"Greg Farris" wrote in message
...
What amazes me is that people never tire of lamenting how bad it "could
have
been".
....
No kidding

"If the playing field had been swarming with kids that day..." Of course
no
one stops to think that in the mind of a pilot, looking for a spot to put
it,
"a field swarming with kids" does not have the same value as " a large,
empty
field".

See below for a first hand narration covering exactly that situation (It
wasn't me, BTW)

Another really funny (as in funny stupid) about the article that Mr. Loone
quoted was the claim that the wind had prevented the aircraft from
climbing - WTF, Over? Was the reporter on drugs or just plain stupid? fwiw,
per the FAA accident report:

WEATHER: HIE 1552Z AUTO 23008KT 200V270 10SM BKN029 BKN044 17/08 A2937

That's not even enough wind to fly a kite.

Anyhow, as promised, what another pilot did when faced with an engine
failure on a school day (when all else fails, merge):

Begin Quote:

I was talking to Detroit Metro tower, circling over a densely populated site
8 miles east of Detroit Metro (DTW) airport in a borrowed airplane when the
engine started to run rough. After application of carburetor heat, the
engine ran slightly better, then rough again. Full throttle and mixture
were applied to no effect. It was at that time that I announced to the
Metro tower cab that I was not able to maintain altitude and was going to
have to "set it down". They gave me the wind data and said they would
inform emergency services about the situation. I was only 1500 feet above
the ground and because the Cessna 152 has at a glide ratio of 7:1 which
yields 2 miles in range and 90 seconds to touchdown although the engine was
intermittently producing some power which helped to extend my glide
somewhat. In my view to the South West were several options: 1st a school
yard, too small and what about the kids? 2nd and further away was an
industrial area with a snow covered field. Snow covered fields may look good
from afar but what lurks beneath? Nonetheless that was my goal with I-75
below me along the way i traveled Southwest bound with the vehicular
traffic, and into the wind. Aware that I wouldn't make the 2nd option I
concentrated on I-75. Over the freeway I settled earthward, lower and lower
until I became aware of huge power transmission lines paralleling my flight
path, the tops of which were now at my altitude, and 50 yards to my right.
Also prominent in view were the tops of cars and trucks but more
importantly, open areas of concrete looming closer below. Since my airspeed
was roughly equal to the speed of the moving traffic I was able to adjust my
relative position for and aft pushing and pulling on the yoke to drop into
an opening between the vehicles and eventually settled down onto the
pavement in the flair between the cars. I was careful to let the Cessna
roll as far as I could so that the traffic behind could avoid hitting me.
The Engine had stopped some time ago.

I got lucky because there was not a scratch on the aircraft, nor any fender
benders in any of the 6 miles of traffic which had eventually accumulated
behind me.

After getting out of the aircraft the first eye contact I made with and
individual was a woman passing by in a sport utility vehicle flipping me
off! To her I say, in the words of Steve Martin, "Well Excuse Me!!!"

End Quote


--
Geoff
The Sea Hawk at Wow Way d0t Com
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