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Checklists, redux

It’s actually a little hard to know what to make of this one. The lack of obvious reaction after landing would almost lead one to believe that this had been intentional gear-up landing, but the casual conversation in the side slipping approach to land argues otherwise.

I wonder what that annoying beeping sound was?

GUMP.

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20 comments to Checklists, redux

  • Intentional gear up IMO. The person taping the landing and the guy in the right seat not did not get energized by the gear up warning (How could all three, pilot and pax miss it) and the rear seater was obviously ready to capture footage from each of the side windows.

    Here’s a few more examples of pilots sliding in for a landing including a good video of a Beech 1900 ,a nice clip with sparks and flame of a Hawker 125 jet. and a very expensive one in the Bone at $7.9M in repairs.

    • StupidSNA

      I agree that it looks intentional because of the side window footage, but as for all three missing the warning, read enough reports of just that happening to not discount it.

    • Mike B

      This happened at an airport where I used to base my airplane.

      According to the airport manager, unintentional.

  • UndergradProgressive

    I hate to bother, but is a gears-up landing possible on a carrier? I can’t imagine that it’d be done without the barricade…?

    • MaxDamage

      A gear-up landing is possible on a carrier, but not darned likely. At the speeds modern jets go a gear-up landing is going to prang the airframe so badly the chances of even having usable parts is miniscule. Damage to the pilot is almost certain, damage to the deck (which a lot of other aircraft would really like to use and, oh yeah, the sole reason for the ship to be afloat) will place the ship out of action for several hours at least. Add in the fact that you’re now dropping an aluminum can of kerosene onto the most expensive real estate in the world and I can’t think of a person who would even want to attempt it.

      Best option is send up a tanker to escort the failed aircraft to a runway that can’t be harmed much by fire and won’t sink. Second-best is to ditch a $30 million dollar aircraft. The nice part on this is when the CO calls the Admiral at 2am, the first thing the Admiral thinks when picking up the phone is that a $4Bn carrier is on fire and sinking fast. When told the ship is saved and it only cost one airplane, the Admiral may very well feel relieved. One can hope, anyway.

      While watching the Blue Angels perform in Sioux Falls today a nearby spectator wondered aloud what it cost to put on their show. My response was, “Well, it’s about $30 million per aircraft, couple of million each to train the pilots, so what’s a thousand dollars in kerosene and a couple of hundred in paint? Better they spend it on this than on more television advertisements.”

      Which, for the record, the show was stellar as always.

      – Max

  • lex

    If you have a stub main or nose landing gear, they’ll take you in the barricade if you can’t be diverted ashore. I believe that if you can’t get any of the wheels down and you’re outside divert range they’ll probably bring you alongside for an ejection.

  • Comjam

    I’m guessing unintentional; most checklists for intentional gear up in GA aircraft call for you to cut the engine in close so you don’t destroy the prop and engine. This looks to be one of those that brings out a “Jumpin’ Jeehozaphat!” from ol’ Grampa Pettibone.

    VR,
    Comjam

  • On ground gear up must be painful. American jet takes an ungraceful bow Jul 24, 2009 : http://tiny.cc/xbkn2

  • Byron

    You know, I could almost believe this was intentional except that I never heard the motor cut out. From what I’ve heard, it’s a must do for an semi-controlled crash landing.

  • Asphalt with no gear? Didn’t anyone want a grassy runway or a nice smooth lawn between two runways? Grass doesn’t spark as much as flinty aggregate… or so I was told.

  • Recommendations for wheelsup intentional (engine dead at flare; fuel OFF etc.) usually stress the runway or hard surface should be used because that is usually pot hole or soft ground free. Otherwise grass (if not a proper grass strip) may have drainage ditches & other hazards not found on a proper runway.

  • G-man

    Agree with unintentional since none of the gear up landing checklist accomplished or verbalized. Of course, our local USAF fly club had an unintentional in the 172RG several months ago so it does happen, and yes the gear warning horn was blaring in the cockpit the whole time. Figure at $25 a month dues we’re in the hole with this guy for the next 100 years.

  • George V.

    If that loud beep was a warning about the gear being up, any chance that the beep alarm is not transmitted into the headsets? There was conversation up until final so maybe not thinking much about landing until they got in close. Good quality headset would damp out a lot of noise including that annoying beep telling you something isn’t quite right. If Mr. Camera Guy had a headset on also he might not have heard it either.

    George V.

  • The reported story from the back seat videographer:”There was a snow storm approaching in about an hour and we were doing a check ride. Because of possible ice, we had been flying with the gear down the entire time. We started doing touch and goes after a while. Habit when you take off is to raise the gear. This is what happened. So, when we come around, they were conversing and what not and simply forgot the gear was up.”I’m not gonna criticize the pilots at all, because if I do, I am guaranteeing that I’ll forget to put the gear down”.

  • Rob

    I can only guess the cockpit audio was on overhead and didnt fill the pilot & nav ears? The 182 can have messed up audio. How else did they screw up?

    Passing this idea on from another: The warning beep is the gear up horn. In the 182RG and 177RG the horn goes off whenever you reduce the manifold pressure below a certain value (i.e., bring the throttle back). Probably other machines too, but the 182 and 177 are the only two RG’s I’ve flown.

    These two yahoos were either deliberately trying to land gear up ( and judging from the grinding noise, they succeeded) or were ignorant/oblivious to the noise. Since I flew without Insurance back in those days , I was aware of impending bankruptcy every time I reduced power to land.

    Once, on a 177RG stage check ride at HFD, my CFI pulled the landing gear circuit breaker on downwind while I wasn’t looking , to see how long it would take for me to realize/take action. I lost about 10 seconds doing the “What in Hell is that noise?” routine before it dawned on me that (1) I had lowered the gear handle but the gear wasn’t coming down, and (2) it was time to go around and sort things out ,and (3) rerun the Before Landing checklist , (4) confirm the electric motor wasn’t going to work on this ride , (5) shoot the CFI a questioning , then a dirty , look when he (also) pointed at the circuit breaker and shook his head (6) start pumping the gear down once I was back on downwind. About 38 strokes to get the main gear to lock. (long downwind….) Such things do make an impression on one.

    Also, in the 182RG, the gear up horn would sound while in the (power-back) gliding descent to pattern altitude. Just another warning to be aware of.

  • dan in michigan

    I saw an A-7 do an intentional gear up (one main mount)at Diego Garcia in the early eighties. He couldn’t refuel and had enough fuel for one pass only. He used the arresting gear. They picked it up with a crane, dropped the gear and flew it out the next day!

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