Dangerous Radios

By Bill Korbel

My wife gave me a portable VHF aviation radio for Christmas.  With it I can listen to pilots and air traffic controllers, but even more important, it serves as a backup communication source when I fly.  Even though there are two radios in my plane, there is always the remote possibility that electrical problems could knock them both out.  In good weather, it's not a problem, but when flying in bad weather, communication is vital. 

Anyway, I had no idea how dangerous these radios can be.  I'm serious.  I understand there is a certain amount risk when flying, but little did I know that the most dangerous part of flying is associated with a seemingly harmless radio.

In the instruction booklet I found no fewer than 25 .. that's TWENTY FIVE, warnings of terrible things that can happen while using the radio.  There were cautions, warnings and some very ominous "Danger, Never" things to watch out for.  I've attached a photo if you don't believe me. 

 Do I really have to be told to never put the battery in a microwave oven or not to hit it with a hammer?  I'm serious. There are far fewer warnings in the aircraft operations manual and call me silly, but I would think 3,000 pounds of aluminum moving at 175 mph would in theory be more dangerous then a one pound radio.   It seems that in 2008, lawyers always have the last word. 

Comments

[Joe]

Kinda like a spackle bucket...

Danger: Risk of drowning - children can fall into this and drown. Or on a coffee cup: "Caution - contents are hot".

You think?

[tommy]

Bill, you've got to figure that if there's a warning in there not to put the battery in the microwave, it's there because some idiot did just that and blew up the kitchen. Following that event, some lawyer sued the manufacturers and cleaned up because the manual didn't say "Don't microwave the battery." Even as we speak, some moron somewhere is doing something remarkably stupid that will result in the list being lengthend.

[John]

Consider it an added Christmas gift. I'm personally fond of trying to guess the situation where the warning would be a good idea. For example, if the battery (contrary to that other rule, tsk-tsk) got wet and froze overnight, someone not particularly bright might think about heating it up or whacking it with a mallet. Actually, there are a lot of situations where whacking gadgets with a hammer seems like a really good idea...satisfying, if not prone to helping.

And to be fair to the lawyers, when you got your pilot's license, you probably spent a few weeks or months learning an entire shopping list of warnings, right? This list is probably shorter, when you think about it that way.