Mayday this morning..

[iWantWings]

Tony KOVE is about 12 miles by car to where the plane is..

http://www.khsltv.com/content/local...rth-State-Highway/glOXQHqkmEKAe--MRJsejA.cspx

thanks for posting the link, i was curious to listen to the pilot speak. here's a quote fom the news article:

** Jim, and John both credit John's 30 years of experience for the successful landing. John told our crews "it matters a lot. I've got about 2300 hours, and I fly fire recon, so I do a lot of low level flying."​

 

[CaptLabrador]

Here is some protocol: "Cherokee" or "Cherokee 140" are the same thing. All other Cherokees require a qualifier in the name Cherokee 180; Cherokee 235; Cherokee 6/260; Cherokee 6/300; Cherokee Arrow (RG).

Cherokee Arrow PA28-180 and -200, im sure the complex systems of the aircraft add considerably to the weight.

 

[LDJones]

When I worked for Al Martin there were several incidents like this where we would bring a 'loaner engine" from the inventory out to location, swap them, cops would block the road and I'd fly out. One was in a farmers front yard, a 172 the farmer came out and drove down T-posts to tie it down. When I was leaving he asked how much he could get an old plane to have for a lawn ornament, he kinda liked it. I trailered out a 170 I had ferried in a few weeks earlier for annual that basically was condemned due to corrosion and stripped of usable parts. We bolted on the wings and struts real quick and I gave him a prop that he could build a quick mount for. He asked "how much"? I told him he and his wife had already paid for it in hospitality as they fed and watered us as we worked. He was tickled to have it.

Great story.

A guy I met at a Mooney convention told a story about putting his M20C down onto a narrow mountain road in NM on land owned by an Indian farmer. The guy road up on his horse to see what was going on, then got them a ride into town. They asked if the plane would be okay. He said, "I'm the crazy Indian around here...no one will dare come near."

They went home to TX, arranged for a new engine and trailered it and lots of tools back out there. As they were doing the swap they heard gun shots. Then the Indian farmer road up. He said, "Oh, it's you! I thought someone was messing with your plane!" They then knew it had been safe the whole time.

They finished the field swap and flew it off the same road.

 

[LDJones]

This does not sound right....maybe you should fly with a Cherokee pilot to see how its done.

The Hershey bar wings don't glide quite as well as the tapered wings, but they're certainly not a homesick manhole cover.

 

[Arbiter419]

I was gonna say that will buff right out, but after looking at the case, they will definitely need some bondo.

 

[weilke]

*Clap Clap* It's good to see a relatively happy end result for once. I'm curious though, what will insurance normally cover in a situation like this.

They cover whatever you bent on the landing and whatever you had to spend to get the plane trucked to a shop. They dont cover the engine.

 

[weilke]

I'm not sure the wing needs to be removed. On a trailer the wings 30' tip to tip, might be able to move it at night (early morning) with guide car like they do when they move homes...not sure how far to a field?

My secretary helped her husband to move a 172 down about 50 miles of state highways at night. He had decided that as the plane would be based at his farm-strip, it was a farm implement. As he didn't need a special permit to move farm implements on state highways, he figured he wouldn't need a permit to move a plane . He was a fun character.

 

[spiderweb]

Lances (the plane not the persons) glide just fine. Pilots have a tendency to underestimate the glide ratio of airplanes with high best glide speeds because they have a proportionately high sink rate.

Thanks for the response, Lance! I am sure your glide ratio is incredible!

You're right, of course, that PA-32s are not all that bad as far as glide ratios. Reviewing the POH, I see that the ratio is not bad, at all. My error was, as you pointed out, due to my confusion with Vg speeds and landing speeds.

 

[Henning]

Henning, with your permission, I am going to quote you, and use it as a tag line.

Sure, no worries.

 

[supernovae]

Same engine as in a 172. Safety is an illusion demanded by those delusional enough to think they can cheat death. There is nothing safe about aviation, you just either deal with the emergencies or die, simple as that.

Isn't the somewhat standardized/trained methods of dealing with the emergencies what makes aviation "safe"? The fact pilots have lots of training, check rides, maintenance schedules and such definitely leans towards the safety side of the equation.

I mean, last I checked, the physics of flight happen regardless.. its not like mother nature changes her ways mid stream

but of course, there are issues you can't fly out of.. CH601's falling apart mid flight, you can just hope its a quick and painless death or wish that you had that chute installed.

I'm an avid cyclist (bicycle..).. i guess i cheat death on multiple fronts.

 

[Pinstriper]

In his interview with the local paper he stated that one reason he chose that stretch of the highway was that there was a small meadow off to one side. If a car or truck came down the road then his next move would be land in the meadow. Also he touched on the fact that he used his checklist on the way down..
He said he lost power at 10k.. Where he landed is about 800-1,000'., so he had plenty of time.. I hope I'm as cool headed if I'm ever in that predicament.

