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Pilot Error
Veteran crash investigator Nick Phillips has discovered evidence of fatal pilot error often enough to expect it. But when a private jet slams into a ridgeline, a far more disturbing possibility emerges.
Nick's career-obsessed boss tries to remove him as head of the investigation team. His replacement? The boss's clone, a quintessential minion who will do anything to climb the bureaucratic ladder. It's an unusual move, and Nick's personal radar takes notice.
The owner-pilot faced indictment for war crimes as the leader of an anti-terror assassination squad. What if he signed his own death warrant with his well-publicized threats to implicate the high-level government officials who sanctioned his targets?
Nick suspects a cover-up in the making. The victim's legendary reputation as a mediocre aviator is a perfect smokescreen to conceal airborne murder behind an expeditious finding of pilot error.
But it's not going to happen on Nick's watch. They have no idea who they're dealing with.
And neither does Nick . . .
Nick's career-obsessed boss tries to remove him as head of the investigation team. His replacement? The boss's clone, a quintessential minion who will do anything to climb the bureaucratic ladder. It's an unusual move, and Nick's personal radar takes notice.
The owner-pilot faced indictment for war crimes as the leader of an anti-terror assassination squad. What if he signed his own death warrant with his well-publicized threats to implicate the high-level government officials who sanctioned his targets?
Nick suspects a cover-up in the making. The victim's legendary reputation as a mediocre aviator is a perfect smokescreen to conceal airborne murder behind an expeditious finding of pilot error.
But it's not going to happen on Nick's watch. They have no idea who they're dealing with.
And neither does Nick . . .
383 pages, Paperback
First published November 14, 2011
145 people are currently reading
88 people want to read
About the author
Tosh McIntosh
29 books7 followersTosh McIntosh's Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology is analogous to the turn signal on a classic, 1960s automobile owned since new by the kind of inconsiderate driver we all love to hate. It's never been used.
Following graduation from the University of Washington in Seattle, Tosh entered the Air Force with the intention of serving a four-year commitment as a pilot before deciding what he really wanted to do with the remainder of his professional life. One ride in a jet trainer consigned that plan to the scrap heap.
Twenty years of flying jet fighters (including two combat tours) remain the highlight of his aviation career. Another twenty years as a commercial airline and corporate pilot and current enjoyment of sport aviation in light aircraft have embedded within him a passion for sharing with others his unique perspective of what it means to be an aviator.
Pilot Error is his first novel in a planned series that will interweave a life-long fascination with writing and thousands of flight hours in pursuit of one goal: to create stories that entertain and put readers up close and personal within his world of the cockpit.
Following graduation from the University of Washington in Seattle, Tosh entered the Air Force with the intention of serving a four-year commitment as a pilot before deciding what he really wanted to do with the remainder of his professional life. One ride in a jet trainer consigned that plan to the scrap heap.
Twenty years of flying jet fighters (including two combat tours) remain the highlight of his aviation career. Another twenty years as a commercial airline and corporate pilot and current enjoyment of sport aviation in light aircraft have embedded within him a passion for sharing with others his unique perspective of what it means to be an aviator.
Pilot Error is his first novel in a planned series that will interweave a life-long fascination with writing and thousands of flight hours in pursuit of one goal: to create stories that entertain and put readers up close and personal within his world of the cockpit.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 9, 2021
Maybe it was my expectations that let me down, but I was hoping this book was going to be a lot more nuts and bolts aviation-type stuff, when in actuality it was more of a Ludlum-esque thriller of a man running the gauntlet vs shadowy government figures and assassins. Even so, it did enough to maintain my interest and I suppose as a suspense/action novel, it was perfectly serviceable.
November 29, 2011
Nick Phillips is both a private pilot and an aviation accident investigator for NTSB with a passion for getting at the truth no matter where it leads. When he is pulled off the investigation of an air crash with serious political implications, his passion ratchets up a notch. When his family is threatened in order to make him back off, passion turns to obsession.
Wilson is a hired assassin with a passion for the details of his craft and plans for a luxurious retirement courtesy of a wealthy and powerful client with direct connections to the White House. When Nick Phillips gets in his way, a vicious personal duel erupts between the two obsessives putting in peril the lives and careers of both innocent bystanders and guilty conspirators.
The author, Tosh McIntosh is a retired USAF fighter pilot and it is readily apparent that he knows his stuff, particularly when it comes to understanding what it takes to keep a ridiculously complicated, much-heavier-than-air machine separated from the terrain for a satisfactory length of time, make it go where you want it to go, and get it back on the ground without breaking something.
“Pilot Error” is a mystery thriller filled with the technical and operational aspects of flying. Those of the techno-geek persuasion should enjoy it very much. Those more interested in the mystery thriller part should find the technical elements, though extensive and detailed, to be clearly explained in language most readers can understand. All readers should be impressed with how neatly these elements have been integrated into the plot. Thankfully, there is no pointless techno-babble cluttering up the story and spoiling the fun.
The plot itself is also carefully crafted with as much attention to detail as the harrowing description of the aircraft accident and the subsequent NTSB investigation into its cause.
I’m not qualified to testify as to the technical accuracy of “Pilot Error” but it certainly conveys the impression of complete accuracy. I happen to know the author personally and I know that if he writes something about flying he’s going to get it right.
Wilson is a hired assassin with a passion for the details of his craft and plans for a luxurious retirement courtesy of a wealthy and powerful client with direct connections to the White House. When Nick Phillips gets in his way, a vicious personal duel erupts between the two obsessives putting in peril the lives and careers of both innocent bystanders and guilty conspirators.
