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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"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
|
|

"Jim Macklin" wrote in message
news%jbg.22154$ZW3.504@dukeread04...
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.

Yes, I think this best describes the situation that my very experienced
pilot friend twice described about the disruption of the airflow once the
door had popped open.

Jim Macklin wrote:
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.


Depends on the aircraft and the door. I believe there
is a crash report of a nose baggage door on a twin opening
and making the plane uncontrollable.

That's what I said, an open door will blank the tail and the
tail is needed for directional and pitch stability and
control.


"Ron Natalie" wrote in message
m...
| Jim Macklin wrote:
| 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.
|
|
| Depends on the aircraft and the door. I believe there
| is a crash report of a nose baggage door on a twin opening
| and making the plane uncontrollable.

Long ago, at Albuquerque, a Queen Air had the front cargo door open at
takeoff. A box of Instruments fell out,
knocking off the tip of a left propeller blade with the plane just in the
air. Pilot feathered the left
engine, turned left to go around, went into an inverted spin, and all died.
On Tue, 23 May 2006 21:21:27 -0600, Jim Macklin
wrote:

That's what I said, an open door will blank the tail and the
tail is needed for directional and pitch stability and
control.


"Ron Natalie" wrote in message
m...
| Jim Macklin wrote:
| 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.
|
|
| Depends on the aircraft and the door. I believe there
| is a crash report of a nose baggage door on a twin opening
| and making the plane uncontrollable.





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