As a fellow TBM pilot, I think you did a great job staying calm under stress, handling problems, and flying the plane. We can all learn from that. At the same time, I take a more conservative risk approach. Had I lost heat at 30k ft (first failure in a possible chain of future events), I would have diverted to an airport with little to no weather and access to mechanics to minimize any additional risks. No heat + night + mountains + heavy precipitation + IFR far exceed my risk threshold. Hope to connect in one of the TBM activities.
After years of flying Bonanzas in what I thought was "all safe weather" stepping into turboprops was a little bit of an eye opener for the same reasons you are experiencing. Flights like these would be total no goes in a Bonanza. The turboprop makes them safe but brings in a whole new set of complexities we just aren't familiar with. Thank you for documenting your experience.
I’m glad you have the experience to navigate through that situation. My risk tolerance would be a bit below that threshold, but glad it all worked out safely in the end.
The more I watch Matt, the more I loose respect for this guy. He is spoiled, takes unnecessary risks, thinks he’s invincible and i truly believe these poor choices and attitude will eventually catch up to him. I hope not, but there is something very unsettling about him.
The superior pilot uses his/her superior judgment to prevent having to use his/her superior skill! I wonder about the flight planning for this flight! I find it hard to believe that proper weather planning for this flight did not show the low visibility at the destination and surrounding airports. I am glad that he made it safe to his destination.
@@mattguthmiller True; however, the better course of action, ADM, would have been to stay on the ground and wait for better weather. Being IFR rated does not mean you should fly into IMC! You pushed a situation that you did not need to; however, this time, it worked out in your favor. Next time it may not!
@@mattguthmiller I’m not looking for an argument man, the bottom line is it doesn’t really affect me if you die in a plane crash. Your airplane was broken, you were obviously cold, cold is a distraction when you are already high workload, you said yourself in the video that you didn’t want to shoot an approach just to go missed, so you were expecting weather below minimums en route. These are all holes in the swiss cheese model that are lining up. Get on the ground wherever you can, ferry to a good repair spot if needed when weather improves.
Is it normal to be relying on ATC for so much information in-flght? Seems like, if you have to ask for so much information in-flight, you shouldn't be there in the first place.
At 72 I have a lot to look back and reflect on. 40 years ago I may have done this exact same thing. Today, a Holiday Inn, some light chow, a couple cocktails and a good nights sleep/rest would be my flight plan in this case. I think Matt did a great job!! Too many holes in the Swiss cheese for this 72 year old. Great job Matt! 8) --gary
wow that was a lot. great flying, and super props to the lady too for being cool and collected, that was really good. great flying and thank you for posting this kind of content.
Perhaps the better decision would have been a no go from the comfort of your home. Hopefully fuel was not an issue. Weather forecasting in my experience can be quite off in either direction. TAFs tend probably to be closer than wide area forecasts. I'm sure Alpine did not have a TAF to go off of in your pre planning. Amidst your in flight complexities you did keep a fairly cool head. ATC did an amazingly good job with you and other aircraft responsibilities she had.
I’ve got about 500 hours in the TBM 9xx series. It seems there’s always some little gremlins to chase down. Even in the brand new airplanes with less than 50 hours.
Great job flying it was very interesting for me sitting in my armchair of course lol . I missed what your fuel reserve was I’m glad that wasn’t a issue . Glad you guys were safe 👍🇺🇸
One of the best videos I’ve ever seen on situations like this. Call me a chicken but in a turboprop no amount of icing will ever be intentionally part of my flight plan. Any bad weather I’m staying home. Truly well done on the video editing and staying cool under pressure.
Matt great job by you and your editor Kevin. This is great real life scenarios that happen. In the Bonanza you would have never attempted that flight. Now you have a whole bunch of new complexities other than that bad alternator! Nice job putting this together and ignore the trolls that say they make all the right decisions on the flight sim in their mom’s basement.
@@igclapp It didnt backfire. It remains a great idea and a way of getting a first hand report of whats happening on the ground AT THAT TIME. The plough operator cant control what happens to the weather/mimimums AFTER their call.
That's a good way to get a first hand weather report; however, horizontal visibility at ground level is way different than slant visibility made from the cockpit looking down for a runway.
So glad you kept your wits about you and had a successful conclusion with your flight. You had a lot of issues to deal with .. cabin heat, lousy weather (snow, ice, turbulence), stubborn landing gear and limited options. Get the airplane on the ground and call it a day.
As a Corporate Pilot with 30 years In Turboprops and Jets Night and Mountains don’t mix. Night, Mountains, hard IMC is has written off quite a few good aviators. Throw in Ice and you really have the cards stacked
@@igclapp I fly both as a crew and SP. I am current on the PC12 single pilot, the PC24 single pilot, and the Falcon 2000LX as a crew. Flying SP I feel mor in tune with the overall situational awareness. The crew flying is obviously safer but I also feel a disconnect with what’s going on as a whole because the job is compartmentalized.
The way you did your commentary, regarding that flight, indicated the stress you were under. I had a few flights that were stressful and years later, something like your video will trigger a trip that I have done and wonder if one more problem occurred, would the trip have ended well. This video is one of those flights that made me relive my flight and I could relive that feeling of knowing that one more issue could turn this flight into my last. It is a type of flight that makes you religious.
"A man's got to know his limitations." Single engine turboprop, at night, in ice, flying an approach in mountainous terrain to minimums. No way, no how. Too many negatives for comfort. Been there, done that. Your first inclination was correct, to go to Idaho Falls. I got a bad feeling when you reconsidered Alpine. 'Fate is the hunter.' Forty-four years Navy and corporate pilot, 16,000+ hours, 6 jet type ratings. There are no old bold pilots.
