Originally Posted by
Cmon-PullUP
If the pilot had put in a bit of firm left rudder while pushing a very mildly negative G together with taking the power off the prop (minimizing prop wash), she would have been straight back into the plane again, and the door could be closed without effort.
Likewise if he put in a bit of right rudder and pulled a slightly positive G and increased power a bit, it would be nearly impossible for her to get back into the plane.
This is very normal when flying skydivers, even if the door there is hinged on the top - principles work anyhow.
This story has a wrong stink to it.
Whilst the the firm left rudder would put more airflow against the door, Surely the momentum of the passenger would then be towards the right hand door, thus making egress much easier as you would have the weight of the passengers body against the door. I am by no means saying that I am corect as I haven't done even the most basic of calculations for this... However, somebody not trained, or that hasn't thought this through, might well elect to not alter the rudder position as a Leyman's arguement could help or hinder in both circumstances and furthermore, woud have been unliely to even consider this course of action.
We can assume that the max cruising speed of the aircrft would have been around 100 knts, at 3000ft there is a chance that the aircraft was still climbing, as such the speed could have been much lower. With everything inside your car secured and a seatbelt on, the force needed to open the door could be easily simulated on a highway/motorway.... Don't try this if your car door has a suicide hinge (Hinge at the rear of the door).