What reminds you to put the gear down?

[dougmilam]

Checklist and GUMP

VFR: Midfield downwind

IFR: 1/2 mile before FAF

[garytex]

Since landing a Mooney is all about flaring at 75 mph, (my ASI actually registers 80. It has a 6 mph over indication)  I make the focus of my approach to landing about 3 airspeeds, and what I do when I hit them:  I am shooting for 120 mph with the prop and mixture tended to somewhere between the 45 and half way down the runway.  As soon as I have 120, that is my cue to actually lower the gear, 105 gets two pumps of flaps, turn final, pump out the rest of the flaps, which is another cue to check the gear lever, trim for 80 IAS and adjust power to finesse the landing spot.  Stabilized at 80 on short final is another cue to make the final scan and decide to land.  So upon pondering, I do not know why I do not trust a checklist, but prefer a landing sequence with multiple cues for lowering the gear.

Ha!  I figured it out.  That is how my family and friends have managed firearm safety over literally tens of thousands of rounds with no dead cows or people.  With a series of inviolable checks that are cued by the stage of the process to progress to the next step.  Makes perfect sense. Airplanes and firearms.  Powerful tools that can bite, to be enjoyed but approached with respect, caution, and a progressive series of never skipped requirements leading to tripping the trigger or chirping the tires.  

[231Pilot]

Quote: dougmilam

Checklist and GUMP

VFR: Midfield downwind

IFR: 1/2 mile before FAF

[PTK]

Quote: 201Pilot

I have a colleague/aquaintence who has had two gear ups in his Bonanza...he is brash, more than a little cocky and his own biggest fan....I do not aspire to be like him.  His wife will no longer fly with him, nor will his children or grandchildren.  I have managed to tactfully find ways to refuse his invitations to go up in his Bonanza.

 

[N601RX]

A checklist and GUMPS seems to be the most common answer.  That kind of makes me wander of the people who have had gear ups how many have forgot to execute the checklist.  Having a checklist still requires some cue to execute it.

[M20F-1968]

I thought the group might want to know about Proscan Aerospace. 

They build waqrn ing systems and annunciator panels, and do so on a custom basis.  So those of you who are doing extensive panal upgrades, there is a company that will build an annunciator panel for your specific project. 

The web site is:

 http://www.proscanavionics.com/caution-advisory-systems/general-aviation

The GA unit will give you gear warning, gear overspeed waqrning, stall and accelerated stall warnings, CO warning and other warning annunciations by LED and voice.

John Breda

[aviatoreb]

On distractions and it can happen to anyone - up here we had a 14,000hr pilot who is the local DPE gear up his twin several years ago, and in the other seat was a fellow CFI.  I think that must be a case of ambiguous pilot in command scenario.  But anyway two super pilots and still a bummer.  Nothing but scraped metal and scraped egos that day.

I had a bitchin' Betty installed, P2 Audio, as soon as I got my Mooney as required by my wife - who's name is...Elizabeth!  I call the deep male voice that says "Gear is Down!" Bruce.  I love Bruce.  

One trick my CFI taught me is to not make the gear your last bit of drag to slow you down.  I.e., I never let myself deploy flaps before I have deployed and checked gear.  No matter what.  That helps I think.

No matter how smug and excellent our procedures, it still can happen so stay humble folks and keep diligent.

Mitch - yeah that look of a Mooney on its belly - yuk - my hangar neighbor had a gear failure on landing in October last year and I was at the airport when it happened.  I immediately jumped in my car to get out there as they had just climbed out.  Such a sad sight.

[flyboy0681]

I'm with Ncbosshoss and I purposely keep the speed up when approaching the airport. And then while on final my hands dance all around to all of the GUMPS items several times.

 

I also have ICARUS GPSS and it has an aural GUMPS warning that is set for 1000 feet AGL.

[Hank]

I'd like to vote three times:

-Written checklist--right there on the panel, sometimes I even look at it.

-Mental checklist--GUMPS and flow [but I check for proper fuel tank well prior to arrival]

-Habit

When landing VFR, I take some time to slow down, NLT pattern entry, and drop Takeoff Flaps in the white arc over the airport [white arc = 125 mph; I prefer a little slower. Sometimes I'm still too fast, rolling into downwind at idle/full prop, holding level and waiting for speed to bleed off.   ] Once on downwind, I drop gear and retard throttle when I'm abeam my intended touchdown point, then check for prop and mixture forward. I often touch the lever on base, while eyeing airspeed and altimeter. Once leveling wings on final, I tweak throttle & flaps to maintain desired glide [using whatever aids are available--glideslope needle, VASI/PAPI or sometimes just a close eye on the treetops and runway]. About halfway down final, I pat the switch, admire the green light and lean forward to check the mechanical indicator on the floor. Then I'm free to concentrate out the window, with a few glances to confirm desired airspeed.

For IFR Approaches, flaps are at Takeoff by the time I turn inbound, and I drop the gear 1½ dots high in order to follow the glideslope.

