Emergency Check List for Wife

Today I began developing an emergency check list for my wife in case I ever become incapacitated. I have encouraged her to take enough flying lessons to be able to land, but she is convinced that she can't. I think I'll be able to get her there over time, but hope to give her some options in the mean time. Here is what I have put together from memory. I plan on inserting pictures to supplement this.
Please let me know your comments; particularly what to do next...
I'm currently thinking she should fly the auto pilot to the ground and then pull the power. has anyone ever tried this or written an emergency procedure for it ? Any better ideas ? I just don't see her being able to be talked through a landing.

Pilot Incapacitated:

1. Press the AP Level Button.
2. Make sure the pilot is not touching or interfering with the control stick.
3. Tune the transponder to 7700.
4. Tune the radio to 121.5 and place this frequency in the active window.
5. If the passenger control stick is installed Press the button on the top of the
hand grip to communicate. If the Passenger control stick is not installed
you will have to put on the pilot’s headset and press the button on the
pilot’s control stick.
6. While holding the communication button in say clearly:
“Pan, Pan, Pan. This is November 1-5-3 Mike Charlie, Squawking seventy
seven hundred. I am declaring an emergency. My pilot is incapacitated.”
7. Let go of the communication button at the end of each transmission.
8. Ask the person who responds: “Are there any obstacles at my
current heading and altitude?” If the answer is “YES”; immediately
ask for a new heading or altitude, then flip this card over.
9. The controller will want the following information:
a. Type of Aircraft: Experimental Vans RV6A, Fixed Pitch.
b. Soles on board: 2
c. Fuel on board: Tell them in hours;
This is the top right number on the fuel computer.

d. Navigation Equipment: Garmin 296 GPS connected to a
Tru-Trak Vizion 380 autopilot.

Avoiding Obstacles:

1. After the AP Level button has been pushed the plane will fly itself.
2. You can over-ride the auto pilot at any time by pushing the stick harder
than the auto pilot.
3. If you are in immediate danger of hitting an obstacle pull back on the
Stick or push it left or right to turn.
When you are clear of the obstacle let go of the stick and let the auto pilot resume flying.
4. If time permits, program the auto pilot to fly a new heading or altitude:
a. To change headings: turn the auto pilot knob left or right.
It will turn 5 degrees for each click, so if the controller tells
you “Turn 30 degrees left” – turn the round knob 6 clicks left.
b. To change altitude:
i. Press the ALT button on the face of the auto pilot
ii. Rotate the knob to select the new altitude (ALT)
iii. Press the knob in once
iv. Set the vertical speed (VS) to 1,000 by turning the knob 2 clicks
v. Press the Knob in once
vi. The plane will now climb to the new altitude at 1,000fpm.




At this point you are at a safe altitude and heading, and the plane is flying itself:
You are OK !!!
Take 30 seconds to calm yourself and gather your composure. If the controller is
talking to you, ask them to “Stand By for a moment”

If the controller ever asks you to change frequencies, tell them you can not comply
and that you want to stay on this frequency through-out.


When you are ready, turn to the next page:
What Now ?
Now you are going to use the GPS and Auto Pilot to fly you to
A large airport and have the controller walk you through the landing:
The auto pilot is going to do most of the work.
Navigating to an Airport:

1. Before doing anything else, lets set your power and fuel:
a. Look at the two fuel gauges and determine which one
has more fuel.
b. The fuel selector valve is at your knees between the seats.
c. Turn the valve so that the long arrow points towards the fuller tank .
d. Look at the RPM gauge. You want to adjust this to 22.
e. RPM is set by adjusting the BLACK throttle control.
f. DO NOT touch the red knob at this time.
g. Make all adjustments slowly. Pull it out to reduce the RPM
Push it in to increase the RPM.
h. Set the RPM to 22.
i. Now look at the Fuel flow computer:
j. You want to set Fuel Flow to 8.5 GPM.
k. Turn the red knob left for lower, Right for higher.

