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Date: Tue, 10 Nov 1998 18:08:36 -0600
From: Snowbird <snbird@ibm.net>
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Subject: landing on highway?
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I guess I got a question for all those talking about trying for an
emergency landing on a highway.

There've been a number of accidents where a plane tried an
emergency landing on a highway and drivers got killed --
either when plane hit their car or in ensuing fire--but the
pilot survived.

Given that you had a choice (ie could glide to another
spot, even an inhospitable looking one trees swamp etc),
if you landed on a highway, and survived, but some motorist
was killed as a direct result, could you accept that or 
would it haunt you?

Personally, I think it would haunt me, and if I have a 
choice I would never want to attempt a landing where
people are.  I would rather try to take my chances w/
controlled flight into trees, and it's been pretty
rare that I thought I had a choice between trees and
the highway during my perpetual "where would I land if
the engine quit right now" VMC flying game.

I guess part of this is my personal belief that because
of ditches, utility wires, highway signs, and overpasses,
roads aren't necessarily a very good bet for a landing
site.

Snowbird


