Page 4 - Volume 18 Number 9

2 • TWIN & TURBINESEPTEMBER 2014editor’sbriefingOne of my favorite fictional inspirations is the Pat Morita-like creature “Yoda” from the George Lucas “Star Wars” movie series. In his struggle to train young Luke Skywalker as a Jedi Knight, the old Master has to remind a faltering Luke that “There is no TRY. Do, or do not.” This seemingly harshadmonition serves to negate Luke’s willingness to accept defeat. Yoda says, in effect, “Failure is not an option.”Aviation is not a business that’s terribly tolerant of casual attempts. Before a flight, we must prepare ourselves well, focus on the outcome and put measures in place to cover contingencies. Waiting to see how it turns out, rather than proactively managing the flight, is not acceptable. As Yoda would put it, “There is no TRY”.Does this mean flying demands a rigid adherence to preordained procedure, with no chance to innovate? Quite the contrary. We are often called upon to modify our plans, when weather, fuel, passengers or equipment aren’t working out as expected. But we should be prepared for these disruptions with an alternative course, anticipating its need.Last week, I was on a routine run that I’d flown many times, but this time I was bucking a stiff headwind that knocked 25% off my planned speed. After a quarter of the distance was covered, I knew a refueling stop was going to be needed unless things picked up on the other side of a frontal zone. Things didn’t pickup; I pondered the three near-course pit stops I had chosen for such an eventuality. I never land without fuel enough to hop elsewhere, in case the airport is out of gas or is unusable. One of the choices had only one available runway, and it came with a crosswind component near my aircraft’s limits, so I diverted to a secure facility with more runway choices. Had I tried to stretch fuel, as it turned out, I would have made a fumes-only arrival. There is no try.When we say “We’ll try it”, we had better be saying, “We’re going with one of the possible options, and we’re backing it up with an alternative.” As my first instructor put it, always have an “out”. Do, or do not.In This IssueSome 30 years ago, Cessna Aircraft braved a general aviation recession by introducing a “next generation” cabin-class twin, the T303 Crusader. Had the market decline not deepened, we would have seen various derivatives of the Crusader produced. Instead, we present a brief look at the airplane that might have been.Russell Smith looks back at aviation’s progress and the people responsible for it, Tom Turner covers decision-making in emergencies, and David Miller cautions against “Rushing to Judgment”. This being our fall special spotlighting Citation Jet owners and pilots, our CJ section offers Adam Alpert’s comparison of the CJ4 and his own familiar CJ3, while Kevin Dingman outlines how airline management can cope with the pilot-retirement crisis. There’s something here for everyone.LeRoy Cook. EditorDo, or Do Not