The Consequences Of Plane Crash In The Outliers By Malcolm Gladwell

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Though a rarity, every once in awhile, planes tend to crash and have serious issues due to problems that could have easily been avoided(183). In the novel the Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell, he explains why planes crash and how it can be prevented. He began this explanation by evaluating different plane crashes from airlines basing from Colombia and Korea. In both events, a series of miniature problems and lack of communication was a cause from the catastrophic events that follow. In the case of the Colombian airlines, the already 14 hours and 40-minute flight(Flight Time) was interrupted by a woman having a stroke causing them to land. Since they did not burn all their fuel, they had to “land heavy” or overweight making the landing much more …show more content…

In the next example, a Korean plane crash traveling to Guam parallels this scenario. On their way to Guam, an already exhausted plane captain and his co-pilot were attempting to land a plane into the airport. However, due to the combination of bad weather and darkness from nighttime, neither pilot could see where they were supposed to be landing. In the midst of their descent, a warning said that they were 500 feet from the ground(221). With this and the combination of the fact that they saw a VOR light, they continued to decent. Despite this though, the co-pilot still know that something was very wrong yet he did not do anything.It was later found “that is he has seized control in that moment, there would have been enough time to pull up the nose and clear Nimitz Hill”(222). All the pilot simply had to do was clearly express his concern and take over to save the flight. However, since he just sat there and tried to be polite, a handful of avoidable deaths arises. This is what is known as “mitigated speech, which is any attempt to downplay sugarcoat what is being said”(194). Gladwell believed that if the pilots did not use mitigated speech while advising their superiors of important matters than they would have been able to save the people in their …show more content…

The first thing that I will try to practice is the confidence to express what I feel is necessary to my superiors. If the pilots simply possessed this trait then none of the disasters would have even happened. I know that what I am trying to say will most likely not be the main factor in a life or death matter, but it could presumably determine whether an answer is correct or my beliefs are being carried through. Therefore when it comes to public speaking, I have to stand up for what I deem to be right. The second thing that I will take from this in regards to communicating is to stop making light of things. When I talk about certain things and beliefs, I tend to sugar coat them to a point where my main point can seem like nothing more than a frivolous idea. But after reading this, I realize I am not defending myself which though is fine in a school setting, could potentially hurt myself in a future career. After reading this I am not going to soften my beliefs in facts but not strengthen them so I can show the world what I believe and why it is

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