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Originally Posted by Hacker15e  There is some very good info available on the net if you take the time to look for it and sift through the chaff.
There is some credible evidence to show that she was a below average pilot, both as a student in the training pipeline and in the fleet. There are also some pilots who flew with her in the fleet who disagree with that assessment. Likewise, there is evidence to show that she was pushed through the jet training pipeline with below average performance because of political pressure.
The reality is that she had a mechanical malfunction (compressor stall) at a critical point in her approach to the boat. The point in contention is if the ensuing crash was the result of her poor reaction to that emergency, or if any pilot on any given day could have/would have taken the same actions she did given the same emergency.
The internal-only safety board ruled that it was pilot error.
The releasable accident investigation board ruled that it was mechanical malfunction.
You have to decide which you personally believe.
My personal opinion is...both are true. I believe that she was probably pushed through flight school due to political pressure, and I think it's possible that she was less skilled than her fleet squadronmates. On the other hand, I also believe that any pilot (regardless of experience or skill) on any given day can pork up a critical action procedure in a critical stage of flight. |
I think that is a fair and unbiased assessment of this controversial issue and I largely agree with you. In some ways I think Kara was unknowingly victimized by this dysfunctional and politically driven machine that put her there in the first place. I think the country was ready for female fighter pilots, I am just not sure Kara was the one to lead the charge. There is an interesting book by Sally Spears that provides interesting tidbits and a lot of information about her as a person - I enjoyed reading it.
