How ridiculous to request permission to fly at 6000 feet when you are near a 7000 foot mountain. What was the air traffic controller thinking? What a tragedy of errors. Wasn’t there a flight plan? Didn’t they know where they were going? This is ridiculous.
“Seemed like a good idea at the time.”
All air traffic flies near volcanos. It's part of the normal condition. They have air charts. The pilot should have known.
“How ridiculous to request permission to fly at 6000 feet when you are near a 7000 foot mountain. What was the air traffic controller thinking? What a tragedy of errors. Wasn’t there a flight plan? Didn’t they know where they were going? This is ridiculous.”
“Pilot, do you mind if we drop down a bit so I can get some pictures of the volcano?”
Pilot to co-pilot: “You know this isn’t ending well.”
“Wasn’t there a flight plan? Didn’t they know where they were going? This is ridiculous.”
Being a short sales demo flight, I doubt they were on an instrument flight plan. More likely they were showing off the plane under visual flight rules, making the crew entirely responsible for traffic and terrain avoidance.
If they were attempting to remain clear of clouds with the descent to 6000, it suggests that the mountain tops were obscured.
Really easy to smack into something at 480 mph, when you’re flying in a mountainous area and you can’t see what’s in front.
Only the guys on the flight deck know what happened for sure. And they’re no longer talking. Sad.
Not really on the controller...pilot had crap for brains.