Stricken aircraft belly flops at Blenheim

[Bend-it]

Yikes!

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4099286a10.html

The Air New Zealand Beech aircraft, with 15 passengers and two crew aboard, had tried to land at Wellington when the crew found a problem with its landing gear.

It was then diverted to Woodbourne where the crew completed a safe belly flop landing just after 9am.

The badly damaged plane was sprayed with foam as a precaution.

Marty Solomon, a Wellington man who was on the flight with his partner and son, was full of praise for the crew.

"I was a bit freaked out, but as soon as we came to a halt I was alright.

"The pilot did a damned good job at landing the plane."

"I jumped out through the window, the hole wanted to be a bit bigger though."

Solomon said the crew had kept the passengers informed and got them to prepare for the crash landing.

One passenger, who was understood to be pregnant, was taken to hospital for a check up.

The airport will be closed for two hours while cranes are brought in to remove the wreckage.

The aircraft was on a flight from Timaru to Wellington and was operated by Air New Zealand subsidiary Eagle Air.

[deanohit]

jeez thats an awsome shot!!!bet the passengers had quite the rush after that.good to hear that it all went smoothly and no one was injured.

[Pussy]

The Pratt & Whitney and Hamilton Standard people will be rubbing their hands with glee!

[vifferman]

jeez thats an awsome shot!!!
Yeah!
It's pretty scary the bits flying around though - those prop blades would've made a mess if they'd decided to see what the inside of the plane looked like...

[caesius]

That landing went smoothly enough. Why not remove the wheels from all the other Air NZ planes. Could save oodles of money.

[Macktheknife]

Bloody good effort by the pilot and crew I reckon, someone is gonna have a big please explain though!

[Sniper]

I loved how they said earlier that everyone was sent for counselling :laugh:

[Indiana_Jones]

I loved how they said earlier that everyone was sent for counselling :laugh:

I think that's just the PC way of saying "everyone was sent away for clean underwear" lol :yes:

-Indy

[Dilligaf]

10 chars...

[marty]

the wheels in the beech actually still stick out about 7cm when fully retracted, and you can land them on the belly and still have full braking (not anti skid though) available.

it's gonna be a long night at work tonight...........

[shafty]

The same thing happened in Rotorua a few years ago and the newspaper showed a distant shot of the Crew and passengers on the piss in the hanger afterwards! You'd feel like one wouldn't ya?!!

[marty]

not to a beech it didn't. 2 other wheels up landings by eagle - a bandit at palmy in about 1989, and a metro in hlz in 1996-ish

[peasea]

I think that's just the PC way of saying "everyone was sent away for clean underwear" lol :yes:

-Indy


I never said a thing

[Bend-it]

7cm... obviously still not enough clearance for the props!

[Maha]

"I was a bit freaked out, but as soon as we came to a halt I was alright.

State the obvious....:sherlock:

[kave]

I remember something similar happening in New Zealand (plane sliding on its belly). It happened to a plane being used for skydiving, but it was on takeoff, the front wheel had fallen through a manhole cover while taxiing (if my memory serves me correctly). The level of damage done to the plane was quite dramatic considering it was travelling at a relatively slow speed.

[Swoop]

I remember something similar happening in New Zealand (plane sliding on its belly). It happened to a plane being used for skydiving, but it was on takeoff, the front wheel had fallen through a manhole cover while taxiing (if my memory serves me correctly). The level of damage done to the plane was quite dramatic considering it was travelling at a relatively slow speed.
There was a GAF Nomad that did a wheels-up at Parakai on the lime strip up there.
Also another at Whenuapai during the late '80s (same type of a/c IIRC).

[Jantar]

not to a beech it didn't. 2 other wheels up landings by eagle - a bandit at palmy in about 1989, and a metro in hlz in 1996-ish
And a Jantar at Taupo in 1992. :Oops:

[Firefight]

not to a beech it didn't. 2 other wheels up landings by eagle - a bandit at palmy in about 1989, and a metro in hlz in 1996-ish



what about ZK- KIP a EMB 110, at AIAL a few years ago think maybe 92 ?

only flight crew on board as I recall


F/F

[Krusti]

Flew back from Christchurch to Hamilton and looked out the window thinking, " imagine if one of those came through the side."

