A pilot thought his colleague was "joking" when he died suddenly mid-flight.
The flying instructor suffered a heart attack during a circuit around Blackpool Airport, where he joined the qualified pilot, but suffered the fatal episode during the flight. The pilot, who knew him well, initially believed the instructor was pretending to sleep as a joke and did not become aware of the tragic situation until landing, reported LancsLive.
Upon landing he realised what was really happening and alerted nearby airport fire crews and air ambulance staff who were stationed there. However, the man could not be saved despite their best efforts.
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An investigation was later launched by the Air Accident Investigation Board (AAIB) as although the circumstances fell outside of its remit, it was felt there may be lessons to be learnt by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). The findings of that investigation have now been published and note that the instructor, 57, had passed a medical examination just four months earlier.
He was described as being in good spirits on the morning of June 29, 2022, and had completed a trial lesson with three people who reported nothing unusual before he joined the 10am circuit. The pilot of that plane, a Piper PA-28-161 light aircraft, had originally planned to fly from Blackpool to another airport before changing plans as he felt the crosswinds were above the level permitted for him to fly alone.
As he wanted to maintain his recency requirements (which rule a pilot must carry out a number of takeoffs and landings with an instructor present) for his flying club, he asked the instructor to join him for a circuit. He recalled that during the taxi to the runway, they were both talking normally and the instructor had told him “looks good, there is nothing behind you” in response to one comment about power checks.
The instructor did not say anything after that point. The report stated: "The pilot recalled that shortly after take off from Runway 28 the instructor’s head rolled back. The pilot knew the instructor well and thought he was just pretending to take a nap while the pilot flew the circuit, so he did not think anything was wrong at this stage.
"He proceeded to fly the aircraft round the circuit. As he turned onto base leg the instructor slumped over with his head resting on the pilot’s shoulder.
"The pilot still thought the instructor was just joking with him and continued to fly the approach. He landed normally on Runway 28 and started to taxi back to the apron. However, the instructor was still resting on his shoulder and was not responding, and the pilot realised something was wrong."
A post-mortem concluded the instructor died from acute cardiac failure with findings including a blood clot in the left main stem artery and a medical history of high blood pressure. The AAIB report noted stated: "The flying instructor suffered a sudden fatal heart attack as the aircraft was taking off.
"On this occasion he was flying with a qualified pilot who was able to land the aircraft safely. However, had this occurred on another flight the outcome could have been different."
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