 

[Marauder]

Isn't the somewhat standardized/trained methods of dealing with the emergencies what makes aviation "safe"? The fact pilots have lots of training, check rides, maintenance schedules and such definitely leans towards the safety side of the equation.

I mean, last I checked, the physics of flight happen regardless.. its not like mother nature changes her ways mid stream

but of course, there are issues you can't fly out of.. CH601's falling apart mid flight, you can just hope its a quick and painless death or wish that you had that chute installed.

I'm an avid cyclist (bicycle..).. i guess i cheat death on multiple fronts.

Ah, another cyclist! Between the text messengers in cars and the dogs, I know what you mean! Any of us who have dealt with an inflight emergency of this nature will tell you that practicing and handling an emergency can be quite a different experience. The first thing that happens is the surprise and the ensuing reaction. One old time pilot told me that if I ever had an inflight emergency, the first thing I would smell would be raw adrenaline. He was was right.

From there, I think it all depends on you as an individual, the training you had (and practice) and the severity of the emergency. Throw in a couple of curves in this pilot's emergency and the outcome could have been substantially different.

 

[Henning]

In his interview with the local paper he stated that one reason he chose that stretch of the highway was that there was a small meadow off to one side. If a car or truck came down the road then his next move would be land in the meadow. Also he touched on the fact that he used his checklist on the way down..
He said he lost power at 10k.. Where he landed is about 800-1,000'., so he had plenty of time.. I hope I'm as cool headed if I'm ever in that predicament.

You either will be, or you will disassociate from the whole scene like all three pilots of AF447, it all depends on how you're wired.

 

[Henning]

Isn't the somewhat standardized/trained methods of dealing with the emergencies what makes aviation "safe"? The fact pilots have lots of training, check rides, maintenance schedules and such definitely leans towards the safety side of the equation.

I mean, last I checked, the physics of flight happen regardless.. its not like mother nature changes her ways mid stream

but of course, there are issues you can't fly out of.. CH601's falling apart mid flight, you can just hope its a quick and painless death or wish that you had that chute installed.

I'm an avid cyclist (bicycle..).. i guess i cheat death on multiple fronts.

It depends on how you react to imminent death emergencies. All the training in the world will not help if you just sit there in disbelief.

 

[Geico266]

It depends on how you react to imminent death emergencies. All the training in the world will not help if you just sit there in disbelief.

My first engine out occurred the instant I locked a door handle that was not quite latched all the way. For the life of me, I could not figure out why moving that door handle to the fully locked position caused the engine to quit.

Obviously, it had nothing to do with the engine quiting, it was a coincidence proving your point graphically. I believe "disbelief" is a major factor in fatal crashes. Training, practice, and situational awareness is everything. The aversion to landing off field is another.

Watch your airspeed, pick a spot and put it down. If you find a better spot on the way down fine, but commit to landing below 1,500' agl. Don't try the "impossible turn", and don't argue with an engine that quits.

To the OP!

A hearty "Well done".

 

[Jim_R]

...don't argue with an engine that quits.

Considering that there are plenty of NTSB reports of folks who landed off-field with a dead engine, only to discover post-flight that the engine started up and ran just fine using the fuel in the other tank (after the first one ran dry), I think a limited amount of arguing is worthwhile if time (altitude) allows.

 

[supernovae]

It depends on how you react to imminent death emergencies. All the training in the world will not help if you just sit there in disbelief.

Very true!

I watched that one flat spin video on youtube where the dude was like "Welp, looks like this is it" but managed to pull out and hang it in only to be caught by barbed wire.. but it looks like he's back and flying and learned from that mistake.

 

[Geico266]

Considering that there are plenty of NTSB reports of folks who landed off-field with a dead engine, only to discover post-flight that the engine started up and ran just fine using the fuel in the other tank (after the first one ran dry), I think a limited amount of arguing is worthwhile if time (altitude) allows.

Feel better now?

 

[Jaybird180]

When I worked for Al Martin there were several incidents like this where we would bring a 'loaner engine" from the inventory out to location, swap them, cops would block the road and I'd fly out. One was in a farmers front yard, a 172 the farmer came out and drove down T-posts to tie it down. When I was leaving he asked how much he could get an old plane to have for a lawn ornament, he kinda liked it. I trailered out a 170 I had ferried in a few weeks earlier for annual that basically was condemned due to corrosion and stripped of usable parts. We bolted on the wings and struts real quick and I gave him a prop that he could build a quick mount for. He asked "how much"? I told him he and his wife had already paid for it in hospitality as they fed and watered us as we worked. He was tickled to have it.

That was really high-class of you Henning. Proud o ya' boi!