S-12Flyer wrote: Most fatal heart attacks are sudden and incapacitating.

Emory Bored wrote:

S-12Flyer wrote: Most fatal heart attacks are sudden and incapacitating.

Does this mean that most fatal heart attack patients have no idea what-so-ever that they are in bad shape? I would trust your assessment on this. I dunno. I always though you got that nausea, left arm pain, chest pressure, sweating profusely, angina sort of thing. I do know that some fatal heart attacks, especially amongst younger men give little warning.

Emory Bored wrote:.... it does what all administrative law does, it builds a fortress, and then protects and grows that fortress to it's dying day. I think Reagan said it best; "The closest thing to eternal life we have in this world is a government program." EB

Zane wrote:........The most difficult thing we do as pilots is to self-assess, whether it's personal limits of experience and ability, or our medical fitness to command a 1 ton fuel-filled 120mph missile possibly loaded with non-pilot passengers. Medical self-certification is a concept that I equate to simply writing off the whole concept of medical evaluation. .....
I'm not sure I could remain objective if I had to self-certify my medical condition and make the go/no-go decision.....

Zane wrote:....There was a well known Rogue valley pilot named Bill Warren who recently headed west. He had just spent a great day flying, and passed away from heart failure on his deck that evening. He apparently maintained a medical right to the very end, teaching people to fly, even after having had previous issues with his heart......

Emory Bored wrote:....They were not in a condition that I would consider airworthy if it were me. Pale, short of breath, tire easily, pain in the extremities, insomnia.. .....

Associated Press wrote:Woman, 80, lands plane on low fuel; husband dies
By CARRIE ANTLFINGER, Associated Press

MILWAUKEE (AP) — An 80-year-old woman with little flying experience knew her husband had died after he fell unconscious at the controls of a small plane, yet she remained calm as she landed the aircraft at a northeastern Wisconsin airport, her son said Tuesday.

In a phone interview with The Associated Press, James Collins said he's also a pilot and had helped his mother Helen Collins via radio as the Cessna twin-engine plane began running out of gas Monday evening. Another pilot also took to the skies to guide her to the ground at Cherryland Airport, near Sturgeon Bay — about 150 miles north of Milwaukee.

He said his mother took lessons to take off and land about 30 years ago at her husband's urging, in case something happened to him, but never got her license. She has flown hundreds of hours by his side.

"At one point she didn't even want the wingman to go up," he said. "She said, 'Don't you guys think I could do this on my own? Don't you have confidence in me?' She was calmer than everybody on the ground. She had it totally under control."

They were coming back from their second home in Marco Island, Fla. for Easter, Collins said. His 81-year-old father, John Collins, had a heart attack about seven minutes from landing at Cherryland Airport and had called for her before he became unconscious, Collins said. She had called 911 and that's when everyone came together to help her down.

The pilot who helped was Robert Vuksanovic, who lived just a mile from the airport, said Keith Kasbohm, director of Cherryland Airport. After getting the call from Kasbohm, Vuksanovic jumped in another plane owned by the Collins and flew up to meet the Cessna while instructing the novice on the radio.

"He felt it would be easier," Kasbohm said. "With him alongside of her he could control her speed and altitude" before she attempted a landing.

Collins said his mother knew her husband had died after she unsuccessfully tried to get him back into his seatbelt, which he unbuckled before he collapsed.

He said one engine had completely run out of gas and the other had to be close to running out because it was sputtering. The nose-wheel collapsed upon landing and she skidded down the runway about 1,000 feet, but she worked the rudders to keep the plane straight.

"The amazing thing is she landed that plane on one engine," Collins said. "I don't know if there are a lot of trained pilots that could do that."

At a news conference Tuesday, Vuksanovic said he also experienced Helen Collins' confidence, WLUK-TV reported.
"She wanted to know if I was confident in her confidence," he said. "I said if you're confident then I'm confident, I think we can do this."

Collins said his mother was hospitalized on Tuesday with an injury to her vertebrae and a cracked rib but was doing well.
He said he stayed calm and focused because he had to help her.

"I already knew I lost my dad, I didn't want to lose my mom," he said. "It could have been both of them at once."

Collins described his mother's actions as unbelievable, answering their questions about air speed or the flaps. "You think she had done it all her life."

"Everybody is proud of her," he said. "I think she is a local hero for sure."

Torry Lautenbach, whose property is next to the airport, watched her land and estimated she circled the airport about 10 times.

"She did a really good job (landing the plane). It was amazing," Lautenbach said. "It took one bad hop and then it came back down and skidded."

Elizabeth Isham Cory, a spokeswoman with the Federal Aviation Administration, said John Collins had a current private pilot's license but couldn't immediately provide any details on how often he needed to get a medical exam. She said pilots can fly until they stop passing medical exams.

The Collins family, of Sturgeon Bay, own a small manufacturing company in Door County, authorities said. John Collins founded C & S Manufacturing in 1962, according to the company's website.

GumpAir wrote:Yeah, and I bet he had a valid medical....

Gump

EZFlap wrote: Just submitted a comment (second time, hope they allow me to vote like an ACORN voter... early and often).....

Magnet wrote:Damm, that pisses me off. Yeh if you have a rec pilot ticket you have restrictions, if you have a private pilots lic it dosen't matter what you fly, you have all the privliges of a private pilot. Day,night,VFR,IFR,altitude. You're only restricted by your license, not your ride.