Use the tree to cushion the landing

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pelmet
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Use the tree to cushion the landing

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PilotDAR
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by PilotDAR »

I don't know what obstacles or poor surface was along the pilot's path in the thousand feet preceding contact with the tree, but if it was at all landable, that plane should have been landed under control 1000 - 500 feet earlier, rather than crashed out of control after a much too far stretched glide. The pilot was very lucky with such wonderful energy absorption, without that unsuspecting tree as an arrestor, that would have been a brutal hit on the ground!
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GyvAir
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by GyvAir »

PilotDAR wrote:I don't know what obstacles or poor surface was along the pilot's path in the thousand feet preceding contact with the tree, but if it was at all landable...
I believe it had just been over a runway.
At least they didn't come down on the fuel tanks, which it appears they just overflew.
Plainville, CT.jpg
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Plainville, CT2.jpg
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by PilotDAR »

I believe it had just been over a runway.
Egads! No excuse poor forced approach!
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JasonE
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by JasonE »

I read on faceplant the pilot was executing a go around & the airplane "got away on him".

"Tree point landing" ?
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cgzro
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by cgzro »

That's one hell of a tree. I want the spars of my next plane made out of whatever that was!
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by PilotDAR »

I want the spars of my next plane made out of whatever that was!
'Problem: Alive, and still rooted in the ground :wink:
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Chris M
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by Chris M »

cgzro wrote:That's one hell of a tree. I want the spars of my next plane made out of whatever that was!
Every watch rally racing through a forest? Anything more than a foot thick is, for all intents and purposes, an immovable object.

In this case the tree probably saved a lot of potential injury, as it looks like the plane was just about to roll over on him.
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Mick G
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by Mick G »

Nothing wrong with that, as it goes "any landing that you can walk away from is a good one" :rolleyes:
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looproll
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by looproll »

That tree probably saved his life! It acted as a nice way to dissipate energy in the crash.
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pdw
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by pdw »

Accident-time is 11:30AM / Sept 11-2017

With regards to "got away on him" comment:
1000ft down rwy 2 /20M has veered 90-100deg left to about 280-290M (cessna's direction as video begins), calculated from photo evidence above. If not mistaken as the video begins is fighting a dropped left wing with late right rudder .. hence the sharp left turn off the active as the attempt to "goaround" initiates. VRB 3kts 11am/12am metar / Hartford Sept11
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GyvAir
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by GyvAir »

This version gives another second or so of the approach. Pretty wallowy.

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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by P-40 »

GyvAir wrote:This version gives another second or so of the approach. Pretty wallowy.

Vehicle pulls into the lot just as the aircraft impacts the tree, that would be an interesting scenario.
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pdw
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by pdw »

It hooks with left wing low just at the point of the final "wallowy" left bank into a stall / spin. No chance to steer for the tree, it just happened to be where it needed to be for this happy ending. Thankfully the impact wasn't hard enough for serious injury or fire.

Winds given "VRB 3kts" at Hartford (closest official metar NE of Plainville), for the duration of two metars. 4B8/Meridan airport at 20km south (comes up for Plainville wx info) is 020/8kts before the accident and VRB-4kts after, where ESE 4kts shows up at closer stations near the time of the accident. The closest wx station to the SW on west side of the rwy has 4kt westerly component at 11:29 .... which suggests possibly 'into wind' on impact with the tree. Nothing recorded right at the airport, yet one close wx station NW of the active shows 10kts NE/ENE; so is some kind of inversion around there. At one point during steeper descent/approach maybe also have needed some 'right wing low/left rudder' ... in which case the go around/full-power needs heavier/opposite right rudder. Happens fast .. as flaps not yet retracted in the video ..

The aircraft was "cushioned" / protected from a freefall/impact from 50ft altitude at flying speed in the mere second of tangling 180degrees around and down this trunk with the inner half of its 90degree-banked wing.
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Last edited by pdw on Fri Sep 15, 2017 5:52 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Re: Use the tree to cushion the landing

Post by Redneck_pilot86 »

GyvAir wrote:
PilotDAR wrote:I don't know what obstacles or poor surface was along the pilot's path in the thousand feet preceding contact with the tree, but if it was at all landable...
I believe it had just been over a runway.
At least they didn't come down on the fuel tanks, which it appears they just overflew.

Plainville, CT2.jpg
Wow, people in plainville park like assholes :shock:
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