Cessna 310 gear
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tonycondon
Gastons CRO (Chief Dinner Reservation Officer)
neglect seems to be a leading cause...
Everskyward
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It has happened to me, in a 320, though. I don't think it was neglect in this case. It was being maintained by a reputable mechanic, was less that 20 hours out of annual and the part that failed was a rod. When the FAA came to investigate they didn't try to blame the mechanic or me. They just said, "We see this a lot."
dell30rb
Final Approach
pics of damage?
flyingcheesehead
Touchdown! Greaser!
Check this out, especially the part under "Don't believe everything your A&P says": http://www.avweb.com/news/savvyaviator/187401-1.html
Also, just look at the spindly little nose gear on a 310 sometime. Just sitting there, it looks like it should break any second:
And sometimes... You get this.
Now, go find a DA42 and compare - The DA42's gear looks like it came from a bizjet:
C310 Vlo=Vle=138 knots, from what I can find online.
DA42 Vlo=Vle=Vne=194 knots.
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Everskyward
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Except the part that broke on ours was not the little spindly gear but the push-pull tube that pushes the spindly gear forward.
I am trying to scan a photo but first I need to install the scanner program on the new imac. Obviously I never tried to scan anything on this computer before.
flyingcheesehead
Touchdown! Greaser!
So, the part that's even MORE spindly.
To be fair to the 310, I don't know of any accidents where that spindly little gear actually broke... But it sure likes to look like it's about to!
Dan Thomas
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Check this out, especially the part under "Don't believe everything your A&P says": http://www.avweb.com/news/savvyaviator/187401-1.html
Also, just look at the spindly little nose gear on a 310 sometime. Just sitting there, it looks like it should break any second:
And sometimes... You get this.
Now, go find a DA42 and compare - The DA42's gear looks like it came from a bizjet:
.
But that DA42 pic is of its main gear, not the nose. Big difference in loading.
dan
flyingcheesehead
Touchdown! Greaser!
Yes, but the nose gear is stout like that too... I just couldn't find a good picture of it.
Either way, that main gear doesn't look like it's off a small twin like that...
tonycondon
Gastons CRO (Chief Dinner Reservation Officer)
i wonder how much weight diamond wasted so they could gloat about having Vne landing gear
Everskyward
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This was taken the day after. I don't have any pictures of it on its nose because it happened at night and this was 20 years ago, before cellphone cameras. All they did to extend the nosegear was to raise the nose and pull it forward by hand. You can see where they braced it with a piece of wood as a precaution but it actually locked in place.
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flyingcheesehead
Touchdown! Greaser!
tonycondon
Gastons CRO (Chief Dinner Reservation Officer)
i suppose it is easier to put Vne gear on it than ruin the airflow over the wing with air brakes. Obviously the 310 just requires the pilot to plan his decent and approach. I suppose the Diamond is geared mainly as a trainer with students coming out of 152's and 172's into them so being able to continue waiting until the airport is in sight and then chop and drop is nice for them.
Teller1900
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RotorAndWing
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The Cessna 310 landing gear (which is common with the C-320,C-335,C340, C-401,C-402,C-411,C414,C-421) is an electric gear that utilizes push pull tubes to actuate the gear and doors. It's a robust system but does require maintenance.
Over time wear on bushings and bolts can get the gear out of rig. The MM specifies a gear check and alignment procedure which is fairly lengthy and can take some time to perform. Kept in check the gear is reliable.
The nose gear failures, which seem the most common are usually because the push pull tube that travels under the pilot's right foot to a lever just forward of the pilot's right rudder pedal will break. The reason most common for this is lack of maintenance. Since this section of the landing gear inspection is difficult to get to it typically becomes over looked. After time the parts (bushings, bolts) wear and the actuating lever goes over center and a great deal of stress is placed on the torque tube which results in failure.
Everskyward
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The sweptback look is in! One thing I remember them telling me is that they actually straightened out all except a couple of the blades and reinstalled them. I never would've guessed...Wow, 20 years ago and you already had Q-tip props on, that's pretty cool!
Ted
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The 310 flies more like a larger aircraft that requires a planned approach. The Aztec flies more like a trainer, where its speeds are more forgiving. The 310 makes a crappy trainer, but it makes a great airplane for someone who doesn't need a trainer.
There's no doubt that the 310's landing gear isn't as robust as some other aircraft out there, but it's still a good design. The part that Mari had fail on her is the standard weak link. I hope that never goes bad on me, and make a point of preflighting the landing gear. The big thing that I emphasize is trying to keep weight off of the nosewheel by pulling the yoke back during taxi, takeoff, and when braking after landing, and also making sure I slow down in a straight line before executing any turns. I see some people really get heavy side G loads when taxiing, and that's not something I think is a good idea for the gear. At the very least, passengers typically don't like it.
So, the part that's even MORE spindly.
To be fair to the 310, I don't know of any accidents where that spindly little gear actually broke... But it sure likes to look like it's about to!
Look at the nose gear on the Caribou some time, and when you consider the weight and use, you would think that gear would snap off, but it goes through hell. Usually the problem comes in the drive mechanism not getting the gear locked. If the gear is locked, that little gear will take a lot of abuse. It's the anchor points you have to concern yourself with. Planes are a lot tougher than most people give them credit for.
Exactly, that gear looks like it was meant to catch a three wire on a carrier deck. If I'm landing in alpine meadows I guess it would be nice, but that's a lot of wasted useful load/ OEI performance.
Gmaper
Pre-takeoff checklist
Everskyward
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Preflighting the landing gear is obviously a good move but you can't see the part that broke. As R&W said, it's below the floor, underneath where your feet are. The good news is the airplane was repaired and I flew it another 2,000 or so hours before I left that job. I still see it around KAPA and AFAIK it's never had another gear-up landing.
Ted
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I hear that they sometimes growl, whine, or even bark.
True! But human passengers don't like it, either.
Ahh, I was thinking of a different part, sorry. Yes, that part isn't visible, hence why the routine inspections are important.
The 310 I fly had a gear-up landing about 20 years ago. In its case, the previous owner loaned it to someone who forgot to put the gear down. As you might imagine, that was the last time that person (or any other person) borrowed the plane.
20 years and thousands of hours later, I can't tell that it's damaged, and I'm still flying the pants off of it.