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> The estimated damages caused by spatial disorientation cost the U.S. military an estimated $300 million every year, along with the lives of around 30 pilots.
by tqi 5y ago
> The estimated damages caused by spatial disorientation cost the U.S. military an estimated $300 million every year, along with the lives of around 30 pilots.
Can that be right? 30 pilots a year sounds really high.
- CardenB 5y agoI read this as 30 pilots over all time, $300 million a year.
- f0e4c2f7 5y agoI thought the same thing. I wondered if perhaps they meant $300 Million per year annualized and also a total of 30 pilots over some number of years.
- eadmund 5y agohttps://taskandpurpose.com/news/military-aviation-mishaps-deaths-cost/ https://taskandpurpose.com/news/military-aviation-mishaps-de... indicates that the U.S. have had 224 deaths and lost 186 aircraft over seven years, so roughly thirty airmen a year sounds about right. I suppose one could be pedantic about pilots rather than aircrew at large, since those 186 aircraft would have had one pilot each, but the larger point still stands. Someone probably just saw the 224 number and thought each indicated a plane manned by a single pilot.
- tqi 5y agoHm that would attribute all accidents to orientation issues, which I guess is possible? It also state the cost as over 11.6B between 2013 and 2020, which would make the cost more like 1.5B per year? Either way though, 224 deaths from accidents in 8ish years is way higher than I had expected. Hopefully with the withdrawal from Afghanistan we will see this number decline.
- goodcanadian 5y agoNot to mention that it is perfectly possible to lose an aircraft without losing the pilot.