2. Ask the control for the closest airport with a 10,000 foot or longer runway.
3. On the bottom of the GPS button panel there is a small button with a D
Press this button.
4. Use the Up/Down : Left/Right buttons to go to the “Identifier” tab.
5. Ask the controller for the Identifier for the airport, and enter it in this tab
by using the Up/Down : Left/Right buttons. (If there are only letters in
the identifier, then you will need to enter a “K” before it.
6. Press ENTER and see if the name of the airport comes up, if so, then press
Enter again.
7. Press the MODE button on the face of the auto pilot.
8. The airplane should turn towards the airport.
9. Look on the GPS and see how many miles away the airport is.
10. Look on the Fuel Computer and check the range (Top Left number).
11. Verify that you have enough gas to make it to the airport.

The plane will now fly itself to the airport.

12. Tell the controller that when you get to the airport you are going to
descend and fly the approach using the auto pilot.

Keith, very good idea, and an idea we should all jump on.

Thanks for sharing, you may have saved a life or two in the future.

Man, you've put a lot of thought into that. If you guys are going to be flying around the country together, enjoying the RV to its potential, I'd say stop right there and focus on fixing "she is convinced that she can't". Geez, engage a psychotherapist that you can consult if you have to. That is a fundamental that can totally be solved as opposed to enabling the helplessness or giving a false sense of safety.
Just my opinion. Let us know if she needs to talk to other women pilots.

Random thoughts:

Not all towers monitor 121.5
Unless your autopilot has auto trim, she will need to know how to trim to slow from cruise to approach speeds.
This is an immediate emergency. "mayday" is appropriate.
If you fly ifr then the autopilot is her only hope.
If you only fly vfr then forget the autopilot. Shoot, licensed pilots regularly screw up the button pushing. Teach her how to fly with the stick. Checklist should say prop and mixture full in. Teach her to use the throttle. Objective is not a smooth landing, but rather a controlled crash on the runway. In case she manages an acceptable landing, have her taxi on the ground so she knows how to work the brakes, and maybe even steer. It takes very little practice to get to this point.

Great checklist.....more ideas

I guess the acid test is to 'fly the checklist'...but I'd want it to be a positive and confidence building exercise.

I have another idea along the lines of 'she can fly'.

....setup someone's flight simulator, set it on 'can't crash' ( running into any terrain, just lets you bounce along indefinitely!) and let her play, with minimal coaching.
I find it amazing that I think I've trained and flown for years, and a 6 year old can land a J-3 in a crosswind, or 747 on his second try! ( took me 7 times!)
Obviously you can incrementally add to the tasks, and complexity, to build her proficiency and comfort level.

It's a lengthy and carefully compiled checklist but do you, or rather does she, think she would remain calm enough in an emergency to take it in and work through it? What happens if something in the sequence goes awry? Suggest you try a few practice runs and see how it goes. Keeping it simple and focussing on how to fly the plane may lead to a better outcome. Even though she doubts that she could land it, it's surprising what people can do when they have to.

A noble pursuit. I have some random thoughts, and these are only my opinion based on my own flying experience, my work as a physician, and my wife's (a non-pilot) thoughts on this:

First, the possibility of you becoming completely incapacitated while flying with her in the right seat is pretty low. Yes, it can happen, but it's pretty unlikely. However unlikely it is, it's good to talk about it and have a plan.

Second, the chance that she will maintain enough composure to get your legs off the stick (before your plane is in a dive or spin) and then successfully go through the checklist is probably not that great either.

Third, the chance that both #1 and #2 are accomplished AND a non-fatal crash landing can be engineered by her WITH NO FORMAL FLIGHT TRAINING is also pretty slim.

I think this process is a good exercise, but it's probably much more helpful to have her take at least a "pinch-hitters" flight course.

Or, get a parachute for the plane.

And, change soles to souls in your excellent write-up....

Kieth,
This is a great idea and something my wife and I have talked about at length. She's worried about me becoming incapacitated and her being in the back seat - even though I'm far healthier than she is...... That's the sole reason I started an RV14 (which I sold because she doesn't fly with me that much, doesn't plan to in the future - even in a -14). I think the length of the checklist would be difficult for most to get through, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be there. If she can get through it then she needs to have everything available to her she can get. The most important part of this is training her. I think if the two of you did enough training in your airplane to get her through that entire checklist it would do wonders for her confidence, and she would probably be competent enough by then to land the airplane, at least to the point that it's survivable - and that the only point that counts. The last time my wife and I flew together, we went to Cleveland to visit our daughter. I let (made) her fly all the way there by just looking outside. She was concerned about holding her altitude. I told her it wasn't that important, just don't hit anything! She went all the way there and her altitude only varied by +-200 feet. She has her own GPS in the back and she now knows how to search it for a suitable airport and then usually find it visually most of the time. It's only a matter of practice and experience. Having a checklist she can follow will ease her anxiety (at least if she still loves you), and give her confidence in a successful outcome. I'm going to make a copy of your checklist and tailor for my WIB (wife in back).
Thanks....

