Prepared for an Emergency?

[ChiSau]

Ok guys - I'm getting into the short strokes of my PPL - 40 hours done, 4 exams and one solo xc completed.

I was looking at the AAIB website this afternoon and reading the different accident reports - ghoulish I know, but educational. There's some fascinating stuff (I'm sure you've all seen it) including one about this 62 year old guy ditching perfectly off Guernsey.

Anyway, my question is this - how prepared are you for an emergency. Reading some of the reports, I'm not sure I feel particularly ready. Ok, so I've done some PFLs and EFATOs, but I'm not sure I'd show half the sense that a lot of the people mentioned in these reports did.

What do people feel about their own readiness?

[Aussie Andy]

Hard to say how ready I am - I reckon you'd know after it happened!

For example, I now know that I can do a 180 (without panicing!) after inadvertently entering IMC... but I now also know that I don't want to do that again until/unless I have made time to gain an IMC rating! As a consequence, I have become much more cautious when approaching poor vis./low cloud situations than perhaps I was when I first gained the license, only 53 flying hours ago...

I read the accident reports, I suppose most of us do, in the hope that some of someone else's experience kind-of "rubs off". I also know I should practice more, e.g. PFL's.

We have to "fill the cup of experience before we empty the cup of luck". Maintaining a cautious mind-set, whilst safely pushing your personal envelope over time as your experience level increases, is key IMHO. I recommend finding a flying buddy of similar experience level (or more experienced) soon after getting your PPL so that you can help each other build confidence and learn from each others mistakes/experiences.

I believe (hope!?) that these strategies help me to "fill the cup of experience", perhaps a little bit quicker...

[ETOPS773]

I know the drills like the back of my hand,but to be honest..I don`t think anyone really knows how they would react until something really bad happened.I came through a scare okay and think I could get a life threatening emegency / recovery under control.

Some people will see flames under the engine and hear it splutter to a abrupt stop,and find it a it of an inconveniance,a bit like missing their bus..oh well..not the end of the world kind of phycology,this "glider" will land in that field fine.Perhaps high time pilots??Risk being content though.

Other type,will think the end is nigh,The grim reaper is staring them in the face,and initially really panic,and procedures go outta the window and your not merely making a forced landing,in that kind of persons eyes,they are already dead as far as they are concerned and they are fighting to live.

I know someone like this and all I can say is her sense of survival is immense and she has ingenious ways of thinking of ways to get out of trouble.Not joking,she is like a computer,just working out all the things that can go wrong and plot solutions...Call me mad,I`d rather be the passenger in the back of her plane when things go wrong than with the 1st described pilot. I personally believe when you seriously think that you might not get home,you pull something amazing out of the bag.Anyone and Everyone in trouble will put up a very strong fight to live.

I have seen on a TV programme a plane ditch off the Canadian coast,the male pilot was in absolute panic according to accident reports,his engine failed out of reach of the land,so he started screaming at the atc to despatch boats etc.Anyhow,he lived,by quite literally dive bombing the lake down to..from my perception about 200ft,then dumping the flaps to full at the last minute,floating along in the ground effect and bleeding off the speed.Was in a PA28,I reckon he touched the water 30 knots,maybe less,smooth as silk touchdown.Simply amazing.
Anyone else see it??

[QDMQDMQDM]

Good to be prepared, but too much anxiety is definitely bad for you. There's a fine line. I spent years flying far too anxiously. I'm less anxious now. Whether that makes me a better pilot, I dunno, but it's certainly a lot more pleasant.

There's no point -- for most of us -- in doing this if it isn't fun, after all.

QDM

[Ace Rimmer]

Dunno if it qualifies as an emegency more of a non-normal proceedure. There I was bimbling down the downwind... gear down and Thre...oops TWO greens OK then recycle the gear...STILL two greens Recycle it again STILL two greens

I'm running out of downwind so I tell the twr that I appear to have a gear problem (I'm not convinced because I can feel the gear coming down (its the stbd main that appears to be the problem) and I like to do a low pass for inspection which they say yep to. Do the fly by and they tell me that it appears down fine says I, and ask for a low level circut to land (can't help but notice the fire trucks on the move which adds to the drama of the thing).

Anyway on the downwind I had my first non proceedure related thought "if I stuff this up Mrs R is going to be really pissed off and might ban me from flying". Anyhow just as I was thinking that there was a big bump of turbulance (it was a pretty windy day) and the offending light came on Nevertheless, we were pretty careful on landing and taxied in followed by the fire trucks all very exciting but I actually came away with a quiet satisfation that I hadn't cacked myself and stuck to the checklist. Which in turn, gives me confidence that if it came to a real emergency I'd keep my **** together but you never know.

PS It turns out it was just a dodgy microswitch which caused the light not to come on

[FlyingForFun]

I agree - confidence, but without complacency, is definitely the key, and it's very hard to find that balance. Certainly lots of practice is the best way of reaching something close to the balance though.

Ace, sounds like you managed to find a pretty good balance that day, doing everything pretty much right. Once question though (at the risk of hijacking an excellent thread - sorry!) I've heard a theory - and I have to say that it's one I agree with - that doing a fly-by in those circumstances doesn't contribute anything to the situation. Specifically, if the tower says the gear is not down, you're going to have the fire trucks ready, do as smooth a landing as possible on the good wheels, and be prepared for sparks as the other wing looses lift. On the other hand, if the tower says the gear appears down, you have to assume that it's down but not locked, in which case you'll have the fire trucks ready, do as smooth a landigns as possible on the good wheels, and be prepared for sparks as the other wheel collapses - not really a whole load different. Since you raised the subject, I was wondering what you and other PPRuNers thought about that.

FFF
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[Kermit 180]

I would think having the gear checked in the event of an unsafe indication, by the tower or other ground person, enables you some advantages. The first is for emergency fire crews etc to be ready for your 'arrival' in the event the gear is not down and you cant get it down. The second is you can leave the circuit and try to sort the problem out, emergency gear dumps, g force etc. The third is it gives you peace of mind, to clear the mind and concentrate on getting it down without having to worry anymore (either way: "is it down or is it up?").

As for being readyto handle an emergency, practice is the main key to being relaxed, composed and ready. Always think "what if", and have a plan of action. You dont have to think doom and gloom, just be ready and enjoy the scenery as you forumlate your plans.

Kermie;)

[LowNSlow]

There have been crashes caused by people doing a flyby for gear inspection. They have a perceived problem and are understandably at a heightened state, then they are flying lower than they are used to combined with slower than they are used to added to closer to buildings than they are used to ending with a being closer to the worms than they are used to.

The tower should be able to see if the gear is up or down from the downwind and certainly from a reasonable height flown down the centreline (they should have binoculars). If it's down, they cannot tell if it's locked so it should be treated as unlocked as mentioned above.

Getting back to the thread, I used to think that I was as prepared as I could be but recent experience has shown different (see thread about pre-flight checks). I practice stalls and PFLs regularly but really landing with the prop stopped brought home the differences between the real thing and practice with the engine ticking over.

[Final 3 Greens]

ChiSau

You shouldn't worry too much, although your concerns are normal and sensible.

Firstly, the odds are very much in your favour for never experiencing an emergency

Secondly, you should continue to practice the drills so that you can follow the procedures by rote if necessary, which will allow you more thinking time. e.g. EFATO is maintain safe airspeed, shut down systems land within 15 degrees either side

Thirdly, some incidents are dealt with unconsciously - I once had a brake lock on landing and although it was a little alarming, the brake freed in a sub second and I gained control of the displacement from the centreline instinctively