[Delerium]

Iv seen photos of various aircraft that it has happened too. Ie an orion and a herc. My immediate thoughts were, bugger sitting in the prop arc next time...

[Big Dan]

I would have loved to been on that flight sounded like a great ride

[sAsLEX]

Yeah!
It's pretty scary the bits flying around though - those prop blades would've made a mess if they'd decided to see what the inside of the plane looked like...

Talking about it at work today.

Do they armour the hull in this zone at all? Marty? Or do the props spin the right direction so a ground strike sends them away from passengers?

[Firefight]

my bad, old age effected memory:angry:


date of incident 28th sept 94


F/F

and here's a link of a picy of one, great little aircraft which provided feeder service from the small provincal airports to the main hubs for many years in NZ, un pressuirised (sp?) ride was sometimes a bit rough, but always fun to fly in, I spent two years commuting from wei to akl in them never had a problem in that time.

http://www.airliners.net/info/stats.main?id=195

[Delphinus]

And a video if anyone is interested :)

http://www.tv3.co.nz/News/NationalNews/Planemakesemergencylanding/tabid/309/articleID/29118/Default.aspx#video

[terbang]

what about ZK- KIP a EMB 110, at AIAL a few years ago think maybe 92 ?

only flight crew on board as I recall

F/F

Eagle Air have now had 4 wheels up landings that I can remember.

EMB 110 (ZK-ERU?) in Palmy 1987. The aircraft was on a right base for RWY 25 at PMR and when the wheels were selected down the left main wheel parted company and bounced all over the farmland, leafing just an undercarriage strut that showed no abnormal cockpit indications. ATC alerted the crew when they were on short final and a successful go around and wheels up landing was eventually made. Lots of speculation about sculduggery and all that but the aurcraft had just come off maintenance the night before and it was put down to a simple case of not being secured correctly.

ZK-KIP also did a wheels up at auckland in the 90's as a result of an engineers torch being left in the undercarriage bay.

They had a Metro do a wheels up in Hamilton in the 90's, not sure of the cause though.

And this one which is yet to be investigated.

Speaking of ZK-KIP. My logbook shows that I first flew that aircraft online on the 7th july 1987. It was ex 'Masling airlines" of Australia. I flew the "Bandierante" from 1986 to 1989 where I was a captain, instructor and examiner on the type. Eagle air were (and probably still are) a great company to fly for and the "Bandit' was a fabulous aircraft to operate.

[deanohit]

And a video if anyone is interested :)

http://www.tv3.co.nz/News/NationalNews/Planemakesemergencylanding/tabid/309/articleID/29118/Default.aspx#video

thanks for posting the link mate.missed the news,so was cool to see it.all looked very smooth and controlled.
And for the pilots =
'That man deserves a DB.':drinkup:

[sAsLEX]

Talking about it at work today.

Do they armour the hull in this zone at all? Marty? Or do the props spin the right direction so a ground strike sends them away from passengers?

Well from the vid it looked like the engines were stopped? Terbang whats the standard way to belly land?

[terbang]

Well from the vid it looked like the engines were stopped? Terbang whats the standard way to belly land?

A wheels up landing is type specific and the aircraft manual details procedures for such an event. But there are general techniques that most pilots keep in the back of their minds. It is normal to shut the engines down once the airfield is assured and as a general rule it is better to feather the props on a free turbine engine (such as the PT6 powered bandierante reccomended) and to leave them windmilling on the piston types. Feathering the prop reduces its rotation minimising blades flailing all over the place when they hit the runway. Prop blades can go through an aircraft hull like a hot knife through butter and they are not aromoured for that purpose. Either way the engines are generally shut down. It is commmon practise to plan a wheels up landing on the Tarmac rather than the grass as it gives the aircraft slower deceleration which can mean less damage. Its not a thing we practise much and most go through a flying career without having to do one.
My own experience is when I landed an old twin Comanche in Brisbane with the right main jambed up. An actuating rod had frozen and preferred to snap rather than push the wheel out of its bay. In that case I couldn't raise the left main or the nosewheel so has to commit to a partial gear landing. The comanche didn't glide that well so I elected to shutdown and feather ony the right engine and make a more controlled, single engine power on landing. I managed to rotate the right engine with the starter so that the 2 bladed prop was horizontal and not going to dig into the tarmac. The landing, at night on a foamed runway, was exciting to say the least.

