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#11
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Gear Warning
Don Johnstone wrote:
It is not just a malfunction even a real warning at that height can distract enough from 'flying the aeroplane' to turn an incident into a serious crash. I have never heard of anyone being seriously injured or killed as the result of a wheels up. There have been accidents involving serious injury as the result of undercarriage warnings. This seems to be a UK problem, not a US problem. Have other countries experienced the UK situation? Do other national gliding organizations recommend against gear warning devices (the SSA in the US does not)? Are there any US pilots that wish they had not installed a gear warning device? Pilots that don't check their spoilers until close to the ground: this seems like a training issue or self-discipline issue, either about pre-landing checks, or very marginal returns to the airport. Marginal glides are very common in competitions. The US is working on this problem, at least for the final glide. The major concern is the marginal glide, not the possibility of an accident caused by a gear warning device. I imagine an attempt to ban gear warning devices from contests would be even more unpopular the new ELT requirement! Perhaps pilots with gear warnings should occasionally practice this at altitude, opening the spoilers with the gear up, then lowering the gear. There is a world of difference between deliberately leaving the gear selection to very late to achieve the best glide and being startled by a sudden loud noise in the cockpit. It is the unexpected and the 'instinctive' reaction that is the root of the problem. I can't say for sure practicing would be effective, but I think it would help. We practice for other unexpected things, like rope breaks. -- Change "netto" to "net" to email me directly Eric Greenwell Washington State USA |
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