Expectation Bias and avoiding gear up landings

[KB4]

Do not rely on the annunciator lights to confirm your gear is down.  There are 4 indicators on electrical gear Mooney’s.
 

Feel it, hear it, see annunciator, and see mechanical football for alignment.
 

This plane landed without incident 2 times and on the 3d the belly took the G’s.  Can happen to anyone of us. Keep our community and fleet safe by checking that football just after passing FAF or entering the pattern. I know in IMC the head cranking is not ideal, but just do it slowly. 
 

 

[Mooney Dog]

6 minutes ago, KB4 said:

and see mechanical football for alignment

I am unfamiliar with this. Do you have a picture that shows what this is? 

[Ron McBride]

It’s the floor indicator between the seats, in front of your trim wheel on electric geared planes.

 

[N201MKTurbo]

Mooney’s like most retractable aircraft, predominantly land gear up, because the pilot forgot to lower the gear.

[toto]

33 minutes ago, KB4 said:

Feel it, hear it, see annunciator, and see mechanical football for alignment.

My standard flow is annunciator, gear handle, floorboard..

* downwind: annunciator, gear handle, floorboard

* base: annunciator, gear handle, floorboard

* final: annunciator, gear handle, floorboard

I get very accustomed to hearing myself say “gear, gear, gear” as I do each step, and I normally touch the gear handle with my fingers on the second confirmation.

One note about the floorboard indicator.. it’s actually pretty easy to see visually even when the light is burned out. I know this because my floorboard indicator light was burned out for the first year I owned the plane, and I didn’t even know there was a light. When it was replaced at annual, I was like, huh. Do carry a pen light at night though

[Hank]

35 minutes ago, KB4 said:

Do not rely on the annunciator lights to confirm your gear is down.  There are 4 indicators on electrical gear Mooney’s.
 

Feel it, hear it, see annunciator, and see mechanical football for alignment.
 

This plane landed without incident 2 times and on the 3d the belly took the G’s.  Can happen to anyone of us. Keep our community and fleet safe by checking that football just after passing FAF or entering the pattern. I know in IMC the head cranking is not ideal, but just do it slowly. 

I check the floor indicator on short final, VFR or IFR.

VFR, I lower gear on downwind, feel and hear it. Check green light on base, check light on Final, point at floor indicator on short final then land.

IFR, I lower the gear to start descent (IAF, or 1-1/2 dots before glideslope intercept, passing over VOR, whatever). If I can only hold speed or slope but not both, check the gear 'cause it's probably still up. Breakout, align with runway, check PAPI / VASI lights, point at floor indicator then land.

Yes, I've had two close calls 14 years, one each VFR and IFR. Both were non-standard, and I learned from both. Here's hoping for 14 more years!

[carusoam]

Oddly…

This is a different Bravo with a GU… recently.  Much longer tail number…

http://www.kathrynsreport.com/2021/08/mooney-m20m-n21448-incidents-occurred.html

 

Call it expectation bias…

Call it distraction…

Call it a brain f*rt…

Call it forgetting…

Call it not remembering it all correctly…

What was that really distracting noise that was a challenge to ignore… thinking it can be figured out after the impending landing….

 

It can be really tough being a human….  Some days more than others…

 

Solutions many use….

Multiple gumps….

Checking both the floor, and the green light…

Pulling the handle… checking the thumbnail…

Final check of the green light before committing to the landing…

 

Everything is good until it isn’t… don’t fall for a higher level of multi tasking than expected….

Fall behind and skip parts of the Gump….

Get pressured into rushing because somebody is behind you… like a small B737…

Believe you have the gear down already because you remember putting it down recently… probably the last landing being remembered… or not remembering the details of this extended traffic pattern as well as expected…

Or hold off putting the gear down until later for some reason… was that just five minutes ago?

 

There are Dozens of ways the the brain can let us down….  

Lets not expect the brain to work perfectly all the time… hence, plan B for ordinary brain issues…

If the brain is going to let us down… it will pick a high multi-tasking time and environment to do it in… like short final…

 

Throw on extraneous thoughts like what is going on with family, work, or community…. Or running low on day light or gasoline in the tanks…

Hmmmm…. That thump on the floor with the gear going  down is a great memory tool…

Always check the green light before committing to landing…

Remember… how well you ate, slept, or exercised…. Or how well oxygenated your brain is after a long flight at altitude…. Or how well your health is holding out lately…  Throw some age-ism into the equation…. We are all older today, than we were yesterday.  The brain changes slowly over time with levels of hydration, sugar, caffeine, rest…..

Studying how the brain works can be interesting… if you can remember it all…   

PP thoughts only, not a CFI… or brainiac.

Best regards,

-a-

 

[Will.iam]

While you are heads down looking at and pointing to the gear indicator in the floor a.k.a. Football slide your eyes and finger over to the fuel selector and also verify you are on the fullest tank least murphy reach up and bite you in the ass when you try to go around on that almost empty tank and unport the fuel pickup and shite thyself. 

[Guest]

8 hours ago, N201MKTurbo said:

Mooney’s like most retractable aircraft, predominantly land gear up, because the pilot forgot to lower the gear.

Many Comanches suffer the same fate as well.  

Clarence

[bradp]

I can only stand to look at the floor once (plus dash light), then confirm the dash light alone after that.  I don’t like picking my head up and down multiple times either on short final or in IMC.   

[toto]

2 minutes ago, bradp said:

I can only stand to look at the floor once (plus dash light), then confirm the dash light alone after that.  I don’t like picking my head up and down multiple times either on short final or in IMC.   

Someone should invent a little mirror that you stick on the glareshield and point at the floor indicator. So you keep eyes up, and a quick glance to the right confirms the floor status without the vertigo. 

