gprellwitz
Touchdown! Greaser!
- Joined
- Jun 19, 2005
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- 12,762
- Location
- Romeoville, IL
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Display name:
Grant Prellwitz
The emergency gear extension handle on the Bonanza is on the floor behind the copilot's seat. It requires about 50 turns of a small crank. I'm sitting here trying to envision a single pilot (and sole occupant) operating that in IMC without an autopilot. It seems a situation tailor-made for causing vertigo, not to mention the enforced lack of attention to the instruments. Any real-life experiences with it?
Personally, I'd definitely use any passenger or autopilot in this case, if I had them available. In the posited situation, they aren't, so I'd try to get out of IMC before manually extending the gear. If none of those mitigation strategies are available, what do you do?
Certainly, this constitutes at least an urgent, if not an emergency situation. Do you ask ATC to notify you of any deviations as you try to lower the gear? Do you just accept the damage to the plane and land gear-up to avoid the risk of loss of control? Do you practice this ahead of time with a safety pilot? (If you choose that, I think it needs to be done at night or in IMC, because a hood won't work well with all the contortions you're going to have to make.)
If I had a simultaneous vaccuum failure, I think I'd start "leaning" - towards putting it down with the gear retracted, since I'm sure I can do that safely, while there is a real risk of disorientation if I attempt the extension, and I wouldn't want the gear only partially extended.
Discussion?
Personally, I'd definitely use any passenger or autopilot in this case, if I had them available. In the posited situation, they aren't, so I'd try to get out of IMC before manually extending the gear. If none of those mitigation strategies are available, what do you do?
Certainly, this constitutes at least an urgent, if not an emergency situation. Do you ask ATC to notify you of any deviations as you try to lower the gear? Do you just accept the damage to the plane and land gear-up to avoid the risk of loss of control? Do you practice this ahead of time with a safety pilot? (If you choose that, I think it needs to be done at night or in IMC, because a hood won't work well with all the contortions you're going to have to make.)
If I had a simultaneous vaccuum failure, I think I'd start "leaning" - towards putting it down with the gear retracted, since I'm sure I can do that safely, while there is a real risk of disorientation if I attempt the extension, and I wouldn't want the gear only partially extended.
Discussion?