Best Glide

[gprellwitz]

MASTER................ON
FUEL GAUGES........CHECK
MASTER................OFF

Okay, how about we get rid of the first and third lines and reduce it to simply checking the fuel gauges? If the fuel gauges say 0 but the tanks weren't empty when I looked at them, I'll say "Duh," smack myself in the head, turn the master on and check the gauges. Not having those two items on the checklist cannot cause a safety of flight issue.

(emphasis mine) But leaving the master on after you check the fuel gauges could cause issues if you're called away from the plane and the battery runs down. Granted that it shouldn't happen without you securing the plane, but we know that stuff does happen. Plus, after checking the fuel gauges will come the walkaround, and I'd rather have the master off when checking the prop. I know, it shouldn't matter. I still want it off.

 

[flyingcheesehead]

(emphasis mine) But leaving the master on after you check the fuel gauges could cause issues if you're called away from the plane and the battery runs down. Granted that it shouldn't happen without you securing the plane, but we know that stuff does happen. Plus, after checking the fuel gauges will come the walkaround, and I'd rather have the master off when checking the prop. I know, it shouldn't matter. I still want it off.

If all I need the master on for is to check the fuel gauges, my finger won't leave the switch 'til it's off again. Flick, flick.

Edit: I actually don't do it this way anyway. Since our hangar is well away from the FBO, I check fuel and oil first in case I need to get the line guy to give me one or the other. Next, it's a check of the electrics so that the battery has a chance to recover before startup - Master on, lights on, pitot heat on, quick walk around to verify the lights are working, tap the lift detector to check the stall horn, grab the pitot heat to verify it's warming up, flaps down, fuel gauges checked, master off. THEN I do the rest of the inspection.

 

[PittsDriver]

right, which is why we should do the thinking now.

While we're thinking outside the rush of the moment, I'd say that I'm not sure I'd try for the airport in this case if there was any possible locations nearer to me. The #1 priority any time you're bringing an antigravity device back to earth is to hit things at the absolute minimum speed. The energy that has to be dissipated at 45 kts might be survivable. At 60kts, maybe not. So my thinking would be that it would be better to land into the wind in a field than hit the airport fence at stall + 15 kts ground speed.

The other thing that sometimes happens when engines quit is that hot oil starts flowing backward inside and outside the plane. Your comfort level and viz when the engine seized vs 30 seconds later might tell a very different story.

What was that quote on here a few days ago? Skin, tin, ticket.