[bradp]

1 minute ago, toto said:

Someone should invent a little mirror that you stick on the glareshield and point at the floor indicator. So you keep eyes up, and a quick glance to the right confirms the floor status without the vertigo. 

Good idea.  Could just do it with a ram clip and an inspection mirror.  My family would probably repurpose the darn thing though 

[Mooney in Oz]

9 hours ago, DCarlton said:

Is it just me or is it possible Mooney's have more gear ups than Bonanzas?

Bonanzas also have their fair share, in particular after landing due to the gear selector being in close proximity to the flap selector.

[MooneyMitch]

Don’t forget my idea of converting the Mooney Mite wig-wag gear indicator to a physically abusive device that reaches out and whacks ones forehead, should the gear not be lowed upon final landing approach!  

Also, remember, there are those that have and those that will. 

Seriously folks, do use whatever method (s) that has worked for you with reminding you to lower your gear prior to touchdown.

Two of my greatest concerns of flying my Mooneys over many years: landing gear up and reading about me doing so here on MooneySpace!! 

[N201MKTurbo]

Any time I make any comment about landing gear up, I am knocking on wood. 
 

I have never landed gear up in over 5000 hours of retract time, knocking on wood.

[A64Pilot]

Many people get gear on base or even final, when things are busy.

Years ago on a different aircraft I adopted the procedure of gear down on pattern entry which is usually mid field downwind, and reconfirming gear down on base and again on final. My Wife’s job is to verify gear down and or remind me to put them down, she takes her job seriously. If you have crew remind you, just don’t be short when they may do so early, thank them. If I tick my Wife off. she goes silent, and I don’t want that

Gear down on pattern entry may slow me down of course, but if that bothers you, fly a tighter pattern.

 

But on pattern entry go sterile cockpit. very often gear ups are with two good friends flying and having a conversation about fishing or whatever.

Its surprising to read on the accident stats how many stupid mistakes are made with two very experienced crew aboard, like taking off leaned out or on one mag etc.

[V1VRV2]

5 indicators…. Throttle/gear warning horn.

[KB4]

13 hours ago, Will.iam said:

slide your eyes and finger over to the fuel selector and also verify you are on the fullest tank least murphy

This is a task that should have been handled way before.  Even if I was NOT on fullest, I ain’t touching that selector on final.  Get in habit of switching tanks over a field that you can make.  With any app with glide advisor the math is done for you. 

[KB4]

15 hours ago, toto said:

My standard flow is annunciator, gear handle, floorboard..

* downwind: annunciator, gear handle, floorboard

* base: annunciator, gear handle, floorboard

* final: annunciator, gear handle, floorboard

I get very accustomed to hearing myself say “gear, gear, gear” as I do each step, and I normally touch the gear handle with my fingers on the second confirmation.

One note about the floorboard indicator.. it’s actually pretty easy to see visually even when the light is burned out. I know this because my floorboard indicator light was burned out for the first year I owned the plane, and I didn’t even know there was a light. When it was replaced at annual, I was like, huh. Do carry a pen light at night though

Unnecessary, just do it once at the FAF or on the 45 entering pattern.  The mechanical indicator cannot lie. Don’t task saturate yourself unnecessarily.  

[toto]

10 minutes ago, KB4 said:

Unnecessary, just do it once at the FAF or on the 45 entering pattern.  The mechanical indicator cannot lie. Don’t task saturate yourself unnecessarily.  

It’s a flow. It’s by rote, and honestly it would take far more effort to do it differently each time than to do it the same way each time. 

[kortopates]

Unnecessary, just do it once at the FAF or on the 45 entering pattern.  The mechanical indicator cannot lie. Don’t task saturate yourself unnecessarily.  

I think the numbers prove this wrong. One distraction at the critical time of where you normally put the gear down without a method to catch your error is what leads to a gear up.
We're human and make lots of mistakes. It's far better to recognize this and adopt strategies to catch our errors before it's too late.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[EricJ]

I don't use the mechanical indicator at all except in unusual circumstances.   The plastic on mine is pretty gritty so it's hard to see, anyway, it always seems like it is in a dark hole and I have to put my head down way too long to get my eyes to adjust to see it and figure out what it is actually indicating.   So, for me, it's safer to not bother with it.   If I heard it and felt it come down and the green light is on, that's sufficient for me.    If I was doing an emergency deployment or was missing any of the other cues, then the mechanical indicator would come into play.

[Mooney Dog]

5 hours ago, MooneyMitch said:

and reading about me doing so here on MooneySpace!

I have a new fear 

 

1 hour ago, KB4 said:

Unnecessary, just do it once at the FAF or on the 45 entering pattern.

I would never do a one and done. Its easier enough to set on the pattern, check in the base, confirm on final. On an approach is even 1min faf or gs intercept, 500 to go, and at mins. Im making sure that gear is down and locked. 

[Guest]

2 hours ago, KB4 said:

This is a task that should have been handled way before.  Even if I was NOT on fullest, I ain’t touching that selector on final.  Get in habit of switching tanks over a field that you can make.  With any app with glide advisor the math is done for you. 

I wonder how delivery pilots switch tanks when mid Atlantic and no airport in sight?

Clarence

[Guest]

1 hour ago, EricJ said:

I don't use the mechanical indicator at all except in unusual circumstances.   The plastic on mine is pretty gritty so it's hard to see, anyway, it always seems like it is in a dark hole and I have to put my head down way too long to get my eyes to adjust to see it and figure out what it is actually indicating.   So, for me, it's safer to not bother with it.   If I heard it and felt it come down and the green light is on, that's sufficient for me.    If I was doing an emergency deployment or was missing any of the other cues, then the mechanical indicator would come into play.

Polish the lens and install an LED replacement for the GE330/327.

Clarence