Originally Posted by
USMCFLYR
I'm even surprised at how many people I fly with unbuckle the shoulder straps during flight - even if allowed by the rules. I've got too many years strapped into a seat so tight that I felt like I could barely move, but I KNOW that I would forget to buckle back up again when it came time for landing.
This mishap is just hard to hear and the thought of what the victim must have felt is terrifying.
Update:
Victim's body found after search
Body of pilot who fell 2,500 feet from plane found in Tenn. - chicagotribune.com
Originally Posted by
thump
Meh, it's on the checklist when I fly, so it's hard to forget your belt.
I don't say anything is impossible.
I once changed my habit pattern during a flight when I need to turn around further than usual to look at something near the tail in my former airplane. When I flew the hop and then returned to the line, I reached up to unbuckle the should koch fittings adnd realized that I had flown the entire post-maintenance flight without being fully strapped into the ejection seat. I never changed the habit pattern during a PMCF after that. I just closed the canopy and used the mirros to look at what I needed to see!