Geelong seaplane down

[Blank]

Just got word of a seaplane down near AV in the water 3 POB? anyone with more details?

[triton140]

Brief report in Geelong Advertiser:

Margera plane crashes on arrival | Geelong, VIC, Australia (http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/article/2013/01/22/357757_news.html)

[VH-XXX]

Jackass star Bam Margera... wonder if they have some footage.

Edit: I do realise he wasn't actually on the aircraft, he was no doubt watching it which would have made for a great stunt if they were filming it.

[Jack Ranga]

Surely some Gopro stuff :E

[DH164]

Apparently it was sighted over the city with the wheels down just moments before it happened.

[wheels_down]

This seems to be the one (only from down there memory?)

JetPhotos.Net Photo » VH-UBI (CN: U20602051) Private Cessna U206F Stationair 6 by Lukas M (http://jetphotos.net/viewphoto.php?id=7477406&nseq=0)

Still trying to picture the following...:D

Witnesses said they saw the plane drop from the sky, landing on its nose before flipping on its side.

[peterc005]

@Vincent Chase - Stupid speculation is what Pprune does best.

[VH-XXX]

Has anyone got the Avalon TAF for today including wave conditions?

This seems to be the one (only from down there memory?)

JetPhotos.Net Photo » VH-UBI (CN: U20602051) Private Cessna U206F Stationair 6 by Lukas M

Hmmm... it looks ok in the photos?

I eagerly await the findings of the ATSB report.

I'm sure if I was flying I would have done it differently.

I wonder how the pilot and passengers felt at the time of the incident.

I hope they got out of it and recover quickly god bless.

Probably a wing-drop stall followed by a nose-over.

How did I go, did I miss anything?

[satmstr]

Just a observation, i assume the gear on the floats are meant to be retracted for landing on water? Could having these extended cause it to flip on landing?

[VH-XXX]

Just saw that on the news a few moments ago. The main wheels are extended as it sits inverted. Doesn't explain why it fell out of the sky though :D

[goin'flyin]

Pic on the news online does look like the wheels are down, (or since it has turned turtle - the wheels are pointing up :}) which could explain how it ended up upside down. Woopsies :uhoh:

[Ex FSO GRIFFO]

RE...How did I go, did I miss anything?

whaddya reckon..??

:uhoh:

Cheers:ok:

[Sarcs]

Yep this pic seem to show the wheels are down or in this case up...Occupants escape serious injury in seaplane crash - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) (http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-01-22/seaplane-crashes-in-geelong/4479078)

[r sole]

yes i think x may have missed something:O

[Ex FSO GRIFFO]

Hey Vincent,

I'm fairly sure we all feel 'sorry' for the PIC, but......

There is a 'check' to be performed prior to landing....??

Some do, and some don't, which one would you like to be..??

Not being facetious, or sarcastic, just stating the facts.

Sad really...:{

[VH-XXX]

Here comes rsole and the fat lady with their Barwon Heads conspiracy theories on what happened, this WILL be good.

Admittedly for an aircraft that operates primarily off the water it does seem a little strange for the wheels to be down... but I wasn't there and I don't know where it took off from.

[Ixixly]

VH-XXX, you forgot to mention Crab Pots..

[RenegadeMan]

I have heard from a reliable source the pilot was fairly low time on floats (and not the owner/operator). Apparently the pilot had flown the aircraft to Barwon Heads to refuel (with a normal wheels down runway landing) and then flew back to Geelong to land on the water. The owner/operator of the aircraft was standing on the beach and watched the aircraft approaching with wheels down but had no handheld VHF radio so couldn't alert the pilot.

As a seaplane pilot of an amphibious machine one needs to do the "wheels up for a water landing" numerous times prior to touch down with both a panel lights check and an external visual check via the mirrors. I've always done the first confirmation on the downwind circuit leg along with the normal pre-landing checks. Then a FUP check turning final (Flaps full, Undercarriage up for the water landing, Prop full fine) and then just prior to touch down saying out loud "This is a water landing so the gear is up!"

This is so unfortunate but also so unnecessary too. It's the number one reason amphibious aircraft end up upside down and how it continues to happen with the various You_tube videos showing how easily the error can be made just amazes me. :ugh:

My best wishes to the pilot and the owner/operator. Lots of challenges to get through as a result of this avoidable accident.

Ren

[Flying Binghi]

Whats that saying ...there but for the grace of god go i.



One of those youtube vids. Its all over quick...

Amphibious plane crash landing - YouTube

[VH-XXX]

I have heard from a reliable source the pilot was fairly low time on floats (and not the owner/operator)

That figure is rumoured to be 40 hours... still no excuse as we all know.

[Capt Fathom]

Being a lowtime amphib pilot would be an advantage!

You've just finished your training and it is fresh in your mind!


