Maydays this weekend

In article ,
"Mortimer Schnerd, RN" mschnerdatcarolina.rr.com wrote:

wrote:
The mention of fields and and furrows reminds me of the story from when
I was learning to fly at the University of Illinois, one of the Beech
Sports had an engine failure and they put it into a corn field in late
summer, and even though they walked away, the airframe was pretty much
beat to s__t by all the nice big ears of corn!
Note to self: don't put it into a corn field in late summer if I have a
choice!


Are you sure? It seems to me landing in a cornfield will guarantee you don't
hit a tree, don't drown, and will slow down rapidly but not too rapidly.
Your aircraft may get trashed but you can always get another. I don't care
about the airplane. I care about *me*.

Not to mention how quickly corn will bring your aircraft to a stop.

john smith wrote:
Are you sure? It seems to me landing in a cornfield will guarantee you
don't hit a tree, don't drown, and will slow down rapidly but not too
rapidly.
Your aircraft may get trashed but you can always get another. I don't
care about the airplane. I care about *me*.

Not to mention how quickly corn will bring your aircraft to a stop.

high crops are going to stop you real fast; and if you don't have
a shoulder harness you are going to get hurt. I haven't tried corn,
but did try with wheat, and it is a lot softer, and I wasn't going
too fast either (glider landing), yet I was really glad to have a
five point harness...

--Sylvain

Speaking of engine failure, what is the power off glide ratio of the
Pathfinder, Jay?

In technical terms, that would be known as a "load of sand" glide
ratio...

;-)

Although I take solace in noting that it's far better than a Swearingen
SX-300's glide ratio, which is in the "lead brick" category.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

"Jay Honeck" wrote

After seeing the picture (on Cherokee Chat) of the guy whose
crankshaft completely sheared in half while in CRUISE flight, you
really comprehend how many things can go wrong inside our engines...
(He landed safely -- incredibly, the engine was still making power!)

Wow! I would love to see some internal pictures and descriptions of that
engine. Any news reports or pilot blogs of the flight?

Was this one of the engines with the crankshaft retirement AD's?
--
Jim in NC

"john smith" wrote

Not to mention how quickly corn will bring your aircraft to a stop.

Or how an ear of corn coming through a windshield and hitting you in the head at
50 MPH will feel !
--
Jim in NC

In article .com,
"Jay Honeck" wrote:

Speaking of engine failure, what is the power off glide ratio of the
Pathfinder, Jay?

In technical terms, that would be known as a "load of sand" glide
ratio...

;-)

Although I take solace in noting that it's far better than a Swearingen
SX-300's glide ratio, which is in the "lead brick" category.

Jay,

The SX-300 has a great glide ratio -- considerably more than that
barndoor Piper! It just gets its best glide around 120 kt.

Wow! I would love to see some internal pictures and descriptions of that
engine. Any news reports or pilot blogs of the flight?

Was this one of the engines with the crankshaft retirement AD's?

NO! That's the most scary part...

I'll let you know as I hear more. (The pix are on the Cherokee Chat
site, but you have to be a member to access 'em...)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

The SX-300 has a great glide ratio -- considerably more than that
barndoor Piper! It just gets its best glide around 120 kt.

When I flew with Harry he pointed out a point on the ground that I
thought was quite close, and told me that if we lost the engine we
would NOT be able to make it to that point.

Those sleek, itty-bitty wings sure don't look like they'd carry you far
without power!
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Jay Honeck wrote:
When I flew with Harry he pointed out a point on the ground that I
thought was quite close, and told me that if we lost the engine we
would NOT be able to make it to that point.

Those sleek, itty-bitty wings sure don't look like they'd carry you far
without power!


I've deadsticked both a C-210 and a PA-32R before after the engines quit and
will tell you the Lance has the gliding characteristics of a refridgerator.
With gear and flaps up, prop full back, the 210 came down at 700 fpm with a
heavy load on board while the Lance came down at 1200 fpm with a very light
load.

I'm not a big fan of Pipers when it comes to gliding. Lucky for me I haven't
had to do much of it.



--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN
mschnerdatcarolina.rr.com

Longworth wrote:
In VMC, I am always
scouting for potential landing sites, checking for wind directions,
pushing the 'nearest airport' button on the GPS, every so often while
estimating my glide distance etc. In IMC, I always cross-check the GPS
with VORs, ADF and have my hand-held radio handy. We also keep a dozen
or so of spare batteries of several kinds (lithium, alkaline,
rechargeable) along with a handful of flashlights, emergency medical
and survival kits. We fly over the lakes only in the summer while
wearing life jackets with our wetsuits nearby.

Adding to that last, switch my tanks when I'm near an airport, give
planes spotted in the air a wide berth ...

I was up this weekend with a non-pilot friend of mine and I was telling
him what I was doing and why I was doing it. It is amazing to me how
many things are now routine. Things I wasn't really taught in flight
training but I've either learned as best practices or invented myself as
a means of increasing the odds.

The strangest part to me in all of flying is how so much of it dwells on
"death avoidance". You don't get a lot of discussion on flying enjoyment
during your training. It is the ironic part of the PPL and IFR ticket.

KC