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Old 21st Apr 2015, 09:39
  #22 (permalink)  
Tarq57
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Wellington,NZ
Age: 66
Posts: 1,678
Received 10 Likes on 4 Posts
My 2p is that you won't actually have much time to think about that, and look for a spot if it actually happens, and I'd argue: You already know where the survivable 'put it on the deck' spot is; you either spotted it as soon as you got airborne, or you spotted it (or had a general picture of the nearby terrain) when you landed there earlier.

If you didn't, you should have.

If it all goes abruptly quiet at 450', by the time you've got the nose down, and approximating glide speed, you're already at or below 350ft. And if you already know that the paddock to go for is a few degrees left (or right) and immediately ahead, don't dick around checking for things like "below vfe"; you're within a few knots of glide speed. Of course you can get the flaps down. It's not a jet airliner.

I'd be stuffing the nose down fast and dropping the boards as I did so, and not formalising a side-slip (unless the landing zone was offset, when a slip could well be beneficial). This is no time for finesse. You only need enough finesse to retain control of the aircraft. Unless you're dangerously slow, if you know you're going to be a bit high from the get-go (and you would) stamp on each pedal in turn and keep the wings more or less level. The resultant double-skid will increase your descent angle quite a bit for a few seconds, and a few seconds is all you have. (Try this at safe altitude. Repeat at reduced speed. Repeat etc until it stalls. You will then know the speed and feeling when you loose control as a result of full rudder deflections near the stall.) During those few seconds, turn the gas off, bleat mayday, kill the electrics (only after the flaps are down in a Cessna), and tell any pax to brace.

Land slightly too fast. Even way too fast. (You have to; you were too high.) Keep "flying" the aeroplane after touchdown, with the brakes on, to try and avoid breaking the nosewheel from the inevitable undulations. Aim for the softest looking spot at the end of the paddock. If it's a deep ditch, consider a handbrake turn prior to reaching it (also known as a ground loop, which is a bit tricky in a trike.) If it's a fence, or trees, try and put the nose between the solid areas. Once it's stopped, double check the master and fuel are actually off, and get the hell out.
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