Originally Posted by
punkalouver
Overall……a very successful outcome due the the pilots actions. Let’s face it, plenty of us have misjudged our own practice engine out scenarios.
I find this non-analyzing belief of you must land straight ahead after an engine failure to be a dangerous mindset. Who knows what is straight ahead.
This incident took place at the Old Bridge Airport. Take a look on google earth on the landing options around there……not good. How about turning toward the airport. It seems to have worked out well.
The video is a great example of how a side slip should be used to one’s advantage instead of accepting a long landing(if safe to do so on aircraft type). In fact, it should be planned for as an option on every engine out scenario. In general, aim for one third down the landing location which gives you some margin in case you find yourself low on energy(reduces the odds of not reaching the runway) and the sideslip in if too high.
In this case, a good sideslip would have been useful to prevent a long but otherwise successful landing that was slightly downwind……and a tailwind can easily cause a long landing.
An aggressive sideslip should also be considered for an engine failure on takeoff when some runway is left ahead of you and the options beyond the runway are poor. There may be several variables to consider but on many small aircraft, one can lower the nose, initiate an aggressive sideslip and have a successful landing possibly with partial but relatively low speed runway overrun rather than a relatively high speed touchdown in a much riskier area.
This 100%.
I would also suggest to locate places to put it down in and around your home airfield, as statistically that has a higher rate of probability for location of engine failure.
To demonstrate this, a checkout with the CFI went as follows. Take off to the East, EFATO, leave to the North and go to the training area for PFL and general handling. All as expected, but.....
EFATO fine, climbing away. Through 500ft turning North. At around 900ft, CFI took control and closed the throttle. Engine Failure.
What? Really? Here? Yes really! Is this EFATO # 2 or PFL? Confused.com. Time is ticking and I'm not managing the situation. Response was it doesn't matter you are already low and going down, where are you going? Too far away from the field to return (airport size pattern).
It just so happened a very small field was off the starboard wingtip and that was the only option. And my position was right base for this short narrow field strip descending through 700ft. In their......you must be joking. No in their. And in we went and I would have got in. Years of experience has got me in their.
That was a huge learning and very real. EFATO followed by immediate PFL. Climbing away, through 1500ft, I joked that you're not going to quickly close the throttle again are you? Why not was the response.
Upto that point I hadn't considered engine failure in this area. We normally depart to the West where there is ample space to put it down.
All this bearing in mind that many many years ago, during PPL training we had a full on real engine fail at 600ft right above the M1 one sunny Sunday afternoon. We got it down, yet that experience still didn't stop the startle wtf effect of that checkride.
Continue to practice post PPL. Know your local area intimately. Don't make PFL drills easy for yourself. Learn slideslip and for me, don't practice rigidly to the scripted technique you were taught.
Another CFI with aerobatics showed me how to get it down very quickly if high going in using what I felt as abrupt aggressive slideslip compared to my technique. Fantastic skills and great learning.