"RST Engineering" wrote in message I've got a REALLY stupid question
....
By the time you are flying something in the Navaho category you've got a
few
dozen hours behind the windshield...
and the Navaho has at least marginal single engine climb...

Not neccessarily- I just changed 2 jugs on a Navajo during a phase
inspection (AAIP maintenance program for 135 aircraft, no 50 or 100 hour
inspections). One cylinder was 27/80 and the other was worse. The pilots
didn't notice anything wrong. Being at gross weight on 4 cylinders in a
Navajo doesn't gain you altitude.

and the ******* wasn't on fire, just smoking...
and, in general, an engine smoking will stop smoking when you pull the
fuel
flow to the engine...

The fire may have been contained in the nacelle and therefore not visible to
others. I posted about this shortly after I crapped an engine in a Navajo
last Easter Sunday. Oil spray from the engine block was ignited by the hot
turbocharger. The flames stayed inside the cowling. The smoke did not.

why didn't he go around, single engine, drop the gear, and put it on the
runway?

You've been around airplanes long enough to know that just because someone
has a couple dozen hours behind the windshield doesn't mean that the pilot
knows anything about handling emergencies. Most of my charter pilots come to
me with 100 hours of twin-engine time or more. Many can't handle an engine
failure just after rotation. They were trained to pass a practical test, not
trained to save their butt.

D.