six gear collapses & gear ups in one week

[Bob - S50]

It would be nice if Garmin would add a free feature to the GTN series.  Any time it sees the GPS AGL altitude descend through 200', it would be nice if it announced "Check Gear".

[EricJ]

1 hour ago, Bob - S50 said:

It would be nice if Garmin would add a free feature to the GTN series.  Any time it sees the GPS AGL altitude descend through 200', it would be nice if it announced "Check Gear".

My IFD gives a 500 ft callout in spoken audio.   That's an automatic gear/flaps/cowlflaps/etc. check for me.  Love that thing.

 

[EricJ]

2 hours ago, Ibra said:

C172RG & C182RG, I guess that has to do with C172 fixed gear familiarity? or drag flying profile?  

That list probably includes mechanical failures, so it is not surprising to see the Cessna singles well represented on top of the leaderboard.    The Cessna single RG "power pack" is notorious for failure modes, and particularly for failure modes that can't be recovered with the emergency deployment hand pump.   We complain about the Mooney electric gear and that the manual extension is useless in the case of a gearbox failure, but at least in our case an extension failure is likely to be recoverable with the crank or lawnmower pull.

[Hank]

15 hours ago, Bob - S50 said:

It would be nice if Garmin would add a free feature . . . .

"Free" isn't in Garmin's lexicon!

[kortopates]

Well @philiplane must be busy! Its been another weekend and another gear up incident. This one with the rare M20G in Ohio.  Registration shows a long -time owner of 25 years. Goes to show it can happen regardless of how much Mooney experience - assuming the pilot involved was the owner.

[N9201A]

Then there are these guys, the warning didn’t seem to matter.

[carusoam]

That wins a prize for the camera man shooting where the wheels are supposed to be...

Three people not recognizing the impending doom alarm...

+1 for getting a voice annunciator...

Best regards,

-a-

[anthonydesmet]

Listening to the 182 video made me wonder how many of you guys go to pilot isolate during approach/landing?  Lots of chatter in that cockpit probably mentally drowning out the warning but don’t know if one of the guys was a CFI/instructor.  If I don’t have a true copilot I tend to go to isolate approaching the pattern and brief the passengers to tap shoulder and point out traffic if required unless we’re on final. so just wondering what you guys do......

I have speedbrakes but only use them If I need to get out of altitude quick because of ATC and try not to use them for poor pattern and approach airspeed control.  I think the gear is a great “speed-break”. 

About 5 hours into ownership of 262RV back in 2014 I was in the pattern going downwind to base and wondered why the “F” am I so fast?!? Sure enough looked at the handle and took it around......will never forget that.  I right then and there added a “Mooney 2RV 180, 3 down and locked” call for my next time around like in my Navy days at the field.  Instead of looking at three wheel indicators like the Hornet I use “three down and locked” over the radio for the gear down light, the handle and the green floor I indicator.

i also like a few have mentioned hit the handle with my hand when I hear “500” from Betty at the 90.
 

[kortopates]

On 6/25/2020 at 8:55 PM, N9201A said:

Then there are these guys, the warning didn’t seem to matter.
 

I will say it really looks to me like they were practicing a 180 power off landing given the short approach,  continuous turn to the field and probably aiming for the IFR landing bars 1000' down just like I teach - except of course gear goes down before starting. Some people practice these with the gear up till they are assured of making it to the field (although I don't think that was ever in doubt in this case) - and this can happen.

Of course all the chatter about nothing to do with the landing was an added distraction. 

In all likelihood, the majority of GU landing incidents have the gear horn going off the entire time as well, yet it never registers,

[cliffy]

IIRC the Culver Cadet had a wig-wag post up on the glareshield  that waved back and forth if the gear wasn't down

Even with that waging in front of your face pilots went GU with it. 

 

[Culver LFA]

1 hour ago, cliffy said:

IIRC the Culver Cadet had a wig-wag post up on the glareshield  that waved back and forth if the gear wasn't down

Even with that waging in front of your face pilots went GU with it. 

 

Going to have to get you guys signed up on the FB Culver Cadet group with all this Culver interest! 

The Cadet has a throttle interconnect to the gear preventing idle power with the gear still up. 

Throttle landing gear interlock .docx

[HRM]

7 hours ago, cliffy said:

Even with that waging in front of your face pilots went GU with it. 

 

First, that would be the Mooney Mite (see photo).

Second, even the inimitable Al Mooney GU'd in it 

[MooneyMitch]

4 hours ago, HRM said:

First, that would be the Mooney Mite (see photo).

Second, even the inimitable Al Mooney GU'd in it 

Perhaps that wig-wag post should be oriented 90 degrees to where it would whack the pilot in the head with each wag ! 

[cliffy]

AH HA!   OK 60 years of memory down the drain

[MooneyMitch]

Just now, cliffy said:

AH HA!   OK 60 years of memory down the drain

Don’t give up that easily!! 

[Mooneymite]

8 hours ago, HRM said:

First, that would be the Mooney Mite (see photo).

Second, even the inimitable Al Mooney GU'd in it 

That's a good shot of a Mite panel without the factory electrical system.  The other thing of note is this one has an adjustable pitch Roby (I think) propeller.  Not constant speed, but adjustable in flight via that thing that looks like a window crank below the W compass.  Clarence, please correct me if I'm wrong.

The Mite is a great little plane.  I hope everyone gets to fly the "real Mooney"!  

Edited June 30, 2020 by Mooneymite

[MooneyMitch]

Bill Wheat said one of the original M18 test pilots called it “ole puss”........asked why that name, his reply was “how could something so ugly feel so good”......true story !! 

[EricJ]

Here ya go:
 

 

[MooneyMitch]

9 minutes ago, EricJ said:

Here ya go:
 

 

Super fun that was!  Looks like a well loved Mite.  I have many fine memories of LVK.................makes me want to go flying again today.................I still say the wag thingy should be installed on M20s also, only oriented so it whacks the pilot on the noggin with each wag, or wig...............guaranteed no GU's! 

[philiplane]

Back on topic. An M20J geared up in Kalispell Montana, and an M20E landed long and ran off the runway into a ditch in Neenah Wisconsin. Looks like we can't go two full weeks with wrecking another Mooney.

[ArtVandelay]

Back on topic. An M20J geared up in Kalispell Montana, and an M20E landed long and ran off the runway into a ditch in Neenah Wisconsin. Looks like we can't go two full weeks with wrecking another Mooney.

Neenah is 2450x20’. Any runway narrower than my wingspan is a no-go for me.

[steingar]

On 6/23/2020 at 2:24 PM, kortopates said:

Well @philiplane must be busy! Its been another weekend and another gear up incident. This one with the rare M20G in Ohio.  Registration shows a long -time owner of 25 years. Goes to show it can happen regardless of how much Mooney experience - assuming the pilot involved was the owner.

Details?  First Mooney I looked at was an Ohio G.

[cliffy]

Just a thought-

And we expect someone to build expensive and hard to certify parts and appliances for a diminishing pool of clients? 

And that is supposed to be a brilliant business model? 

As I said years ago- "we wreck'm faster than we can build them" 

We should feel lucky we have what we have for support of the fleet right now.

A fleet that averages half a century old!

 

[philiplane]

M20K geared up yesterday in Fairbury Nebraska.

But, on the same day, a Cessna 172 landed in Oxford CT and found a bullet hole in the wing. Much cooler than a gear up.

Edited July 11, 2020 by philiplane

[HRM]

On 7/7/2020 at 8:41 AM, cliffy said:

As I said years ago- "we wreck'm faster than we can build them" 

 

Each wreck is a potential parts harvest for the survivors.