Off Airport Landings

[Ol Shy & Bashful]

Have you ever done one? Have you ever looked at the area you were in
while driving down the road and asked if you could land safely there?
Ever tried to walk through a field of cotton, soybeans, tomatoes,
alfalfa, or ???? Do you know if there are furrows or irrigation rows?
How about trying to land in a field of corn? Ever tried to walk thru
one?
OK ...how about landing on a road. What about the road signs, wires,
bridges, poles, or other obstacles?
When was the last time you surveyed an area to see what the conditions
were or how you would make a landing with an engine out away from any
runway or airport?
Hmmmmm ...getting out my old brown colored stick and reaching for the
proverbial pot.....
Now that we are approaching winter weather should we start talking
about the peculiar conditions with wet and freezing conditions? Of
late here we are seeing frost on our wings with the attendant
problems.
Any discussions ... any one?
Ol S&B

[Gene Seibel]

On Oct 30, 9:21*am, "Ol Shy & Bashful" > wrote:
> Have you ever done one? Have you ever looked at the area you were in
> while driving down the road and asked if you could land safely there?
> Ever tried to walk through a field of cotton, soybeans, tomatoes,
> alfalfa, or ???? Do you know if there are furrows or irrigation rows?
> How about trying to land in a field of corn? Ever tried to walk thru
> one?
> OK ...how about landing on a road. What about the road signs, wires,
> bridges, poles, or other obstacles?

Grew up on a farm and am well aware of the terrain in many farm
fields. I have made two off airport landings. One in daylight on a
deserted gravel country road. The other was on a very, very dark night
and it's by the grace of God that we walked away. 30 seconds earlier
we'd have been in the trees and a minute earlier we'd have been in a
lake. We made it to a two lane highway where traffic was all going one
direction. Passed under a power line on roll out. No bridges, signs or
trees. Landing light burned out 10 seconds after turning it on the
next time.
--
Gene Seibel
Gene & Sue's Flying Machine - http://pad39a.com/gene/
Because we fly, we envy no one.

[Ross]

Gene Seibel wrote:
> On Oct 30, 9:21 am, "Ol Shy & Bashful" > wrote:
>> Have you ever done one? Have you ever looked at the area you were in
>> while driving down the road and asked if you could land safely there?
>> Ever tried to walk through a field of cotton, soybeans, tomatoes,
>> alfalfa, or ???? Do you know if there are furrows or irrigation rows?
>> How about trying to land in a field of corn? Ever tried to walk thru
>> one?
>> OK ...how about landing on a road. What about the road signs, wires,
>> bridges, poles, or other obstacles?
>
> Grew up on a farm and am well aware of the terrain in many farm
> fields. I have made two off airport landings. One in daylight on a
> deserted gravel country road. The other was on a very, very dark night
> and it's by the grace of God that we walked away. 30 seconds earlier
> we'd have been in the trees and a minute earlier we'd have been in a
> lake. We made it to a two lane highway where traffic was all going one
> direction. Passed under a power line on roll out. No bridges, signs or
> trees. Landing light burned out 10 seconds after turning it on the
> next time.
> --
> Gene Seibel
> Gene & Sue's Flying Machine - http://pad39a.com/gene/
> Because we fly, we envy no one.

I have had two - both in winter - both dead stick. One in a wheat field
and it was the smoothest landing I ever did. One in a cut corn field and
the farmer plowed 90* to my landing path. One of the roughest landings.
Nose strut was still good, though.

--

Regards, Ross
C-172F 180HP
KSWI

[Gezellig]

On Thu, 30 Oct 2008 08:21:30 -0700 (PDT), Ol Shy & Bashful wrote:

> Have you ever done one?

Yes.

> Have you ever looked at the area you were in
> while driving down the road and asked if you could land safely there?

Yes.

> Ever tried to walk through a field of cotton, soybeans, tomatoes,
> alfalfa, or ????

Yes.

> Do you know if there are furrows or irrigation rows?

Yes.

> How about trying to land in a field of corn? Ever tried to walk thru
> one?

Yes Yes

> OK ...how about landing on a road. What about the road signs, wires,
> bridges, poles, or other obstacles?

Yes.

> When was the last time you surveyed an area to see what the conditions
> were or how you would make a landing with an engine out away from any
> runway or airport?

Today.

> Hmmmmm ...getting out my old brown colored stick and reaching for the
> proverbial pot.....
> Now that we are approaching winter weather should we start talking
> about the peculiar conditions with wet and freezing conditions?

You can but it never gets below 42 where I am.

> Of
> late here we are seeing frost on our wings with the attendant
> problems.
> Any discussions ... any one?
> Ol S&B

Can't right now, I got a TO in 30 mins.

[Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe]

http://www.flsc.org/Xcountry/Kai_Off_Arpt_Ldg.pdf

When your engine quits, you are a glider pilot too.

--
Geoff
The Sea Hawk at Wow Way d0t Com
remove spaces and make the obvious substitutions to reply by mail
When immigration is outlawed, only outlaws will immigrate.

[Shirl]

"Ol Shy & Bashful" > wrote:
> Have you ever done one? Have you ever looked at the area you were in
> while driving down the road and asked if you could land safely there?
> Ever tried to walk through a field of cotton, soybeans, tomatoes,
> alfalfa, or ???? Do you know if there are furrows or irrigation rows?
> How about trying to land in a field of corn? Ever tried to walk thru
> one?
> OK ...how about landing on a road. What about the road signs, wires,
> bridges, poles, or other obstacles?
> When was the last time you surveyed an area to see what the conditions
> were or how you would make a landing with an engine out away from any
> runway or airport?
> Hmmmmm ...getting out my old brown colored stick and reaching for the
> proverbial pot.....
> Now that we are approaching winter weather should we start talking
> about the peculiar conditions with wet and freezing conditions? Of
> late here we are seeing frost on our wings with the attendant
> problems.
> Any discussions ... any one?
> Ol S&B

Yes. Oil cooler split on start-up, but gauges were normal/green during a
normal run-up and takeoff. Six minutes into the flight (long enough to
get away from the airport!), we had no oil pressure, and about 10
seconds after that, the engine seized. Thank goodness, we were over the
desert and not over buildings. But what looks good/flat at 100 feet,
doesn't look so flat at 50, and even less flat at 20. Coincidentally, I
was with my glider instructor, also a CFI-G and FAA DPE. Would have
rolled out okay if we hadn't hit a berm that launched us again. Slammed
back down, gear broke off. Plane was destroyed, but we thankfully walked
away, albeit shaken up. Just because it's dirt doesn't mean it's flat...
but still a lot better than the alternative. Look at the pavement behind
you when you taxi away (put it on your checklist!)...and have your oil
cooler flushed/pressure tested.

P.S. We had just practice simulated engine failures *2 weeks* prior, and
yes, it definitely helped during the real deal.

[Sylvain]

Shirl wrote:

> Look at the pavement behind
> you when you taxi away (put it on your checklist!)...

In addition to looking for oil leaks, there are other things that you may
want to look for on the pavement behind you when you taxi: like bits and
pieces of hardware. I found that out when flying with a dude who was
checking me out on a cherokee six; the piece of hardware he spotted (and
which I missed I must confess) was one of the three bolts that held the two
halves of one of our main wheels together; could have made for an
interesting landing had he missed it.

I keep looking now :-)

--Sylvain

[Flyingmonk[_1_]]

On Oct 30, 11:21 am, "Ol Shy & Bashful" > wrote:
> Have you ever done one? Have you ever looked at the area you were in
> while driving down the road and asked if you could land safely there?
> Ever tried to walk through a field of cotton, soybeans, tomatoes,
> alfalfa, or ???? Do you know if there are furrows or irrigation rows?
> How about trying to land in a field of corn? Ever tried to walk thru
> one?
> OK ...how about landing on a road. What about the road signs, wires,
> bridges, poles, or other obstacles?
> When was the last time you surveyed an area to see what the conditions
> were or how you would make a landing with an engine out away from any
> runway or airport?
> Hmmmmm ...getting out my old brown colored stick and reaching for the
> proverbial pot.....
> Now that we are approaching winter weather should we start talking
> about the peculiar conditions with wet and freezing conditions? Of
> late here we are seeing frost on our wings with the attendant
> problems.
> Any discussions ... any one?
> Ol S&B

Haven't done it in a plank yet, but plenty in a swingwing.

Monk

[[email protected]]

On Oct 30, 8:06 pm, Shirl > wrote:

> Yes. Oil cooler split on start-up, but gauges were normal/green during a
> normal run-up and takeoff.

Sometimes caused by really cold oil that the engine is trying to
shove through the cooler. A few of those episodes, each one swelling
the cooler a bit more, can bust it.

I've had a deadstick to a fallow grain field. I was looking at it
one day when I had my father out for a ride in the old 7AC, thinking
that it would be a good place to set down if I had to, and just then
the crankshaft busted. At 400 feet. Made it over the powerlines OK.
Done landings in stubble fields, on gravel roads, and in a pea-
stubble field, which was easily the smoothest surface of the bunch.
Used to tow gliders off grass. There are numerous farm grass strips
around here. And some of the paved highways are pretty lonely, too.

Dan