The author, Tosh McIntosh is a retired USAF fighter pilot and it is readily apparent that he knows his stuff, particularly when it comes to understanding what it takes to keep a ridiculously complicated, much-heavier-than-air machine separated from the terrain for a satisfactory length of time, make it go where you want it to go, and get it back on the ground without breaking something.
“Pilot Error” is a mystery thriller filled with the technical and operational aspects of flying. Those of the techno-geek persuasion should enjoy it very much. Those more interested in the mystery thriller part should find the technical elements, though extensive and detailed, to be clearly explained in language most readers can understand. All readers should be impressed with how neatly these elements have been integrated into the plot. Thankfully, there is no pointless techno-babble cluttering up the story and spoiling the fun.
The plot itself is also carefully crafted with as much attention to detail as the harrowing description of the aircraft accident and the subsequent NTSB investigation into its cause.
I’m not qualified to testify as to the technical accuracy of “Pilot Error” but it certainly conveys the impression of complete accuracy. I happen to know the author personally and I know that if he writes something about flying he’s going to get it right.
May 19, 2019
Finally, an accurate Aviation novel!
As an aviation professional it is refreshing to finally read a really good aviation themed story that did not make me cringe with the absurd inaccuracy regarding all things aviation related. Great read in general but will be especially enjoyable to airplane enthusiasts.
As an aviation professional it is refreshing to finally read a really good aviation themed story that did not make me cringe with the absurd inaccuracy regarding all things aviation related. Great read in general but will be especially enjoyable to airplane enthusiasts.
November 29, 2019
An Aviation Thriller
This is an aviation thriller from the get go!
While the capabilities, good fortunes, and multi-lives of a couple of characters might bear questioning, that is overcome by the entertainment value of this book.
A flyer myself, the aviation aspects are valid so far as I know.
This is an aviation thriller from the get go!
While the capabilities, good fortunes, and multi-lives of a couple of characters might bear questioning, that is overcome by the entertainment value of this book.
A flyer myself, the aviation aspects are valid so far as I know.
February 17, 2022
outstanding aviation thriller
I jumped in because I found what I thought was an aviation mystery. Yeah it was but with a major kick. Thoroughly enjoyed the great aviation details throughout. Although they missed the mark in some weapon details...I'll forgive them. Great read. Already bought book 2 in series....
I jumped in because I found what I thought was an aviation mystery. Yeah it was but with a major kick. Thoroughly enjoyed the great aviation details throughout. Although they missed the mark in some weapon details...I'll forgive them. Great read. Already bought book 2 in series....
June 21, 2018
Boring
It was boring. I ended up flipping through 20% of the content because I wasn’t engaged and looked for an interesting part. Slow.
It was boring. I ended up flipping through 20% of the content because I wasn’t engaged and looked for an interesting part. Slow.
December 19, 2019
Very long, but well worth the time
A few too many hair raising incidents, but each one was well developed. I look forward to checking out the next one.
A few too many hair raising incidents, but each one was well developed. I look forward to checking out the next one.
March 2, 2012
This novel starts off as a flight manual might. Then swiftly moves to the crash of an important government official holding many secrets of the U.S. Goverment. The early investigation tends to lead investigators to believe the crash was caused by pilot error. Though every effort is made to prove it was, Nick Phillips, a National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigator is out to prove it was murder. "It's the classic bulletproof syndrome in action."
The characters in this exciting novel are defined extremely well. One comes to know each one; some very likable, others to not be trusted. The techicalities of flying are amply described to let the reader know that flying solo in a small aircraft is not to be taken lightly. One minor error can change lives, and not just the pilot's.
A good read, exciting to the very end.
The characters in this exciting novel are defined extremely well. One comes to know each one; some very likable, others to not be trusted. The techicalities of flying are amply described to let the reader know that flying solo in a small aircraft is not to be taken lightly. One minor error can change lives, and not just the pilot's.
A good read, exciting to the very end.
August 1, 2013
If you are an aviation buff, you'll enjoy this debut thriller that takes a close look at how accidents are investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board. But the novel also is a character study of a crack NTSB investigator who lets nothing get in his way of finding out the truth, an evil assassin who cares nothing for anyone, and a small town reporter who trips over the big story of his career. Nicely done first novel in a series. We'll see more of Nick in Tosh's new book RED LINE.(less)
December 13, 2013
Most probably this guy knows all details about flying an aircraft but its noveling ability ends there. The plot is boring, at 40% of the book you know exactly what's going to happen in the remaining 60%. On more the way the plot is developed can only make you laugh. The bad guy of the story is "very, very" bad, straight from a cartoon I would say. He kills everybody on his path. The man who pays him to do all the killing is "very very" stupid, although "very very" powerful. And so on. Everybody is "very very" something. And the main character is "very very" ... nothing at all.
November 18, 2011
When a transportation safety investigator gets a little too close to the real answers on what appears to be an accidental plane crash, his determination to expose a cover-up puts him in the path of a killer.
Told with the accuracy only a pilot could provide, particularly in a crazy dogfight between two small airplanes, Tosh McIntosh's action-drenched thriller has the twists and turns you'd expect from an air show to the death.
Told with the accuracy only a pilot could provide, particularly in a crazy dogfight between two small airplanes, Tosh McIntosh's action-drenched thriller has the twists and turns you'd expect from an air show to the death.
April 5, 2017
A good plot.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews