Vision - Is it Reliable

Down here in sunny South Carolina there are many trails that folks walk to just relax and get away from it all. If you regularly hike these trails the odds are you actually stepped over a Copperhead. No warning from these creatures. Their coloration pattern allows them to blend perfectly with the leaves and debris along a wooded nature trail. Sometimes you step on them and their bites account for the majority of bites treated in local hospitals. Very shy and difficult to provoke a strike but, thankfully, the venom is not life threatening but very painful. Visual Illusions abound in nature.

Another is a spotted fawn and other animals. If they remain motionless they are very difficult to spot.

In flight, camouflage used during wartime, protected important targets from discovery. What you see is not what is actually there. Entire encampments were disguised as serene villages when seen from the air.

For you and I visual illusions, especially under stress, can happen while flying. This is especially true in night flights. The "familiar" suddenly becomes the "unfamiliar."

Your instructor can provide other examples in Ground School.