So what's your aviation experience? Can you back up your snarkiness with time in the cockpit? Actual IFR? Night/mountain flying in icing conditions? Turbine and jet experience? Let's hear it. @@johnqdoe
High IQ + Confidence in one’s capabilities + High tolerance for risk + Need to be in the limelight = Impaired judgment Self-awareness might dissuade you from flying into these conditions again!
That was stressful to watch. Must have been heartbreaking having to execute that missed approach after everything you’d been through up to that point. Good decision not to push that approach and to divert.
Matt did u feel that this flight might be your last? We all have had flights where we wished we had not left the ground. We live thru it and are so relieved we made it. U were looking thru a whole lot of swiss cheese slices my brother, dont let the planes capabilities change your go or no go
As a high time pilot and Saratoga owner….you had your hands full. What’s was the issue with the gear? I’m guessing contamination but not familiar with the TBM systems and gear operation. Great flying and we all can learn from scenarios like this and great airmanship. Would love to fly with you.
an old skipper used to say the minute you think there a problem and thought a little more and id doesn't look better do something else change port or just turn round
Let's see here, pneumatic, landing gear, and prop deice issues during this flight. Sounds like you need to get your aircraft into the maintenance hangar. My humble opinion, Signed, Active A&P Technician soon to retire....good luck, but your bird has issues.
QOW! Some thoughts. The ATC controller who stuck with you was a saint for sure. Your ability to think rationally and keep your emotions under control was commendable. I'm sure a lot of old pilots watching are wondering if they could have done as well. I felt stress watching... And finally, in the last video you did about no heat it looked like it had been a continuing problem with the plane. What was the cause and did you get it fixed right?
Botched the Alpine/Idaho Falls choice. Esp after the cont warned moderate precip 3 mi north of Alpine. Whoda thunk it would have closed in Alpine by arrival time?
Matt is obviously very experienced and did a great job but personally Im a little more conservative with risks as stuff can and does go wrong and when it does the odds are not in your favour
Better flight planning and preparation would have avoided much of this unnecessary risk. That's how disasters start in situations where they shouldn't happen and you wonder, how could something like that happen?
yeah...well, I'm glad I wasn't on this flight. On the other hand, thanks for the video: I liked observing your minute by minute analysis and choices. And something that is not related directly to this flight, but your adventures in general: what does your mom think of all this?
What went wrong with cabin heat? Best safety is a credit card for the unplanned LZs, I like that tip. American Express saved a diver when other cards did not.
weird how every time you queried control about an option, she understood that was what you intended to do and she followed it with instructions to follow. 🤨
I thought the same thing, he was requesting information so he could formulate a plan to be followed by a request to execute that plan. I’m sitting a couch and this was starting to pizz me off. Just answer my questions!! I’ll request a change.
😂 it was also just really hard to get a clear description on where this weather was she was talking about or where she intended to take me to get around it
Professional pilots on proceduralized approaches aren't why ATC earns the big bucks, it's private pilots like this: more money than sense and flying questionable aircraft into questionable weather. Hope the likes were worth it, man.
I'm confused, you had radar that showed a different picture, and probably more accurate. You deferred your weather decisions to a controller who is not flying, when you have on board and better weather tools. You also kept flying when you had lost heat instead of landing immediately, seems risky decisions all around.
Maybe he's not confident enough with his radar as yet and so is looking for a second opinion from ATC. If either one indicates a problem, he doesn't go that way. In other words, both his onboard information and ATC's info have to agree the way is safe.
Pretty sure the TBM is the same as most boot fitted aircraft in that ice formation behind the boots is to be considered as SEVERE and that the autopilot should be disconnected and NOT used in severe icing conditions as it will mask the handling cues of severe ce build ups in non sighted areas especially the tail plane
Hats off to that controller. No panic, no drama....She earned her money that day, remember Matt isnt the only one on frequency...Find this girl and buy her the flowers of her choice.
I really appreciated how you were able to bring ATC's support into this flight - showing what a valuable resource these amazing professionals are, and the ability pilots have to work collaboratively with them to improve ADM in situations that require clear thinking. Great insights for those paying attention.
Do you always feel as if ATC is your private PA? Get some backbone in you and make your own decisions. As much as I love your videos, you come across as a pilot who just grew up with a pillow behind you and as soon some excrement hits the fan, you come up with a thousand of excuses.
I kind of got that impression as well, but I want to be fair to Matt. For example, how much of this could have been avoided with more planning? Maybe the answer is not very much, because the weather is constantly changing and moving. The reported weather at 46U looked ok for the approach, but unexpectedly a snow squall or what have you got in their way at minimums. Matt has onboard radar and weather, so theorectically he should be able to make his own weather decisions without having to constantly ask ATC what they are showing. Then again, maybe Matt's equipment has some limitations or maybe Matt is not yet totally confident using it. One thing is for sure, that controller earned her pay that day.
For the most part you did good decission making, except for deciding to go back to Alpine. That is something that should almost never be done. Retired AA capt.
Is it me, or was this ATC not understanding Matts calls, at all... Seemed to be ALOT of this type of interaction. Matt- "So, were showing weather north, is it safer, or less stormy to the east?" ATC "Ok so youd like turn East, turn heading..." Kept very calm. Id be frustrated as heck at the constant miscommunications.
I don't think controllers are used to pilots asking twenty questions. I've never heard a pilot go on this long with ATC asking about weather in various directions. ATC expects you to tell them what you want to do, and they will either approve the request or tell you why they can't. They don't like being a sounding board for you to discuss your various options at length.
Yeah except shes talking about vectoring him east around the weather but then sends him North, and then West directly into it. Later in the video they repeat the conversation again and this time she sends him East and North out of it.
