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  #46  
Old May 19th 15, 01:02 AM posted to rec.aviation.soaring
Mark628CA
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Posts: 145
Default Sacrificial layer for gear-up protection.

I heard of (but did not witness) an account of a pilot who forgot the gear in his glider, touched down several inches lower than recommended and had the presence of mind to pull back on the stick, simultaneously closing the spoilers, floated high enough to lower and lock the undercarriage, redeploy the spoilers and land with a normal rollout and stop. VERY minor damage to the belly of the glider. One can only hope that such presence of mind will occur to me when I (probably inevitably) screw up. Something to keep in mind- if you have some speed, are completely familiar with your aircraft and things are going to hell with grindy noises that will probably cost $300 per second, maybe a last minute save is possible. We have all landed, closed the spoilers and floated again, so a reasoned, planned and perhaps practiced response might give you enough time to get the round rubber thing out. Just a thought. Obviously a last chance scenario that should not replace proper training on landing checklists.