Weather is an important factor in relation to planes and their orientation in the sky. Colgan Air case and the issue regarding planes landing in the wrong airport relate to several problems. As a Colgan Air pilot not involved in the incident, I can notice that there are several questions that might be raised pertaining to the case.
The first one would be regarding the weather conditions at the time of the incident. Often, pilots have very little choice, as the weather conditions become severe in a matter of minutes. It is clear that pilots are very much limited in the number of things they can do to decide on the best course of action, and often, the choice is absent altogether. Sometimes, there are weather conditions that leave pilots with no options.
A question regarding the visibility is also appropriate, as the instruments on the panel board might become not as useful as the visual recognition of the runway. Moreover, it is obvious that pilots have a dangerous employment where only a limited number of steps can be taken to prevent an accident.
There is great dependence on the abilities of the plane and weather, and a person has to make quick decisions in directing the machine. Even though a pilot has to go through extensive training and tests, there are still times when a situation cannot be predicted, and a person has to go by the feelings and thoughts that are present at the moment. As such, the condition of the pilot should be questioned. How was he/she feeling prior to the flight, and was he or she affected by any substances?
As the Colgan Air president, I would like to note some technical moments that might be put into question. As the design and technology that were used in building and engineering an airport are very complex and structured, they must be differentiated from others, so that pilots can see the difference.
In this case, it was mentioned that the two airports looked very similar, so the president would ask a question of what could have been done differently to the layout and the design of the airports to allow pilots to see the specifics of their destination airport (Continental Connection Plane Lands at Wrong Louisiana Airport, 2009). There are many details that are important to keep in mind in order to build a well functioning and effective airport, but having unique features would allow pilots quicker recognition.
The safety of people on the ground and on the plane is an important matter, and so, the conditions of the surface must be constantly monitored. A president could question ethics and morality in the wrongdoing of landing the plane at the wrong airport. From one perspective, if there is something wrong with the plane and it had to make the landing, it would be unwise to punish the pilots.
Since there are specific air routes that are taken, it would be improper to let the plane circle the airport and cause delays to people as well as massive financial losses to the company and other organizations that are involved in the airlines’ business. On the other hand, if the problem is a significant one and all the planes make such a mistake, there must be something wrong with the instructions or the technology used in determining the correct airport. Overall, structural and procedural changes must be made to exclude this form of error.
Reference
Continental Connection Plane Lands at Wrong Louisiana Airport. (2011). Web.