Practical experience of forced landings and ditching

[k_flies]

I have been instructing for Two years but still feel I have heaps to learn.
I have had very little 'real' experience with engine failures and ditching (touch wood!) but feel it is important to have a knowledge of what really happens in the 'real situation' to be able to pass on to students.
Has anyone out there got some 'real' experience they would like to share in order to improve teaching and the general knowledge out there?

[OneMileHigh]

Hi KF,

The first thing to point out is how much time you have from 3000ft, even in an Arrow. With a sink rate of 500 ft/min you have about 5 minutes to plan. For a student this should be proved by demonstration.

On the question of finding out what it is really like, try a temporary membership of a gliding club. Every landing is a forced one. Obviously a glider has much better performance than an aeroplane, but if you were to deploy half to three quarter airbrake from 3000ft you would just about simulate the performance glide of a light single. With a bit of practice you should be able to judge a PFL pretty accurately. By the way, with the engine idling, the glide performance isn't significantly different from the genuine engine off glide. I know this because on my instructor course, my instructor shut the engine down on me (there was an airfield within gliding range if the engine didn't restart).

I would only say one more thing. Teaching a PFL is to simulate a real emergency, and it should be impressed upon the student that the object is to land the aircraft safely, not necessarily to grease it on in the first 200ft of a field and saving the aircraft. To boost confidence then, during the PFL training take the aircraft low enough to be able to make the statement, "we could now get into this field from here". After a few of these the fear associated with PFL's should dissipate, one hopes.

Well, that is my take on the subject anyway. It is an interesting question and hopefully others will add their t'pence.

[hugh flung_dung]

Your Arrows must be a lot better than mine if you get a 500fpm glide, 1000fpm would be nearer the mark.

[OneMileHigh]

Hi Hugh F D,

500ft/min is what the Arrow 4 achieved during my CPL with the prop in cause pitch, and of course with the gear up. I think your 1000ft/min is a bit steep, don't you.

It would be interesting to see what other folk with Arrow experience get in the glide.

[BigEndBob]

1st. Engine failure whilst training with instructor. Told to goaround from 200 feet...engine wouldn't respond, ended up in middle of corn field..lesson learnt even when practising treat each approach as a potential full landing, just in case.

2nd. engine failure whilst instructing, piston broke up in C150, fl from deadside of runway onto crosswind runway, learnt that pfl from overhead field very useful. I always start teaching pfl technique from overhead airfield and always trust your own instinct, for example always believe that slight rattle, surge, reluctance to start, is the begins of something potentially serious.This aircraft ran rough on occasions which was cured by carb. heat application, not unusal for C150Fellow instructor remembered my advice, he had experienced a rattle on TB20 whilst mid channel, turned out the camshaft was shagged.

3rd failure engine trying to cut out whilst at altitude during stall practise. Above haze out of visual range of airfield, first i should of asked for QDM, couldn't pick up the NDB, let some else do the navigation. Engine picked up during descent, joined overhead and landed. Engine cut out on landing. Try to restart twice, engine caught fire. Vacated and used fire extinguisher. Faulty carb. float had flooded engine. Apparently an AD on the carb. hadn't yet been complied with.

4th failure, exhaust valve dropped into engine at 1400 feet whilst doing trial lesson. saw field, totally comitted myself to land in it. Ended up bang in centre of field. Comitment is the most important thing in forced landing success..you will make it..and it will always take a lot longer than you think for someone to come and pick you up, this day, for the first time i left my jacket in flying club, of course it then poured down with rain whilst i waited at side of road for pick up. Lesson learnt..never fly without a coat or jacket. Never know where you are going to end up.

[Genghis the Engineer]

The only engine failure I've ever landed-off (the rest I restarted successfully) was on finals, so my general preference for glide approaches paid off that day!

I've done one or two forced or precautionary landings, from which a few thoughts:-

- If height and circumstances allow, always fly some kind of circuit, as tight as you are comfortable around the landing point.

- If uncertain of wind, or there isn't much, always land uphill.

- If you are practiced in them, always fly a constant aspect approach onto a forced landing. If you aren't, you should be, but after the engine stops is no time to familiarise yourself - stick to what you are used to.

- Descend angle will NOT be the same as you are used to with the prop idling (which is why I'd advocate the constant aspect approach, since it's much easier to adjust).

- a whitish greenish field next to a chalk quarry is NOT as I thought at the time a skimmed chalk surface, it is partly treated sewage that has been spread on the field, and no fun to land on - nor to get the aircraft nose stuck in when you hit the 4ft high pile at the far end of the field.

- Look for swirls in tramlines in the field, they may be your best indication of pylons or telegraph poles, and thus lines.

- Once you've picked a point, don't fly in a way that loses sight of it, you can lose reference very quickly.

- When practicing, always climb out field-to-field so that you've always got an option until over 1000agl and can relax a bit.

G

[1McLay]

BigendBob

geez, you've had your fair share of failures mate :sad:. For statistical reasons I'd be interested to know how many hours flying you've done?

regards

1M

[Sleeve Wing]

I've been fortunate enough in my career to do a fair bit on Tiger Moths, - and over a long time.
In connection with this flying of "old"`aeroplanes, an "old" mate of mine, G-KEST to the cognicenti, gave me a piece of advice, more years ago than I care to remember. that I have never forgotten.

" Don't sit there with yer thumb up yer b*m and yer mind in neutral. Always have somewhere to go if it all goes wrong, even if you've just passed it."

That translated a couple of years ago to getting a Tiger back to Old Warden when the engine suffered a bout of indigestion due no doubt due to its intense dislike of 100LL.

A couple of valves decided to stick when I was about four miles away.

Anyway, suffice it to say, that after the initial shock, we made it back to Old Warden with the engine limited to a max. of 1100rpm, having had the choice of an amazing number of previously identified fields should the problem have exacerbated itself.

The engine gave up as we rolled to a stop.

This also supports the message of a previous contributor, that it is comparitively rare for an engine to pack up either instantly or completely. As BigendBob says, there is usually something that will give some prior indication that all may not be well.

Sleeve.