 |
Matronics Email Lists
Web Forum Interface to the Matronics Email Lists
|
| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
jghunter(at)nol.net
Guest
|
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
Russ Kinne
Joined: 27 Jan 2006
Posts: 182
|
 Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2007 1:25 pm Post subject: Off field landings - |
 |
|
More than one of us are!
do not archive
On Jan 2, 2007, at 2:52 PM, jam-n wrote:
| Quote: |
well, some of us r waiting... 
~barnstormer~
There was another adventure that same weekend at that little strip
where
I almost wrecked the plane and would possibly (probably) have killed 3
of us, but that'll hafta wait for another time.
Lar.
Do not Archive.
|
| | - The Matronics Kolb-List Email Forum - | | | Use the List Feature Navigator to browse the many List utilities available such as the Email Subscriptions page, Archive Search & Download, 7-Day Browse, Chat, FAQ, Photoshare, and much more:
http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?Kolb-List |
|
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
biglar
Joined: 14 Jan 2006
Posts: 457
|
| Posted: Tue Jan 02, 2007 4:06 pm Post subject: Off field landings - |
|
|
Yah, OK, this is the 2nd of 3 boneheaded stunts I pulled when new to the
sport and somehow survived. I most certainly did learn from them, tho'.
The day after flying into that little 2500' dirt strip, my buddy and his son
wanted to go for an airplane ride, so I obliged them. The day was warm, in
the 70's, altitude a little over 3,000 ft msl, one way strip was moderately
uphill for takeoff, but with a bluff at the end that dropped away. Landing
there was kind of like coming into a downhill funnel, with the heavy 2nd
growth timber down the sides and at the end. Anyway, my buddy is big -
around 250, and his son about 220, and me at that time a little over 200.
The C-172 was low on gas, but figuring flight time to Weippe, time needed to
get to Lewiston to refuel, and dipping the tanks to double check, I figured
I had plenty for a quick go-round of the town. (when I fueled up at
Lewiston, ID the next day, I turned out to be right on the money on my fuel
estimate)
It took that 172 a long, bumpy time to start trying to fly and it finally
staggered into the air fairly near the end of the runway. Suction on the
seat was helping lift by then. We made a circuit of the little (pop 700)
town and lined up for landing. Mindful of the perk holes in the grassy
beginning of the strip, I landed fairly long, with 20 deg flaps. With the
bumpy strip, heavy load, higher altitude (I'd only ever flown out of sea
level strips at that time) and inexperienced pilot, I came in fast and
sinking fast. Plane bounced waaaay up on 1st touch and it looked like a
long way back down to that downhill strip, so instead of bringing it back
down and standing on the brakes, I hit the throttle and went for it. The
plane didn't climb. I'd had a bad experience with retracting flaps on a
go-round at Sequim Valley shortly before this, and knew the plane would sink
some if I retracted. Gritted my teeth, and hung on, realizing by then that
I'd made a bad boo-boo.
The end of the strip was coming up fast, and we were only about 1/2 way up
the trees. We were hanging on the prop with the stall warning buzzing
softly, and I'd had lots of practise with that. I knew we were going to
crash, so I reached for the throttle and started looking for a gap in the
trees to aim for and hope to take the wings off to slow the crash. Fuel was
low, so I wasn't too worried about fire. But - it was un-thinned heavy 2nd
growth, maybe 100 ft tall coming up, and there were no gaps, just a solid
wall of tree trunks, and fire suddenly got more important. All this seemed
in slow motion.
About then I saw light to the left out of the corner of my eye. Looked
over, and someone had built a house there, with a garage behind it, and had
cleared the bigger trees out, and just left some little ones for decoration.
The picture of that lovely gap is burned into my brain. I eased that plane
around and flew right thru those little treetops and went between the house
and garage. No idea if there was anyone there or not - I was totally
focused. Lifted a wingtip over a tree, then one the other way, flew thru
more treetops and came out into a little valley. Retracted the flaps, aimed
down valley and looked over at my buddy.
He was backed up tight to the door, with his arm across his son in the back
seat. I asked him why he was sitting that way, and he said "I knew we were
in bad trouble, and if he even flinched to distract you, I was gonna whop
him." OK, on the 2nd try, I touched 'er down like a feather, brought it
back to park.........and started shaking. Fun to look back on, but it
wasn't very funny at the time. Lar.
Do not Archive.
Larry Bourne
Santa Fe, NM
www.gogittum.com
---
| | - The Matronics Kolb-List Email Forum - | | | Use the List Feature Navigator to browse the many List utilities available such as the Email Subscriptions page, Archive Search & Download, 7-Day Browse, Chat, FAQ, Photoshare, and much more:
http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?Kolb-List |
|
_________________
Larry Bourne
Palm Springs, CA
Building Kolb Mk IIIC
"Vamoose" |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
You cannot attach files in this forum
You can download files in this forum
|
Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group
|
Get Email Distribution Too!
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