My plane had a previous gear-up due to pilot distraction caused by a go-around when he was cut off, and ATC had him deviate into a right downwind instead of the published missed, then requested 'keep your speed up' on final. It's always the busy times that will get you, or when you are distracted, or tired, or anything unusual is happening in the plane, on the radio or on the ground. Watch out for distractions and deviations!

There's always the modified GUMPS:  Gear down, Undercarriage down, Make sure the gear is down, Put the gear down and Sh!t, is the gear down?

So far I've not missed the short-final check, and I've not made an Instrument Approach low enough to keep me from the normal short-final light & floor check.

[jetdriven]

Thats how many gear ups happen, preceded by a go around.  It breaks up your "always do this when this happens" routine. 

[John Pleisse]

I gump several times and barrow the military practice of turning to final announcing "gear down".

I almost had a gear up once at a military field that stepped me over to a like heading runway at the last second. I was literally 10 feet above touchdown when the controller waved me off. I used the old "stuck circuit breaker" excuse, but they didn't care. When I landed, they asked me to come to the tower. I was scared shitless. I walked over to the tower, they escort me into the stairwell and I went all the way up.

The military staff was really friendly, nice and didn't want to hear my bullshit about the "circuit breaker". As it turned out, this particular tower controller had saved nearly 50 people from gear ups and his commanding officer (in the tower) asked me if I would quickly compose a letter about what happened, so the controller could be commended. I couldn't write fast enough. While writing, they mentioned he had saved a Hawker and a Citation from gear up recently among many others.

For those of you who are local....this was Murtha...JST, PA about 10 years ago.

[rainman]

Byron, you're right about your routine being upset after a go-around. That's basically what happened to me. Fortunately, someone called out to me on the radio and got my attention.  Jose', the voice alert device seems to be a good piece of insurance, but it's not $400 any longer, more like $600 (still worth it).

[airfoill]

Quote: Mitch

Linkage failure in my F model in 1988 prevented my gear from being fully down and locked.  I did have plenty of time to ponder the end result so it was not a shock as most are.

 

Mitch,

 

What portion of the linkage failed?  What caused the failure?

[Seth]

After reading this thread, and after flying with a friend who uses it, I am going to get the fore flight mobile checklist app and set it up either on the ipad or an ipod/iphone mounted somewhere in the cockpit. 

When training at PDK in Atlanta, GA, my instructor got me in the mindset of doing a GUMPS check on Downwind, Base, and Final even though we were in a 172 - I really didn't understand it completely, but she (and she was good looking instructor too - don't know why I didn't pick up on that until a few years later, ladies on this board please don't judge me too badly) told me to always get in the habit of performing three GUMPS checks.  For now, gear is welded down, no prop control, but still say those aloud.

Fast forward to the tiny 2400' x 35' strip at W00 with the taxi hill the side of the runway, power lines crossing at 45 degree angle on the approach and trees on one end, flying the F model for the first time coming in for a landing - GUMPS check on downing, base, and final.  It all came back and I do verbally check it every time.  I really have not used the written checklist on landing in a long time, as it was mental and mechancial.  With the F model, check gas is the fuller tank as you near the pattern, power back, slight climb, speed drops, gear down (johnson bar), lock in place, slight tug, gear is indeed locked, two pumps on the flaps, mixture rich, prop forward.  On Base - Flaps 2 more pumps (to full down) Gas, Undercarrage, Mixture, Prop, again.  On final, Line up, as you pass over the fence double check the green light - Green Light over the Fence - one more time.

My former F model had a gear up before I owned it when the previous owner completed a go-around due to an aircraft taking the active, and since it put him out of his normal routine, he forgot to put the gear back down.  Always check on Downwind, Base, and Final.   If a straight in approach - 3 miles out, 1 mile final, and then green light over the fence.

New to me Missile:  It has electric gear, no johnson bar - and scary that the mechancial feel of me placing the gear up and down is gone.  I miss the Johnson bar but I do like the cool factor of having electric gear.

Nearing the pattern fullest tank - Downwind, power back (much faster than the F model, even with lower power settings - it does not want to slow), pitch up, gear down at proper gear speed, flaps to takeoff setting at proper speed, visually check floor for gear down indicator, check lights for gear down, set mixture, prop forwards.  Then go through GUMPs to make sure it is set.

Base - Flaps to full unless landing with partial or no flaps - GUMPs again, and recheck the floor indicator

Final - GREEN LIGHT OVER THE FENCE (make sure the indicators do show gear down).

 

Personal stories of less than par piloting:

During my first practice engine out in the pattern in the F Model I had just put down my gear when the power was pulled by my instructor.  Simulated engine out, and as I lined up for short final I pulled up the gear as opposed to putting it down (it was already down!).  So, I realized this, put it down, but we decided to go around anyway.  Since then, for engine outs if the engine goes out depending, I had practiced as to where in the pattern I would not put down the gear vs putting down the gear.  Once the runway was made, then I'd put down the gear for a simulated engine out.  That was in the F. 

