This is an excerpt from a report made to the Aviation Safety Reporting System. The narrative is written by the pilot, rather than FAA or NTSB officials. To maintain anonymity, many details, such as aircraft model or airport, are often scrubbed from the reports.
Approximately four minutes after takeoff, the Mooney M-20 J’s engine lost oil pressure while performing a test flight.
As a result of the mechanical problems, the pilot was trying to get back to the runway and make a landing before the engine was ruined.
He became so focused on making the runway and saving the engine that he forgot to lower the landing gear, which resulted in a gear-up landing, which resulted in a prop strike and minimal damage to the airplane.
The pilot did not have any injuries.
Primary Problem: Aircraft
ACN: 1965794
Single or light twin, if there is an engine malfunction climb overhead ( assuming the field is VFR) to a high safe altitude and get the airfield’s emergency services out. Set up for a forced landing , the checklist for which always requires gear down at some stage. A prop strike requires an engine rebuild. Don’t perform the approach until either the engine fails or the emergency services are in place.
Aviate navigate communicate. Don’t let ATC try to kill you. If you have engine issue…I read time and time again where guys desend to the pattern altitude… Why…??? stay high over the field if able and run your checklist. If the engine quits or you shut it down, you’re already over the field.
Monday evening quarter backs, order of importance, save people, then aircraft, aircraft expendable to save lives! End of conversation! Sully did that, even with co-Pilot, it was time limited! He was a hero in my book.
I bought a F33A with significantly more avionics plus a Gap Seal Kit which makes this bird much faster than any “V” Tail @ 2200 inches=175 knots. Previously to my purchase the previous owner had allowed a BEECH Salesman to ‘borrow’ the plane so he could demonstrate it to a prospect. Returning to the airport, the F33A was landed with the gear up!! The repairs that had to be done were excellent.
None of the three comments above give credit to the pilot for making it back to the airport and walking away. So I will. Good Job whomever he may be.
To the three of you critiquing this person. Suppose he had lowered his gear and then experienced full loss of power with the extra drag of having his gear down, and then didn’t make the airport… Would he have walked away? Good thing is, we’ll never know. You’re “internet experts”. This pilot made a safe landing with minimal damage to the aircraft. He had better judgment than you.
Educate yourself and look at the fatal crash at KVUO by the owner of Lamiglass fishing rods. He experienced engine trouble. Lowered his gear and stall spun it on final. The burns on the pavement remind me every time I land. No one will ever know if keeping the gear up and replacing some rivets and belly skin would have saved his life. Shame on you for judging this Money operator
I agree with Evan. Single pilot handling an emergency with little altitude to trade for airspeed — You have your hands full. Two pilots, now one can fly it and the other can do checklists, diagnostics, etc. The big question is, how long to the engine seizing? And if that happens, if you have an engine driven hydraulic pump (as opposed to electrical), now you have to use the emergency extension procedure, in a glide and where time is your enemy. How long to pump the gear down? Have you been able to trim for hands off flying while you get the gear down (OK, in a Mooney, I believe this is electrically driven, although I think early Mooneys gear was mechanically done.
So if it takes 20+ seconds as opposed to 7 to get the gear to drop… Now you have to plan when to do this (gear down, glide distance reduced).
Meanwhile you are making that turn, and flying the pattern to get to the runway, knowing that at any point the engine can seize. Time is your enemy.
He got it on the ground, walked away and no one on the ground was hurt by the crash.
I’m quite with You, Mr. Evan S.
The Pearson crash was horrible.
“He experienced engine trouble”? I don’t remember that being a factor; the NTSB Prelim (WPR22FA235) didn’t mention it.
It’s been a year already, hopefully the Final Report will clarify what happened. Glad the Mooney driver didn’t suffer the same fate.
Agree….
If you accumulate a lot of hours,
there’s the who will and those who are going to. Emergencies have a tendency to short circuit procedures.
Pure helmet fire!
The old wives tale of Those that have done it and Those who will is utter nonsense! Fly the plane but always do the check list! . You would only land gear up intentionally during a water landing!
Primary Problem: Aircraft
No. Human failure . Why the engine problem? What and who did the work prior to the test flight?
Did the prop overspend with loss of oil pressure or was it just a bad guage?
When things go wrong you still have to follow your standard procedures and checklist. Workload goes up, but stick to the basics.
Yep
I have 2 friends who have landed gear up in their mooney’s when distracted by the engine or electrical smoke.
An M20J and a 252.
I personally prefer the manual geR on .my earlier model Mooney.