Gear Up

[reality check]

Event Information
Propeller/rotor strike
Unintentional gear up landing
Detail Information
User Name: Samson, Donna
Date: 2010-08-12
Further Action Required: No
O.P.I.: General Aviation
Narrative: The pilot of the privately-registered Dr. L.A. McCaulay Optometric Corp. Mooney M20C, VFR Kelowna to Vernon (CYVK), did a gear up landing at 0510Z on the CYVK runway. The aircraft was removed from the runway "outside of lights" and the Airport Manager was informed by the pilot.
User Name: Samson, Donna
Date: 2010-08-13
Further Action Required: Yes
O.P.I.: General Aviation
Narrative: UPDATE / Add Info from TSB: A10P0258 - The privately-registered Mooney M20C aircraft was landing at Vernon at night after a VFR flight from Kelowna. The pilot did not lower the landing gear and despite the landing gear warning horn sounding, did not realize the gear was not down. The aircraft touched down on Runway 05, the propellor contacted the ground, the engine stopped, and the aircraft slid on its belly causing minor damage. The pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured.

[Meatservo]

They should have some kind of string hanging down from aeroplanes, when it touches the ground it trips a mechanism that flips the gear down.

[modi13]

Why the hell was he flying from Kelowna to Vernon? Unless it was a training flight, it would have been faster to drive there than do all the pre-flight crap.

[into the blue]

...at night, in the mountains.

But then I realized it was a doctor behind the controls, so all the pieces of the puzzle fell into place.

[ScudRunner]

The pilot did not lower the landing gear and despite the landing gear warning horn sounding, did not realize the gear was not down.

You know they should really put some sort of device on board these planes to let you know the gear isn't down and locked. Perhaps some sort of audible and maybe a visual indication of some sort.

[crazy_aviator]

we have stick shakers and pushers for stalls,,,,NOW , we need pilot pinchers and smackers and tazers for LG up approaches !

[xsbank]

Why do I have this inkling that Mooneys put the gear down automatically when you closed the throttle?

Where did I get that from?

Guess this one didn't have it.

[Castorero]

Too bad that some professionals continue to add fuel to the doctor/lawyer/accountant stereotype by getting involved in these incidents in high performance aircraft on a regular basis.
I would think that knowing the stats, one would be smart enough to do recurrent training and keep reminding themselves that " I am expected to screw up sooner or later, so each flight has to meet the highest standards of planning and safety".

Maybe even tape that reminder on the panel.

Unfortunately, the busy flying professional is busiest and preoccupied professionally from age 30 to 50, and flying proficiency suffers as a result. Add to that some post flight distraction, like a business meeting or a clandestine dalliance at night in another town, or what have you, and keeping track of the airplane goes on the back burner.

Every successful, smart professional should repeat this little mantra " I am a smart successful lawyer/doctor/accountant, but I am a distracted pilot, so I need to be super vigilant and competent in the cockpit as well" before and during each flight.

The few flying professionals that I know have kept themselves alive by maintaining a degree of humility and proficiency in the cockpit over time.

This Mooney incident, however, may very well have been a mechanical malfunction...

[FlaplessDork]

I don't get it. It's totally ingrained in me that if I want to slow down and descend for landing, my first thought is always gear. Power set in range to approach, level, gear and flaps up. Then use your drag tools to start down and maintain your glide path. Don't accept a power reduction until the gear is down and on short final. May mean you have to pitch up to get gear speed, but it will clue you in to bring down the gear.

Plus its good to be paraniod about the gear. There are those who have, and those that will.

[iflyforpie]

Why do I have this inkling that Mooneys put the gear down automatically when you closed the throttle?

Where did I get that from?

Guess this one didn't have it.

You are thinking of the Piper Arrow and Saratoga, which have a ram air probe that will release the up pressure to let the gear free fall at low airspeeds and power settings (it is in the slip stream).

Electric gear Mooneys (or at least the older ones I worked on) used a pitot pressure switch to activate and deactivate the gear instead of a squat switch.

It was fun making apprentices grab that pitot tube and blow gently so we could do gear swings.

[light chop]

Mooney's don't slow down very easily (assuming no speed brakes) without the gear hanging out. Kinda like a greased lawn dart when descending.
When you're at idle on final and the IAS is still at 120kts, time to check the gear

[jpilot77]

In my experience I would say that I'm almost obsesive compulsive about checking gear down. I check it quit a few times in the pattern and on short final as well.

