On Tue, 17 Jun 2008 15:44:52 -0700 (PDT), "Ol Shy & Bashful"
wrote in
:

So what do you do? Over the weekend, a Bonanza driver was faced with
this issue and had a 2000' grass strip to land on. He and his
passengers were injured and the airplane was an apparent writeoff.
I've been on that strip many many times


http://www.al.com/press-register/sto...040.xml&coll=3
Three people aboard plane survive crash landing
Mechanical trouble forces pilot to set aircraft down on private
airstrip in Creola

Mechanical trouble forced the pilot of a small airplane to make an
emergency crash landing Sunday morning on a private airstrip in
Creola, according to police.

The impact peeled back one of the Beechcraft S35's wings and
smashed its nose, knocking off its engine, which came to a rest on
the grass airstrip about 50 feet away from the airplane.

Despite the extensive damage to the plane, authorities said the
pilot and his two passengers — his wife and stepmother — suffered
only minor injuries. They were taken to the University of South
Alabama Medical Center. ...

Patsy Buffkin, who owns the small airfield in rural east Creola
with her husband, saw the plane come in while looking out the
window of their home.

"I thought, 'Oh look, a plane is landing,'" she said. "The next
thing I know, his left wing hits the ground, he bounces and the
engine flies off." ...

Lou Buffkin, a pilot himself for more than 40 years, arrived a
moment later to find the pilot walking around the airfield and his
wife complaining of back pain.

"His wife had her forehead opened up pretty good. It looked like
she hit the dash," Buffkin said. "But she was more complaining
that her back hurt." ...

Gouges in the dirt made by the plane's left wing start near the
very beginning of the runway, only about 100 feet from a metal
fence marking the edge of the airfield's property.

Judging by the markings made by the crash, the plane barely made
it to the runway, Buffkin said.

"I'd be surprised if he didn't rake the trees" as he was coming
in, Buffkin said.

The pilot told Buffkin that he had been forced to make the
emergency landing after his plane lost power a few miles away from
the Creola strip but well short of the pilot's destination of Bay
Minette.

"I'm not sure how he found us," Buffkin said, but if he hadn't,
"they would have pulled three dead bodies out of that plane.

"Everything out (past the Creola airstrip) is pretty much just
swamp. There wouldn't have been any survivors. Trees are mighty
unforgiving."



Preliminary FAA report:

http://www.faa.gov/data_statistics/a...ia/04_83LP.txt

************************************************** ******************************
** Report created 6/17/2008 Record 4 **

************************************************** ******************************

IDENTIFICATION
Regis#: 83LP Make/Model: BE35 Description: 35
Bonanza
Date: 06/15/2008 Time: 1448

Event Type: Accident Highest Injury: None Mid Air: N
Missing: N
Damage: Destroyed

LOCATION
City: CREOLA State: AL Country: US

DESCRIPTION
AIRCRAFT CRASHED ON APPROACH, CREOLA, AL

INJURY DATA Total Fatal: 0
# Crew: 1 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0
Unk:
# Pass: 2 Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0
Unk:
# Grnd: Fat: 0 Ser: 0 Min: 0
Unk:

WEATHER: METAR KMOB 151356Z VRB0310SM FEW015 SCT090 25/21 A2999

OTHER DATA
Activity: Unknown Phase: Approach Operation: OTHER


FAA FSDO: BIRMINGHAM, AL (SO09) Entry date: 06/16/2008 #




http://www.airnav.com/airport/15A
15A Mark Reynolds/North Mobile County Airport
Creola, Alabama, USA

Runway Information
Runway 3/21
Dimensions: 2000 x 180 ft. / 610 x 55 m
Surface: turf, in fair condition
Runway edge lights: non-standard
RY 03/21 NSTD LIRL; NO THLD LGTS.

RUNWAY 3
Traffic pattern: left
Obstructions: 26 ft. trees, 352 ft. from runway, 120 ft. left of
centerline, 13:1 slope to clear

RUNWAY 21
Traffic pattern: left
Obstructions: 55 ft. trees, 451 ft. from runway, 170 ft. right of
centerline, 8:1 slope to clear

Satellite image:

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=30.913239,-87.980553+(15A)&ie=UTF8&ll=30.909736,-87.996497&spn=0.031408,0.025105&t=h&z=15&lci=lmc anoramio

but intentionally. Well, I've been on many such strips worldwide.
So, what do you do?


Not being familiar with the performance numbers for a Bonanza, it's
difficult to be specific.

There's a clue here, but I'm not sure this information is for a BE35:

http://www.risingup.com/planespecs/i...plane105.shtml
Aircraft Performance Data

Beechcraft S 35 Bonanza - Performance Data
Horsepower: 285
Top Speed: 184 kts
Cruise Speed: 178 kts
Stall Speed (dirty): 54 kts
Gross Weight: 3300 lbs Empty Weight: 1915 lbs
Fuel Capacity: 50 gal Range: 453 nm

Takeoff Landing
Ground Roll: 880 ft Ground Roll 625 ft
Over 50 ft obstacle:1225ft Over 50 ft obstacle: 1150 ft

Rate Of Climb: 1200 fpm
Ceiling: 18300 ft


And I don't know where the engine quit (position relative to the
threshold and altitude).

That said, I'd attempt to restart if the situation permitted. Failing
that, I'd close the fuel valve and mixture, circle over the threshold,
drop the gear and flaps if appropriate, turn the master electrical
switch off, trim for normal approach speed, cinch my seat/shoulder
belt tight, and at pattern altitude, make a slightly high short-field
approach (to assure making the field), and forward-slip off the excess
altitude before touching down, and brake hard if necessary.

But if I were low when the engine failed/faltered with an undercast at
900', it could be a handful....