I not to long ago went to an airport for lunch with some passengers on a Sunday.  I entered the 45, was looking for airplanes as I heard them calling out, and realzied when I turned to final that the runway said 34 and not 16.  What an idiot.  I called it on the unicom that I was departing to the SouthWest and would rejoin the pattern.  I circled around after getting away from the pattern (to the left and away from the 16 traffic (which would have been on my right) and then joined the 45 for an uneventful landing - what an idiot.  I relaized I hadn't double checked the direction of the runway in my mind like I usually do just to make sure I'm heading the right way in the pattern.  It is amazing how distracted you can get when you have two passengers on board (heck, even one is distracting).  So that was a pretty big mistake in my book.  About 4000 feet from the runway realizing you are heading the wrong direction.

I'll let you know how the checklist app works with a PIREP once I have it set up.

-Seth

 

 

[Shadrach]

Like Seth,

Base - Flaps to full unless landing with partial or no flaps - GUMPs again, and recheck the floor indicator

Final - GREEN LIGHT OVER THE FENCE (make sure the indicators do show gear down).

The thing is that I rarely slow down for decent, and the gear comes down abeam the numbers at the latest. This means that I'm always focused on getting to gear speed on downwind. I never add flaps until gear is down. It would take quite a distraction for me to miss my gear doing it this way as I will not descend below TPA until it's down. The types of patterns I typically fly would leave me unable to slow down and come down at the same time. That being said, I think a "voice alert" would be a good investment...especially in the larger birds with higher wing loads that are apparently flown much differently then I fly mine. More often then not, I do smaller, constant rate descending 180s to final; I'd have a really hard time slowing the thing down with the legs tucked.

For instrument work gear comes down at FAF.

 

[Jimhamilton]

When I fly I manage energy during all phases of flight.  If on approach and if I forget to extend the gear then I have an energy problem.  Too much of it.  It is glaring.  Airspeed will be too high and power settings too low for a normal approach.  Drag is missing.  Now I also admit that I use a checklist and do several GUMP checks.

[mikefox]

Couple of comments:

1. If you are reading off a written checklist on final, then you are spending too much time with your head down in the cockpit!

2. Written checklists, when time allows (not in the traffic pattern), are fine, but in single pilot operations, should be used to back up a cockpit flow.  In this way, the checklist is truly being used as a checklist, not a do-list.  Also, the checklist becomes your "copilot", and can catch something that has been missed.

3. I lower the gear after I establish myself on downwind (hand doesn't leave the handle until I get gear down indication).  I repeat GUMPS on final.

4. If you are afraid of forgetting to put the gear down, review your procedures.  With good, solid procedures, there should be no fear - just healthy respect.

[Zulee]

Since my flap speed is lower than gear, it's my first notch of flaps...and has now become automatic to slow the puppy down. However with that said it also makes for some good laughs when flying with my buddy and his aerobat and the momentary look of confusion when I start looking for the gear switch

 

[bnicolette]

Well, I hate to jump to conclusions, but I'm thinking this is not what happened??

http://www.examiner.com/article/six-year-old-boy-blamed-for-aircraft-belly-landing-fallbrook-calif

[rbridges]

I have a hard time slowing down to flap speed without dropping gear, but I think paranoia is the #1 factor.  I must do the GUMP check 5x during the pattern.  

[scottfromiowa]

Quote: mikefox

Couple of comments:

1. If you are reading off a written checklist on final, then you are spending too much time with your head down in the cockpit!

2. Written checklists, when time allows (not in the traffic pattern), are fine, but in single pilot operations, should be used to back up a cockpit flow.  In this way, the checklist is truly being used as a checklist, not a do-list.  Also, the checklist becomes your "copilot", and can catch something that has been missed.

4. If you are afraid of forgetting to put the gear down, review your procedures.  With good, solid procedures, there should be no fear - just healthy respect.

[co2bruce]

3  GUMPSAC's every landing. 1 after contacting tower 5 miles out, one on downwind, and check on final. 

[co2bruce]

Duplicate sorry

 

[Cruiser]

without any data I would guess that most gear up landings occur after something unexpected happens that interrupts the normal landing sequence.

1. A distraction in the cockpit

2. A distraction outside the cockpit

3. A go around

4. Pressure from ATC to complete the landing in an unusual way

etc. (I'm sure you can think of more)

The point is doing GUMPS or following a checklist on a normal approach to a landing is good but that is not the time you are likely to forget to put the gear down.

No matter what happens on approach, I always check the gear down as the last step after pulling the power just before crossing the threshold. (or almost all the time :>))

[Awful_Charlie]

Short finals check is my last chance to pick it up - Reds, Blues & Greens

I would hope that a previous BUMFICHH on downwind or glideslope intercept would have already done it though, and as pointed out before, the performance with the gear up would make slowing up and getting down more difficult