Noble effort, but I think her not wanting or thinking she can learn to land a plane make the idea of a list or other offsetting action a complete waste. Actually, I see the checklist (presented to her) as very destructive. If you showed her that checklist you will scare the heck out of her and may prevent her from willingly flying with you again.

I would seriously recommend considering a Cirrus or other with a BRS if you want to mitigate the potential for your incapacitation. And at that, having the BRS will be a bit of a security blanket only as we all know BRSs have a limited envelope of operation.

I showed this to my wife, who is also a non-pilot. Her thoughts:

1) Yep, this is scary stuff, but having SOMETHING is a far better option than having nothing. She believes in having a plan B if I soak up a bird or a coronary or something, no matter how low the risk.

2) However, this is a pretty detailed checklist. KEEP IT SIMPLE if at all possible. Simpler is definitely better, so she recommends shortening the checklist. Then, yes, practice it regularly.

3) Near the bottom of the checklist after going through detailed instructions to get a divert base dialed into the autopilot, you earned a "holy ****" from my wife when you wrote, "The plane will not fly itself to the airport" (emphasis mine). She thought all 11 task steps that preceded the statement were intended to actually cause the airplane to fly itself to the airport. I think you meant to say, "The plane will NOW fly itself to the airport."

I applaud the effort, and look forward to seeing the next draft. You see, I want to make something similar for my aircraft commander's commander.

Thoughts

My wife was not interested in getting her lic but loves flying. I tried at the beginning but she wasn't getting it. I let her just enjoy the flying and she decided she wanted to help with trans codes radio freq and airport orientation. Great. Then over time she asked more questions and I slowly would show her a few things. Don't rush it don't scare her or overload her. She now is very capable of radio work autopilot setting and adjusting heading and track work etc. we love it, others find it overwhelming. In 3 years she has has crossed 3 countries with me and is very capable but never had a lesson. She still has not landed on her own but when the opportunity presents itself she will. Good for you for thinking ahead and being smart about it.

Once she learned a fair bit one day on a reg flight I just said....I am dead fly the plane. She didn't like the surprise but understood the reason. She loves flying and loves helping. Just work on it slowly. Ymmv

I started with a list something like this back in '94.

This convinced my wife to take the pinch-hitter course in '95, so she could land.

Which, in turn, convinced her to get her ticket in '97.

We now split stick time 50/50. Be careful what you wish for!

(Just kidding. I LOVE having an extra pilot on board at all times. Sure, we have to share front seat time, but that just means we fly twice as much!)

The list is not as long as it looks when it is properly formatted into logical components on separate pages and color coded. The photos also make it a lot more visual.
Many good points made, all of which I have considered. As many of you have pointed out, the best option would be for my wife to get some training. Maybe she will one day, but for now she is resistant and that is part of our deal. She is willing to fly but does not want me to push her. If nothing else, it would give here something to occupy her time rather than contemplating certain death.
I also figure it gives something to other passengers as well.
I think it will be interesting to see if I can land using a non precision GPS, VS select, and the throttle...

And yes, the "Not" should have been "Now"! I have corrected that.

The AP LEVEL is a great feature to have and this makes the use of the checklist plausible. However, as with all emergency checklists, it requires practice. Even with practice, getting a non-pilot to follow a checklist with that many items will be difficult. My guess is that anyone who is willing to practice that kind of checklist will go through a pinch-hitter course; YMMV.

Can I ask what the idea of getting them to an airport is? Unless they understand how to make even a simple straight in approach, pull the power and flare, the chances of a walk-away landing are probably low. Lots of things to hit at airports if you're not on the runway heading and centerline.

As part of my preflight, if my pax don't have a certificate or the equivalent of a pinch-hitter course (for whatever reason), the emergency checklist I run them through is pretty short and has one major item most others probably don't.

