Flat Tire on Landing

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Gmanattack

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Gmanattack
Pretty scary landing today. I spent today practicing short/soft field landings with my instructor in a C172. After we were done he sends me off solo as I still need a few solo hours before I can take the practical.

After being sent off solo, the first landing was fine and then the second landing was fine but after landing I notice the controls are a little sluggish. The plane I was in has a shimmy damper that tends to act up so I brush it off as the damper acting up. I carefully taxi back and don't notice any problems and begin my takeoff roll. Again, no problems. The takeoff is fine and the pattern is fine.

The third land was a near picture perfect landing and as I am about to pat myself on the back, the plane suddenly becomes uncontrollable and starts skidding. It happened fast but I remember just doing what I could to keep it on the runway. I managed to keep it on the runway but there was definitely a moment I was scared it was going to tip or prop strike. But, thank God, none of those happened and I was able to get it stopped on the runway. I very carefully taxied it off the runway and got it parked. Sure enough the left main tire was pretty underflated. :yikes:

Shook me up pretty bad but I guess it was a great landing as I walked away and the plane was usable again.

Even though it was terrifying, I learned some good lessons:

1. Trust your instincts. After the second landing I knew something wasn't quite right but I talked myself into believing it was.

2. You never know when something is going to go wrong. This happened just after a near picture perfect landing. You think you're out of the woods after the wheels touch but you never know.

3. I gained some confidence that I can handle a tough situation. You always wonder how you'll deal when something goes wrong but you never know until you experience it. My instructor said that it wasn't purely luck that kept me from going off the runway or tipping or prop strike--I did something right in my reactions in getting the plane stopped.

Even though these are some great lessons, it still scared the shoot out of me.
 
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Gmanattack said:
Pretty scary landing today. I spent today practicing short/soft field landings with my instructor in a C172. After we were done he sends me off solo as I still need a few solo hours before I can take the practical.

After being sent off solo, the first landing was fine and then the second landing was fine but after landing I notice the controls are a little sluggish. The plane I was in has a shimmy damper that tends to act up so I brush it off as the damper acting up. I carefully taxi back and don't notice any problems and begin my takeoff roll. Again, no problems. The takeoff is fine and the pattern is fine.

The third land was a near picture perfect landing and as I am about to pat myself on the back, the plane suddenly becomes uncontrollable and starts skidding. It happened fast but I remember just doing what I could to keep it on the runway. I managed to keep it on the runway but there was definitely a moment I was scared it was going to tip or prop strike. But, thank God, none of those happened and I was able to get it stopped on the runway. I very carefully taxied it off the runway and got it parked. Sure enough the left main tire was pretty underflated. :yikes:

Shook me up pretty bad but I guess it was a great landing as I walked away and the plane was usable again.
Click to expand...

That is what an aviator does......congratulations on a good job! :thumbsup:
 
Gmanattack said:
Pretty scary landing today. I spent today practicing short/soft field landings with my instructor in a C172. After we were done he sends me off solo as I still need a few solo hours before I can take the practical.

After being sent off solo, the first landing was fine and then the second landing was fine but after landing I notice the controls are a little sluggish. The plane I was in has a shimmy damper that tends to act up so I brush it off as the damper acting up. I carefully taxi back and don't notice any problems and begin my takeoff roll. Again, no problems. The takeoff is fine and the pattern is fine.

The third land was a near picture perfect landing and as I am about to pat myself on the back, the plane suddenly becomes uncontrollable and starts skidding. It happened fast but I remember just doing what I could to keep it on the runway. I managed to keep it on the runway but there was definitely a moment I was scared it was going to tip or prop strike. But, thank God, none of those happened and I was able to get it stopped on the runway. I very carefully taxied it off the runway and got it parked. Sure enough the left main tire was pretty underflated. :yikes:

Shook me up pretty bad but I guess it was a great landing as I walked away and the plane was usable again.

Even though it was terrifying, I learned some good lessons:

1. Trust your instincts. After the second landing I knew something wasn't quite right but I talked myself into believing it was.

2. You never know when something is going to go wrong. This happened just after a near picture perfect landing. You think you're out of the woods after the wheels touch but you never know.

3. I gained some confidence that I can handle a tough situation. You always wonder how you'll deal when something goes wrong but you never know until you experience it. My instructor said that it wasn't purely luck that kept me from going off the runway or tipping or prop strike--I did something right in my reactions in getting the plane stopped.

Even though these are some great lessons, it still scared the shoot out of me.
Click to expand...
Good job.

BTW, if you get some time in a taildragger you'll quickly lose the notion that you're done flying when the wheels touch the pavement.
 
Glad it worked out for you. Did you look at the tire after the wheel pant was removed? My last rental flight ended while taxiing back out with my niece on board after one trip around the pattern solo. I stayed to inspect tire. Found eight flat spots with a couple worn into inner tube. Not caught on preflight due to wheel pant hiding 90% of tire. Be careful with rentals and pants.
 
