we (the family) DO feel like there is something inherently wrong with the MU2, is that a problem? (btw - for the record, the MU2 NEVER went thru FAA certification for the US, its certification just transferred from Japan. i'd be real interested to see if it could pass thru an FAA certification...)
this is our avenue for expressing our thoughts, feelings, and opinions. after all, this is a forum where we are all free to talk about anything aviation related. correct me if i'm wrong, but this is the GENERAL section -
"
General
General aviation related discussion that doesn't fall into a sub-category below"
is my interpretation of the above description incorrect? aren't we all (including the families/friends/co-workers/etc) free to express our opinions here? good, i'm glad that we got that settled. perhaps my non-pilot sisters have become a bit emotional, but they do mean well and are venting the only way they know how at this point.
as far as telling us to "get a life"...you sir, have the wordiest, most frequent posts on here...perhaps you should practice what you preach.
p.s. skygirl1968 = paul's wife (in paul's honor i'm still flying, still learning, and still being safe)
Can we please end this thread now?