During what was supposed to be another routine flight, Dan Bass encountered the unthinkable. Tune in as he shares his story and how Lightspeed Delta Zulu would have been a game changer with alerting him to this undetected threat and unexpected situation.
Stay Safe with CO Monitoring
The Lightspeed Delta Zulu combines Lightspeed’s superior ANR, comfort, and quality with lifesaving technology. Its built-in carbon monoxide detector is always on and always monitoring, in any plane you fly, alerting you to problems before disaster happens.
Learn more about the Lightspeed Delta Zulu.
This story really hits home with me. I had a similar issue where the exhaust was blowing into the cabin from a cracked muffler and I started to pass out. Luckily, I had the stick on CO card and noticed the normal yellow dot was black and immediately shut off the heat and opened the vent window. Those cards give a failed sense of security though. It all happened so fast that there was no way I would have noticed it changing to black even though it was in my scan area. This was in solid IMC and then had to shoot an approach. This was extremely difficult. (I believe I still have the ATC recording from this) I had headaches after for a very long time. I bought this headset as soon as it came out and won’t fly without it. I also have an audible CO device as a backup. I am thankful to Lightspeed releasing this feature!
I met Dan Bass at an FAA Wings Seminar. Having heard his carbon monoxide survival story changed my thinking towards this seemingly unlikely scenario. I have become an advocate of quality CO detection equipment and I was thrilled when Lightspeed chose to include this lifesaving technology in a headset. This eliminates the failure mode of portable CO detectors where you forget to turn it on or replace the batteries.
This video will definitely stick in my mind for quite some time. Thank you Dan and Lightspeed for sharing this remarkable story with one unbelievably lucky ending!
What an incredible story! Thankfully Dan is still alive to tell us the story of how quickly CO poisoning can become a life threatening issue. I definitely fly with a greater peace of mind with the Lightspeed Delta Zulu headset!
When I learned of this Minnesota Mooney pilot who had been overcome by Carbon Monoxide (CO), I leanred he had In fact, due to CO poisoning he had passed out in a flight from Duluth, Minnesota and crashed his Mooney M20C, the same make and model as mine. Miraculously, he had lived to talk about it.
I recognized his name. Dan Bass, from Winona, MN. I called Dan and had intense discussion to learn details. He described this incident which including passing out on his third flight of the day due to an exhaust system leak that let CO enter his Mooney cockpit. He told me about the symptoms he experienced, what he had learned and his belief that all pilots should fly with CO detectors.
I came to a firm conviction that day to purchase and utilize on each flight a quality CO detector. Dan advised me that a this decision could be a life saver.
While the inexpensive cardboard type of detector in which the spot changes color is useful, for me I need a quality detector. Whatever you use, plan to use it on every flight.
Recently you may have noticed that U.S. crash investigators are urging the Federal Aviation Administration to require private planes to be equipped with carbon monoxide detectors, citing deadly crashes that were attributed to poisoning by the odorless gas. The National Transportation Safety Board said in February 2022 that it identified thirty-one accidents since 1982 involving carbon monoxide poisoning, including twenty-three fatal crashes that killed forty-two people and seriously injured four others.
Need more convincing. I hope not. Please acquire and use a quality CO detector on each and every general aviation flight. Better yet, get the new LightSpeed Delta Zulu headset with a C.O. detector built in.
I was on the edge of my seat for this story! My heart dropped when I saw the picture of the wrecked airplane. It’s incredible that he survived. Thank you for sharing your story Dan. Seeing what Lightspeed has done to help make the cockpit a safer place is just another reason I love this brand.