TWO STRIKES AND WALK AWAY
By RAF Director Bill Brine and the RAF's Safety, Education, and Etiquette Committee.
Too many backcountry accidents happen on the third approach. After two unsuccessful attempts at landing, the pilot is tired, anxious, behind the airplane, and making decisions with a brain that has been running down since the first go-around. The airstrip hasn’t gotten easier. Third time’s NOT a charm.
What’s driving this is cultural. Baseball is “three strikes, you’re out.” Could this thinking have joined us in the cockpit? We aren’t playing baseball out here. The backcountry does not give you that third strike. It gives you consequences.
Our RAF Code of Conduct calls on each of us to establish personal minimums based on sound aeronautical decision-making — before we need them. Decide your limits at the kitchen table. Write it down. Brief your passengers. Commit to it before you start the engine. That’s when the rule does its job and leads to that hoped-for experience you set out on.
Here is one worth considering: two attempts, fly away, head somewhere else. Not because your mission failed, but because you made a sound decision.
Flying away is not defeat. Head to your alternate. Land, shut down, and let everyone decompress. Unload gear, leave passengers, go back solo, or call it a day. Those are good outcomes.
Submitted June 15, 2026
Photo Credit: Scott Newpower
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