4/21/2018: Vancouver WA - successful forced landing on freeway

Pilawt

Pilawt

Final Approach
Joined
Sep 19, 2005
Messages
9,478
Location
Santa Rosita State Park, under the big 'W'
Display Name
Display name:
Pilawt
http://www.oregonlive.com/clark-county/index.ssf/2018/04/small_plane_makes_emergency_la.html

1973 C-150L, N19298. I rented that one at KVUO 20 years ago. It's been on the flight school line there ever since.

KVUO 212353Z AUTO 30009G16KT 10SM CLR 17/02 A3037

I'd say they did a pretty good job. The photos show the airplane parked about where the yellow 'x' is on the attached photo. They were intending to land on runway 26 -- for whatever reason the airplane wasn't going to get them all the way to the runway. There is a very busy shopping center, a construction contractor's office, several tall trees, fences and a 15-foot berm on the extended runway centerline.

Forced landing 2.jpg

Here's a video of that approach (start at 5:50):

 
Looks like some quick thinking,and a good landing ,with no injuries. Who figures your not going to make the runway ,when your that close.
 
mscard88 said:
Are you implying fuel starvation...hmmm?
Click to expand...
I dunno, but I would think more along the lines of fuel exhaustion. You’d have to be pretty talented to induce fuel starvation in a 150. That fuel system is about as simple as it gets.
 
150s are prone to carb ice, though humidity was not high at the time, and that traffic pattern (under a Class C shelf just 74 feet above pattern altitude, and tucked in against Class C surface area) is not conducive to long, power-off glides.

I’ve had a throttle linkage come from together in a 150, and that would do it.
 
Ryanb said:
I dunno, but I would think more along the lines of fuel exhaustion. You’d have to be pretty talented to induce fuel starvation in a 150. That fuel system is about as simple as it gets.
Click to expand...

The fuel system is irrelevant. It's how one manages, or mismanages, the fuel itself. Not saying that's what happened in this instance.
 
mscard88 said:
The fuel system is irrelevant. It's how one manages, or mismanages, the fuel itself. Not saying that's what happened in this instance.
Click to expand...
I understand. I was just meaning that if it were a human error type of fuel starvation, the individual would have to have done something special. It’s either on or off. Now, if it were fuel starvation due to a plugged line or something like that, than it’s a different story.

Something just kind of caught my attention when I saw how close the airplane was to the runway. One of those things that makes you really think about what kind of ‘power failure’ it was.
 
Ryanb said:
One of those things that makes you really think about what kind of ‘power failure’ it was.
Click to expand...
Years ago I was in the pattern for 25L at KLGB in my 150E. While I was on downwind the throttle linkage broke, such that pulling back on the throttle reduced power further, but pushing in on the throttle had no effect. I had enough power that, with flaps up, I could land normally — but not a lot left over.

If something like that happened to these guys, the gusty northwest wind could have thrown off their approach to the runway.
 
Pilawt said:
Years ago I was in the pattern for 25L at KLGB in my 150E. While I was on downwind the throttle linkage broke, such that pulling back on the throttle reduced power further, but pushing in on the throttle had no effect. I had enough power that, with flaps up, I could land normally — but not a lot left over.

If something like that happened to these guys, the gusty northwest wind could have thrown off their approach to the runway.
Click to expand...

Something like that happened to a plane I was flying a couple weeks ago. Not then, the pilot it happened to told me the story. What had happened was the ‘sheath’ around the throttle cable had a rupture in it. When pushing the throttle back in, the cable just ‘looped’ out through the hole. 47 year old Cessna
 
Pilawt said:
150s are prone to carb ice, though humidity was not high at the time, and that traffic pattern (under a Class C shelf just 74 feet above pattern altitude, and tucked in against Class C surface area) is not conducive to long, power-off glides.

I’ve had a throttle linkage come from together in a 150, and that would do it.
Click to expand...

They could have been doing the North Shore transition straight in
 
Pilawt said:
You’re right. Flightawrare track looks like they were coming back from the Gorge at 2,000 feet. Carb ice is certainly a possibility.
Click to expand...

The plane was scheduled for 3 hours. It was scheduled and dispatched for the 2 hour block immediately before. Time will tell what happened. Hope it got gassed up before they departed
 
I went to VUO to rent a plane this morning. They have a new dispatch procedure. Used to be you wrote down fuel in the plane, GPH, do some arithmetic and calculate a 45 minute reserve. Now ya dip the tank, SUBTRACT unusable fuel etc etc. Yeah, that's what happened, they run out of gas. Usable gas that is. Only damage to the plane was some 'road rash' when they pushed it of the freeway. It got back in the air pretty quick.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top