CO was indeed mentioned further back.
As with the PA46 footballer crash, if it is a factor, that should be discovered at the post mortem.
he is maybe not at the top of his game when talking to Sion
I reckon he sounds better than at least 90% of Brits flying abroad 
Pop down to N France… it is often sooo embarrassing / utterly cringeworthy. Most seem to be reading war and peace and give ATC their inside leg measurement… most of it way outside the scope of ATC ELP and just gets ignored. They are doing what they were taught: call up everybody for a “service”. It takes years of flying, preferably in the “machine gun radio” IFR system, before one can talk in, ahem, a machine gun style. And one needs a lot of currency to acquire that style. Most “normal” PPLs are relatively hesitant on the radio.
This chap was well above average in what he was doing. He also had a decent performance plane, which makes a big difference. So, why crash at such a low level; that’s the question…
Gigicret wrote:
seriously ??
To me it looks like they were following the right side of the valley (on the picture). Then turned and climbed, and turned back again and crossed (at whatever altitude). There is no regulations for how close to a mountain you can fly. Looking out to the right they see only the wall of the mountain, to the left they see the valley floor.
It’s not his hesitancy I was commenting on. It was the way that he didn’t know what he wanted and iATC had to keep asking.
for those who have had the opportunity (or will have the opportunity) to fly here.
Because of the mountains, at this altitude, you do not receive or very badly the LSGS ATIS before Martigny.
You arrive in Martigny, you have to make a turn at 90 ° (it’s wide enough, but again for a person not accustomed….)
To spice it is almost always turbulent (5 valleys that join)
And it’s there you need to call LSGS.
Imagine a turn in the turbulence between the mountains, a baby in the back and without really being able to take note of ATIS. Moreover, at that time, he must have had the sun in his eyes!
No, I think his call was ok
Was it CO that brings Sala airplane? it could be a factor in pilot performance but honestly with other major risks like night, imc, icing, sea at 2000ft? the same if you plan to fly mountains at 6000ft?
There is a CO mania these days but I am personally more worried about my stupid planning errors or pilot fatigue (not having sleep or stress being major ones) the next time I fly than exposure to CO which these days one can measure using a cheap detector…
@ LeSving
May be that if you saw the place in real you would have a different opinion.
The Sala post mortem (see the thread) found lots of CO.
Of course that whole flight was dodgy even before it took off, but that’s a different observation.
This pilot may have been working hard. Autopilot without altitude hold, likely. A kid and mum in the back, possibly with some stuff going on.
Also it’s not obvious what ATC one should talk to when VFR and what to ask them or tell them. When I used to fly VFR I talked to nobody unless I wanted something e.g. a CAS transit. That is basically what one does (should do, though that’s debatable) in the UK. Under VFR, you are entitled to the ICAO FIS (basically just a radio contact) no more and no less.
On board it was a Swiss instructor, with his pupil !
I agree, it looks sloppy. Unless the photo is misleading, he seems much too far from the rock face. If an instructor can’t teach his student to be safe and comfortable flying within a wing span of terrain how is he or she ever going to be confident landing on a glacier?
We are talking about a student who makes the base of his PPL!
Glacier Landing is a separate category that requires a lot of training and is not feasible for everyone.
Where they are no chance of being able to land, at the altitude where they are no chance of being able to pass.
If you consider it normal to make a turn at 160ft ground, at 7’000ft AMSL by 30 ° celsius.
A gust of wind in his turn and the plane is on the ground with very little chance of survival
