Colgan Air statement on pilot training

Colgan Air released the following statement on Wednesday afternoon regarding flight crew training.

Statement from Colgan Air regarding flight crew training

There have been a number of news reports stating that Captain Marvin Renslow and First Officer Rebecca Shaw did not receive training specifically to deal with the situation that confronted him in the seconds before the accident involving Flight 3407. These news reports are inaccurate.

Colgan Air is issuing this statement to clarify this inaccuracy in news reports about the accident and the hearing at the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) into the accident.

In fact, Colgan’s FAA-approved training program does provide comprehensive training on the stall warning system during initial Q400 ground school as well as annual recurrent ground school. In addition, a pilot does indeed receive hands-on experience in the flight simulator on the proper response to stick shaker activation, despite news reports to the contrary.

Like all Colgan pilots, Captain Renslow and First Officer Shaw had thorough initial and recurrent training on how to recognize an impending stall situation through the stick shaker and how to recognize the aircraft’s response to a possible stall. This training is consistent with programs and training equipment employed at all major air carriers.

Captain Renslow and First Officer Shaw did know what to do, had repeatedly demonstrated they knew what to do, but did not do it. We cannot speculate on why they did not use their training in dealing with the situation they faced.

Since the accident, Colgan has also instituted stick pusher demonstrations in a flight simulator, despite the fact that flight simulator training on this issue is not required by the FAA and is not standard in the airline industry. This is one of a number of additions that Colgan has made to its training and safety programs in the wake of the accident.

For more information, visit www.colganair.com for a newly posted, comprehensive list of Frequently Asked Questions that clarifies additional information about the accident involving Flight 3407.

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