[summitx]

Again a bunch of folks are jumping to conclusions. I know the pilot and the aircraft although have not seen either for some time. The pilot is very experienced flying in the mountains with over 20 years servicing clinics in a number of communities like Golden, Invermere, Vernon and others. The aircraft does have speed brakes. He is a conscientious, safe and modest pilot that uses an aircraft to support his profession. He made a mistake, one that I'm sure he isn't proud of. If anything we should try to learn from it instead of criticizing him. Just wait for your next mistake.......we all make them.

Perhaps we should all consider how difficult it is, even when you are a professional pilot (which I consider him) to achieve that left seat focus required to separate the task at hand from the rest of your life every time you fly. (thread - 'what you car about may be more important than what you know or how skilled you are') If anything its one of the hazards of single pilot operations where there isn't that second pilot to help out in a moment of lost focus.

[Sulako]

I posted this a while back, I got this video from the guy who was sitting in the back seat at the time. This was on a checkride, with an FAA inspector in the right seat., and they still managed a gear-up. Note the gear warning horn the entire time. Apparently they were doing circuits as part of the checkride, and on the previous circuits they had left the gear down the entire time. On this one, they raised the gear and got distracted.

The accident report is here:

http://www.asias.faa.gov/portal/pls/por ... &NARR_VAR=

[peter]

Again a bunch of folks are jumping to conclusions. I know the pilot and the aircraft although have not seen either for some time. The pilot is very experienced flying in the mountains with over 20 years servicing clinics in a number of communities like Golden, Invermere, Vernon and others. The aircraft does have speed brakes. He is a conscientious, safe and modest pilot that uses an aircraft to support his profession. He made a mistake, one that I'm sure he isn't proud of. If anything we should try to learn from it instead of criticizing him. Just wait for your next mistake.......we all make them.

Perhaps we should all consider how difficult it is, even when you are a professional pilot (which I consider him) to achieve that left seat focus required to separate the task at hand from the rest of your life every time you fly. (thread - 'what you car about may be more important than what you know or how skilled you are') If anything its one of the hazards of single pilot operations where there isn't that second pilot to help out in a moment of lost focus.

As a professional pilot it is your job not to lose focus.

[YYZSaabGuy]

Good thing there are no professional pilots lurking on this forum, just a bunch of accident-prone, focus-losing doctors and dentists. Professional pilots, by contrast, would never lose focus or terminate a flight with a gear-up landing.

[Ollie]

....never ever.

[yycflyguy]

At least they got the slats/flaps out. What? You expect the gear too?

[Heliian]

Shit happens, even to the pro's. I recall a twin from TC i think landing gear up in YHM? maybe. I've seen it happen to amphibs too gear up on land. gear down on water, the latter usually getting wet. I can't recall any wheeled helis landing gear up though, wonder why?

[CorpPilot]

Mooneys are very slick machines.... This the M20C is known as the 201 or 205se(Rare). The model was very rarely equippend with the precise flight speed brake system. Especially before the 90's. From my experiences with most of the lineup of mooneys, speed brakes were only used when descending from the flight levels so as to not shock cool your 30,000 dollar engine. As far as the gear warning.....im sure there were several aural and visuals to alarm the pilot.... why he/she didnt get them down.... we can only assume. But then again, isnt avcanada the place where we all assume? lol

[Meatservo]

I can't recall any wheeled helis landing gear up though, wonder why?

Maybe nothing bad happens. They just make a bonk sound, then the pilot picks it back up a couple of feet, drops the gear and puts 'er back down again. If it didn't bend anything, I wouldn't even admit it.

[sky's the limit]

I can't recall any wheeled helis landing gear up though, wonder why?

Maybe nothing bad happens. They just make a bonk sound, then the pilot picks it back up a couple of feet, drops the gear and puts 'er back down again. If it didn't bend anything, I wouldn't even admit it.

There was a 500 this spring that landed "gear off..." Was spraying a UV coating on greenhouses outside Vancouver, got a bit low and ripped the gear off. Came back to the hanger and apparently landed on a couple saw horses....

stl

[aviator2010]

not really the same thing as forgeting to use the checklist

[Nark]

In reference to heli's with gear;
SOP at my old "company" was to leave them down all the time.

[. ._]

It'll never happen to me.

I am GOD.



-istp