Doors popping open in flight

On a single-engine, a door opening is not serious, but a
twin with a door open and the engine on the opposite side
might get interesting. The open door would probably raise
Vmca because of the air flow disruption on the side where
maximum rudder effectiveness would be required.


--
James H. Macklin
ATP,CFI,A&P

--
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But government sees it as an obstacle to be overcome.
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"bob" wrote in message
. ..
| How serious is it on small twin engines with only one
door? Or with 2
| doors, for that matter?
|
| A friend of mine tells me that he once had a twin engine
Piper crash to
| investigate due to ditching. It was later learned upon
the conclusion of
| the investigation that a passenger in the back seat was
trying to switch
| places with someone in the front and the door
inadvertently popped open. At
| that point the investigator determined, from his own
similar experience,
| that the plane sunk like a rock due to critical disruption
of the airflow
| to that could not be corrected in flight.
| --The door could not be closed again!---
|
| As for my friend with his similar experience, his
friend's hand was all
| bloody from trying to hold it closed as much as he could.
Fortunately, they
| made a safe emergency landing at an island the just
happened to be nearby.
|
| I've only flow small single engines and had NO IDEA how
serious this could
| be. They don't teach you that in flight school. Or is it
because single
| engines with only one door do not react the same as the
twins.
|
| Tell me the straight skinny so I know next time I go
flying.
|
| Thanks
|
|