A good reminder to always treat props as 'live'

[training wheels]

One of the first things I learnt when I started flying was to always treat props as live..

https://www.facebook.com/CivilAviati...7427165450310/

And not even a high vis vest would have helped ..

[Ultralights]

very stupid and very lucky man indeed..

[Shagpile]

I recently had a starter motor engage when turning on the boost pump (ignition OFF and Mixture full lean, first flight of the day).

Turns out a blocking diode had failed allowing reverse current into the starter relay.

I would have never thought it could happen until I saw it with my own eyes.

[RobRW]

Not a stupid man at all Ultralights. If you read the article, its just bit of bad luck mixed with low hours on type and could happen to anyone. Even if the key/master batt. is off, the magneto can still fault and go open circuit, we always learnt to treat every prop as live. Good on him for sharing the story.

[Centaurus]

The CASA video misses the golden opportunity to explain why it is dangerous to attempt to hand start an aeroplane that has a unserviceable starter motor or a flat battery. An aircraft like the one showed in the video including powerful engines in light piston twins.

These aircraft are not designed to be hand-started because of their high compression engines compared to a Tiger Moth, Chipmunk and similar old aeroplanes that do not have starter motors.

If a battery is flat then install a new battery. If the starter motor is inoperative, then it is safer to replace the starter with a serviceable one rather than chance one's arm (literally) by hand starting with the propeller. Being impatient to get away is not a valid excuse.

Nowhere in any POH will you see instructions on how to start the engine that has an inoperative starter motor or a flat battery. An aviation lawyer would be quick to pick that up and if an accident occurs when hand-propping, place full responsibility on the injured or dead pilot. Of course if it is a medical emergency then you have to weigh up the priorities between the patient's medical situation as against risk of the pilot losing an arm or a leg if the hand starting goes wrong. You can think up all sorts of reasons to attempt a hand start if you are stuck somewhere because of a flat battery or u/s starter motor.

But I am sure any insurer would think twice about paying out if someone got maimed or killed trying to hand start an engine simply to save the cost of flying in a LAME to fix the starter or replace a battery. That was the flight safety point the CASA video should have made.

[onetrack]

With age and familiarity, often comes complacence. If he was 19 or 20, you could blame it on inexperience - but at his age, it can only be complacence.

"Just treat a prop like an 8ft machete, and you'll do just fine."

Comment Award of the Year!

[mickjoebill]

In the article the pilot says he rotated the prop to check the leading edges for stone damage. But the video shows that he can touch the tip of the most vertical of the blades. Why was it necessary for the prop to be turned if he can touch all the blades?

General point; whilst it is reasonable to assume the presence of a film camera can encourage one to demonstrate "best practice" it also can be a distraction, especially if one is taking directions from a member of the production team.

Mickjoebill

[Aussie Bob]

Has it occurred to any of you that this video could well have been deliberately staged?

These aircraft are not designed to be hand-started because of their high compression engines compared to a Tiger Moth, Chipmunk and similar old aeroplanes that do not have starter motors.

That is nonsense Centaurus, these engines are just as easy to hand start as a Tiger Moth and the compression ratio is also similar. The props are also lower. I don't recall my Tiger Moth flight manual having great instructions on hand starting the engine either. Work long enough in the bush and you will hand start most piston engine types. Done correctly it is not that hard. Get it wrong at your peril.

[Ultralights]

i have seen a rotax 912 hand started. every time i touch my prop, im standing behind it, and treat it like i would if trying to hand start.

[Lookleft]

Hand swung a Duchess once during the year that shall not be forgotten or mentioned. The POH stated that you had to prime while you cranked but all that did was wear out the starter motor so the skills to hand swing were required on a regular basis. Thankfully I now have access to x-bleed starts.

[spinex]

Having seen a daisy chain of suitably motivated national servicemen, get a DC-3 to start, I am loathe to call impossible on hand starting any aero engine, however some would require a pretty urgent need before I'd try. A 912 is one of those - particularly if it's a bit chilly, the prop needs a fair amount of force to turn and given that most are fitted with lightish composite props, I can imagine the temptation would be to get up close an personal to exert sufficient force to swing one at the required rpm. Indeed most Rotax engines fall under that category, I've swung a variety of engines, but the closest I got to being bitten was a 2 stroke Rotax with a very sharp 4 bladed carbon prop, those blades come around rather quickly!

All of which said, it is still a very useful skill to have, I guess being farm bred, I battle with the modern approach of "call the RACQ" for every minor mechanical mishap.

[Car RAMROD]

Never had that problem with my PT6

[sheppey]

Work long enough in the bush and you will hand start most piston engine types

Remove the starter motor before flying planes in the bush and save big bucks in maintenance costs. Why didn't I think of that, before. Thanks Aussie Bob - a brilliant idea.

[Centaurus]

Done correctly it is not that hard. Get it wrong at your peril.

Thanks OB. My point exactly

[Aussie Bob]

Sheppy, most of the aircraft I have hand propped in the bush have been other peoples. I am quite comfortable with the fact that most pilots will not try a prop start.

Next time you see a Continental powered seaplane, look at the panel and note the manual plunger primer. Then ask why it is fitted.

[currawong]

On this occasion I agree with Aussie Bob.

Any part of flying will kill you if not done correctly.

Some people should probably not attempt it, just as some should not fly, or drive for that matter.

Pulling the prop through before first flight is SOP in some organisations. Prop is handled with same caution as hand starting.

Regarding size/ compression etc, I used to hand start a 300 hp IO-520 on occasion without any trouble at all.

As pointed out already, cock it up and you are dead.

[Squawk7700]

Those of us that have been hand starting Tigers for years are wondering what all the fuss is about :-)

[REDRPPL]

As a young lad I was certainly taught to pull the prop through on a Cessna before the first flight. It seemed to make sense as that action could possibly make it easier for the starter motor and thus conceivably prevent the necessity of having to do a real propeller start.


Now, it also seemed logical to do that first hand swing in the opposite direction of normal propeller rotation. Could somebody please remind me (in gentle language) why this is not a good idea, thanks.

[DeRated]

...why this is not a good idea....

.... many vac pumps are single direction rotation. Pulling the prop through against that direction will snap the pump vanes or shear the drive.

[training wheels]

Love the advice given at 0:16 s of this clip on how to hand prop an airplane..