[deanohit]

there are general techniques that most pilots keep in the back of their minds. .

Good description thanks.A partial gear landing at night aye? sounds dodgier than having a clean bottom to land on.Respect:Punk: Did the Comanche have much damage?

[Storm]

Watching the footage, I have to say:
Fuck me, that pilot deserves a massive bonus for putting it down so smoothly. Wasnt even a bump, nor sparks(that I could see). Slicker 'n a politician.
Couldnt help thinking that this will in the training films as the "how to do it right" for a long time.
Laughed at the passenger who said how smooth and unpaniced it was, and how he was glad it "was a New Zealand crash landing, not an American one! " :D

[terbang]

Did the Comanche have much damage?

It survived to fly another day with only damage to the right nacelle and wing.

Had a chat to a mate of mine who flys those things and it is the flight manual procedure to land wheels up with the engines running. I had a look at some of my preious type notes and on the piston types it is recommended to shutdown, just prior tp touchdown or just on touchdown. The Dash 8 (turboprop) recommends immediatly after touchdown, Gulfstream IV (jet with tail mounted engines) recommends fuel off on ground contact and the Boeing (jet with underslung engines) details a shutdown after landing completed. Type specific really I guess.

[MisterD]

nor sparks(that I could see).

Aluminininiumium doesn't spark...

[marty]

went to BHE to have a look - bit of a mess, probably about $1.2 mill damage.

i couldn't find the procedure for wheels up in the POH, but our QRH saysprops at 1700rpm, power levers @ flight idle. shut down on touchdown.

there is some doubling on the fuselage next to the props, but mostly for sound deadening.

the comanche has a single motor with 3 pushrods, so if one jams, the whole lot is buggered.

RE KIP, we now have accountable company torches - not allowed our own :)

RE ERU, lots of skullduggery talk, but just a mistake. we now have a process to minimise/eliminate that happening - hell even concord had a wheel that wasn't fitted properly - look what happened to that!

the metro had a broken actuator rod i think

here's some pix:

[terbang]

concord had a wheel that wasn't fitted properly - look what happened to that!


I drove past the crater and remainder of the hotel on the way to the sim at Le Bourget. It was not long after that accident happened and was a very sobering sight.

[marty]

there's 3 plane crashes that i think about on a regular basis:

1. TIK - went in at Ngahinapouri killing all on board, including a young girl who was the same age as my son at the time. The post mortems were very difficult. In my previous (to the Police) occupation I had flown on TIK from Raro to NZ when it was delivered here, and worked on it regularly. A very small circle.

2. The JAL 747 that blew the rear pressure bulkhead out and blew the tail off. James Reason's swiss cheese holes lining up 10 years after they started being piled up.

3. Concord into Le Bourget. Just because.

[nadroj]

[QUOTE=marty;1103171]there's 3 plane crashes that i think about on a regular basis:

1. TIK - went in at Ngahinapouri killing all on board, including a young girl who was the same age as my son at the time. The post mortems were very difficult. In my previous (to the Police) occupation I had flown on TIK from Raro to NZ when it was delivered here, and worked on it regularly. A very small circle.
QUOTE]

That was Hans & Bliss Wagner of the Pro Biotics garlic fame, residents of New Plymouth. Also on board was Mrs Ivan Jones from Hawera. It would have been about 1995/6. I was working with a guy doing his CPL at the time who now flies Q300's & heard it was a fuel transfer switch installed upside down.