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Author
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Topic: Astronauts Llewellyn and O'Leary piloting issues
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carmelo
Member Posts: 1047
From: Messina, Sicilia, Italia
Registered: Jun 2004
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posted 07-16-2013 11:09 AM
   
From WalesOnline's obituary for astronaut John Llewellyn: "Astronauts had to be supermen back then," said his 67-year-old brother Roger, who’d grown up with him and their other sibling David in the Adamsdown area of the capital."They'd black-out the cockpits and you'd have to rely on some sort of seventh sense about whether or not the plane was losing altitude, and if that didn’t kick in you'd be in trouble." "My brother didn't have that instinct, but what he did have was a brilliant talent for chemistry and that’s the reason NASA gave him a job in the first place." Was the same problem for Brian O'Leary? |
David C
Member Posts: 1015
From: Lausanne
Registered: Apr 2012
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posted 07-16-2013 12:45 PM
Not wishing to disrespect anyone, but in order to avoid any myth-making, he's talking about instrument flying. No mysterious "seventh sense" involved. Taught techniques, hard work and the self discipline to ignore the powerful but erroneous signals from one's body. It's not for everyone.It's thirty odd years since I read O'Leary's book, but I seem to recall that his problems were at a different stage. Reading between the lines of his own words; he had a serious attitude problem that no doubt hindered the development of whatever aptitude he had. I stand by to be corrected.
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p51
Member Posts: 1642
From: Olympia, WA
Registered: Sep 2011
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posted 07-16-2013 07:47 PM
quote:
Originally posted by David C:
No mysterious "seventh sense" involved.
I agree. IFR flying is what was called, "Flight School 101" in the "Space Cowboys" movie, and rightly so."Hood" or blind flying has been a staple of IFR flying since before WW2 and several missions proved it to be a valuable skill set. It's like asking to be sponsored to go climb Mt. Everest when you have problems going up a flight of stairs... |
ea757grrl
Member Posts: 729
From: South Carolina
Registered: Jul 2006
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posted 07-16-2013 09:00 PM
If I recall correctly — and it's been about four years since I read O'Leary's book, but I did a quick check to jog my memory - part of his difficulties came from being one of two civilians in an 80-person Air Force flight training class, and to say that could be "awkward" is probably a fair assessment. O'Leary not only had issues with the hard-driven military-style instruction, but battled airsickness early in his flight training. If I read his book correctly, O'Leary quit the program after his second solo flight.I used to not be a fan of Brian O'Leary, in part because of the "flying isn't my cup of tea" line, but reading his book a few years ago helped me understand, and I actually felt for the guy a little. | |
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