I've waited awhile to say my piece on the departed so here goes

[Aviation Pro]

Back in 2024, Kirk said the following about black airline pilots, "If I see a Black pilot, I'm going to be like, 'Boy, I hope he's qualified'." Now, I'm in the aviation training business, I've literally trained thousands of pilots in my quarter century in this profession. I've trained black pilots and each one of them, with few exceptions (like white pilots), have passed through the required levels of competency and certification through the work they put into their programs and gone on to stellar careers with the airlines.

So, you know what gnaws at me from that verifiable quote? The fact that the aviation accident that basically changed how pilots reach the right seat in the U.S., Colgan 3407, was commanded by a white-white-white, male pilot, who had to retest on every checkride he ever took and made the student pilot error of pulling back on the yoke in a stall. So, Kirk's statement shows that he had absolutely zero clue what he was talking about.

So, Rest in Peace, Charlie, but your legacy is the words you chose to use.