BRS ACTIVATION
IF POSSIBLE, FLY TO 1000? AGL / 80KT BEFORE ACTIVATING BRS
Throttle CLOSED
Ignition OFF
Fuel Valve OFF
Straps TIGHTEN
Airspeed 80KT IF ABLE
BRS Handle PULL FIRMLY
XPDR 7700
ELT ACTIVATE
Cabin SECURE LOOSE ITEMS
Avionics Master OFF
Master Breakers OUT

Why pull the BRS so early? A totally untrained pax might not be able to control airspeed, use full rudder "to make the airplane turn" (had that happen before), overspeed to / past VNE by pushing stick forward "to go down", get distracted while playing with EFIS and have a midair ... you get the idea, some kind of upset is a real possibility. So BRS out, float down.

Airplane is probably a loss at this point, but (a) its insured and (b) if the pilot is incapacitated and pax has no previous landing experience, the probability of a landing without major damage to self and airplane is low, and that's what the BRS is for.

TODR

Another option...

Set TT AP to Alt Hold mode.

Dial in heading to biggest runway within 150 nm provided by ATC(We should always leave her at least 1 hr of fuel right).

Line up with runway.

Pull out throttle slowly until IAS drops to 75 kias(my programmed MIN AS setting). Still holding altitude.

Lower flaps slowly to full down. This should begin a descent to maintain 75 kias.

To level off, push throttle in gently. To descend more, pull throttle out gently.

Rotate knob to stay lined up.

This should keep her above stall and allow level off before touching down.

I have never practiced this with her, but have thought about it. My little navigator can set altimeter setting, set radios, find nrst, check wx, program two gps's, use brakes to stop not turn yet and fly up high. Need to work on the down low part, but that will have to be in a tougher plane with a cfi and good insurance.

the_other_dougreeves said:

The AP LEVEL is a great feature to have and this makes the use of the checklist plausible. However, as with all emergency checklists, it requires practice. Even with practice, getting a non-pilot to follow a checklist with that many items will be difficult. My guess is that anyone who is willing to practice that kind of checklist will go through a pinch-hitter course; YMMV.

Can I ask what the idea of getting them to an airport is? Unless they understand how to make even a simple straight in approach, pull the power and flare, the chances of a walk-away landing are probably low. Lots of things to hit at airports if you're not on the runway heading and centerline.

As part of my preflight, if my pax don't have a certificate or the equivalent of a pinch-hitter course (for whatever reason), the emergency checklist I run them through is pretty short and has one major item most others probably don't.

BRS ACTIVATION
IF POSSIBLE, FLY TO 1000’ AGL / 80KT BEFORE ACTIVATING BRS
Throttle CLOSED
Ignition OFF
Fuel Valve OFF
Straps TIGHTEN
Airspeed 80KT IF ABLE
BRS Handle PULL FIRMLY
XPDR 7700
ELT ACTIVATE
Cabin SECURE LOOSE ITEMS
Avionics Master OFF
Master Breakers OUT

Why pull the BRS so early? A totally untrained pax might not be able to control airspeed, use full rudder "to make the airplane turn" (had that happen before), overspeed to / past VNE by pushing stick forward "to go down", get distracted while playing with EFIS and have a midair ... you get the idea, some kind of upset is a real possibility. So BRS out, float down.

Airplane is probably a loss at this point, but (a) its insured and (b) if the pilot is incapacitated and pax has no previous landing experience, the probability of a landing without major damage to self and airplane is low, and that's what the BRS is for.

TODR

Click to expand...

Getting to a big airport where emergency services are on the 300' X 10,000' flat hard surface.

I know of one RV-10 with a chute. I bet there are not many RV's with them.

Just an update: I showed the list to my wife tonight and she said "oh, I really like this".
I told her that many people thought she would not be able to follow it, and she said: "let's try it in the plane, on the ground, with the engine off"
That is a start!

pa38112 said:

Just an update: I showed the list to my wife tonight and she said "oh, I really like this".
I told her that many people thought she would not be able to follow it, and she said: "let's try it in the plane, on the ground, with the engine off"
That is a start!

Click to expand...

That, Sir, is a touchdown!

It's always best when your wingman buys in, and can even help improve the checklist to make it more usable to her liking. Keep us posted!

scrollF4 said:

That, Sir, is a touchdown!

It's always best when your wingman buys in, and can even help improve the checklist to make it more usable to her liking. Keep us posted!

Click to expand...

Next step after editing: Move the checklist into your EFIS.