It's the guys who have seen around the block a few times!.... Now they are the ones that usually stuff up!

EG. The old Baron pilot with thousands of hours.
When asked by CASA about his wheels up landing, and expecting some BS answer..

"Well what happened?" says Mr CASA.

He answers... "Well, I just plain forgot to put the wheels down!" :E

Well that stuffed 'em!

[RenegadeMan]

Yeah, perhaps true Capt Fathom. It's the discipline of the pre landing checks (and confirmation they've been properly done when you get interrupted half way through) as an absolute unforgettable habit that's the only way you can avoid this type of accident. That's not to say I couldn't make this mistake though.

This one is an example of (I believe) a very experienced ATPL who fell into the classic trap of the "three green, good to land" mantra that had probably been permanently etched into his neurons for land based ops.

Splash in, gear down - YouTube

[Flying Binghi]

"Well what happened?" says Mr CASA...

Obviously global warming is to blame. Its all that extra CO2 in the air, makes it hard to remember things..:)




.

[Ex FSO GRIFFO]

This sort of thing reminds me of the old 'Warrie' told to me by a WW2 Sunderland capt...
Believe it or not....
A 'new sprog' was being checked to the squadron, in the Sunderland, and started a perfect to the adjacent land aerodrome, when he got the red flare from the tower and suddenly realised his mistake, and 'went around'....
To do an almost perfect approach onto the water landing area nearby.

He 'buttoned up' the aeroplane and was still laughing as he stepped out, missed the launch, and in all his heavy gear, drowned.

That's sad.

[r sole]

no conspiracy from me x on what happened after reading post#8 we found out :ouch:

[Sunfish]

Any landing you swim away from.........

Glad all are OK.

[Kharon]

I won't mention this one to the old man – he'll just shake his grizzled head, take a measured pull from his pint and growl his favourite mantra; "there's them as wot's done it and them wot's gunna be a doin' it.

Who's next up?

[Avgas172]

He answers... "Well, I just plain forgot to put the wheels down!"


Recent conversation between Georgetown & Mt Surprise:
Cop: Morning Sir, do you know why I have stopped you today?
Me: Fair chance it was because I was doing 120 Km/h
Cop: Thats right Sir You were doing 120 Km/h, do you have any reason you were exceeding the speed limit by 20Km/h?
Me: Nope!
Cop: Take it easy and have a nice day.
No ticket, a 3 minute lecture on how speed kills and I was on my way, sometimes honesty is the best policy .... :E

[falconx]

The aftermath.


Seaplane VH-UBI Down in Geelong - Sydney Airport Message Board (http://yssyforum.net/board/showthread.php?t=8972)

[Paul O'Rourke]

Falconx

The prop looks straight in those pics

[jas24zzk]

nope paul...i know my screen aint the ducks nutz, but in the very first pic, the top blade is clearly bent forward.

I'd say the donk is screwed also, gut full of water whilst running generates a sudden stop situation that results in what is probably a lack of change over core.

[Ultralights]

if they were really lucky, the drag of pushing an aircraft prop through water would have been enough to stall the engine before it got a cylinder full of water. :{

[mickjoebill]

What is the actual mechanism that causes the nose to tip forward?
Is it water filling the floats or too much drag caused by the wheels?
or..?
Mickjoebill

[S7ARSCR3AM]

Mickjoebill, the second one, as you can see in the YouTube videos as soon as the nose wheels grab, over she goes.

Water can't really get into the floats just with the gear down, otherwise it would make it very difficult trying to drive an amphib in and out of the water!

If it is already upside down though, the water will just come through the inspection covers on the top of the floats and then it will sink!

[Macho_maddness]

Went to university with the Pilot. Overall a good bloke. Just a sad case of lack of experience combined with being over confident. Us pilots are known to have large egos... apparently! :} Lets just be happy all were relatively unhurt and hope the mental and confidence scars heal quickly. :ouch:

[Ejector]

There is no shortage of float pilots in oz who love flying floats with over 10,000 incident fee Anphib water landings, just can't live on $36,000 what these "turd" operators offered. :ugh:

[Capt Fathom]

Macho_maddness

What a crock of a post! Crawl back under your rock!

[trex 700]

I know the operator very well, he has been operating for more than 6 years and has done so without incident. He prided himself on his safety record and the safety of his passengers always comes first. It was very upsetting for everybody that was involved, but it was good to hear that nobody was seriously hurt. I personally hope that all involved can recover from this and people continue to fly with this company. :ok:

[Tee Emm]

I'm fairly sure we all feel 'sorry' for the PIC, but......

There is a 'check' to be performed prior to landing....??


I think all the flying schools teach their students to say on the before landing check "Undercarriage down and locked" even though it may be a fixed gear type like a 172 or Warrior. That is the folly of teaching students false drills. Of course for the sea plane it would be gear up and locked before landing but bad habits are hard to stop