I've yet to ever have a tire go flat. I'm sure my day will come.
 
Did you notice it was low during preflight? :dunno:

Glad you handled the situation! Your #3 is what flying is all about. :D You'll gain experience as the years go by.
 
Geico266 said:
Did you notice it was low during preflight? :dunno:

Glad you handled the situation! Your #3 is what flying is all about. :D You'll gain experience as the years go by.
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The tires were fine on the preflight. I guess all the soft/short field landings finally wore it down!
 
A fellow POA member had his aircraft careen off the runway after a flat. You did good.
 
Watched a Cirrus a while back land with the brakes locked.

Sounded funny upon touchdown, then "Pow!", and the airplane quickly shuddered to a stop, with both mains flat.

Come to find out, it was the pilot's Private Pilot Checkride, and he was demonstrating a short-field landing. Already had his toes up on the brakes before landing. Boy, did he ever feel bad!

We're taught to keep ahead of the airplane, I guess it is possible to be a bit too far ahead.

Thanks for sharing- Nice save, and good luck on the upcoming check ride!
 
Just before my solo (like an hour) I was flying with my CFI in right seat. Came down nice and easy on the runway but I guess my nose-wheel tire had deflated during the pattern or right on touchdown. Shimmied all over like crazy. My CFI took controls, gave it 30 degrees of flaps and hit the throttle and wheelied the plane all the way back to the hangar. It was pretty impressive. I probably would have needed a tow had he not been there.
 
Skyscraper said:
Just before my solo (like an hour) I was flying with my CFI in right seat. Came down nice and easy on the runway but I guess my nose-wheel tire had deflated during the pattern or right on touchdown. Shimmied all over like crazy. My CFI took controls, gave it 30 degrees of flaps and hit the throttle and wheelied the plane all the way back to the hangar. It was pretty impressive. I probably would have needed a tow had he not been there.
Click to expand...

Would it have been more impressive if he had a tail strike doing it?

Stupid. Just stop and get a tug.
 
Non Compos Mentis said:
Watched a Cirrus a while back land with the brakes locked.

Sounded funny upon touchdown, then "Pow!", and the airplane quickly shuddered to a stop, with both mains flat.

Come to find out, it was the pilot's Private Pilot Checkride, and he was demonstrating a short-field landing. Already had his toes up on the brakes before landing. Boy, did he ever feel bad!

We're taught to keep ahead of the airplane, I guess it is possible to be a bit too far ahead.

Thanks for sharing- Nice save, and good luck on the upcoming check ride!
Click to expand...

I don't know what was going on, but as I was having the 172SP fueled a few weeks ago, a Cirrus went by taxiing LOUDLY at high throttle, presumably dragging his brakes and tires the whole way. I never saw the tires deflate, but something was clearly wrong (perhaps including the loose nut on the yoke). The fuel truck driver and I gave each other the WTF look as he "taxied" over to the terminal. Repair shops and the fuel island were the other way....
 
Same thing in a 172, nearly new tire. Construction at airport, pre-flight no problems. Picked up a nail on one of the TNGs. Landing was in light rain with CFII on board. Plane pulled hard to right (right main) on touchdown, asked him during roll out if the main on his side was flat and he said it looked good - was difficult to keep it on centerline. Could barely move as I made the first taxiway and tire was nearly off rim at that point.
 
A good case for carrying a PSI gauge. A tire that is significantly underinflated may look and feel firm, when it indeed is not. I work with heavy trucks and the normal inflation pressure is 105 psi, and at 60 or 70(considered flat), there is no visual difference.
 
jesse said:
I've yet to ever have a tire go flat. I'm sure my day will come.
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I've been taking care of 'em for you. You've almost certainly got more hours than me now thanks to CFIing, but I've had FOUR flat tires:

* Right main on 172
* Left main on 182
* Tailwheel on Citabria
* Right main on DA40

No, I don't drag the brakes on landing - If I let the plane roll, it'll roll for a good long time. But two of the four were training flights where I thought the tire looked low on preflight, I mentioned it to the CFI, and the CFI said "It's fine, let's go flying." (I don't trust CFI's on that stuff any more!) The 182 was the first landing on a brand-new tire, they just put too much powder on it and when I landed it spun and ripped the valve stem off. DA40 was probably people abusing it while learning how to land and taxi with the castering nosewheel (we went through a lot of tires and brakes that first year).

Only thing they all had in common was that I landed right on the centerline. I'm gonna have to stop that, it's clearly dangerous. :rofl: The only one where I ended up off the centerline at all was the DA40, there was a moment where I'd run out of rudder and hadn't yet applied brake that the plane turned a bit, but I got it back to parallel with the centerline using the brakes. Never got close to going off the runway on any of them.

Bottom line, fly the plane, don't let it fly you. Good job to the OP!
 
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