Yak-50 forced landing video

[eharding]

What happens when the oil runs out at a rather larger rate than usual:

http://www.bremont.com/mayday.php

At least two of us here know the pilot - nice job finding a flat spot in some pretty unfriendly terrain.

[DieselGriff]

Whilst I can't comment with any legitimacy it seems he was very cool, calm and professional which I'm sure helped in the final outcome.

As he had a bill yet?

[anonymous-user]

Good job!

I had a forced landing in a light aircraft. I kind of landed fine and got out but then thought OK what now. (This was before mobile phones etc)

I had to walk to a farm and ask to use a phone. The bloke was pissed off with me for landing in his field.

I knew one emirates cadet who force landed near Prestwick, he then got the engine started and took off again because nobody had taught him what do do after the forced landing.

[FuzzyLogic]

Pleased to see he got out without serious injury...

I take it there is a 'discussion' with the maintenance company over the lack of lockwire & a large repair bill!!?

[Simpo Two]

Did he catch the drystone wall on landing?

Would it have been possible to do a wheels-down landing on the road or did he have insufficient control?

[eharding]

Simpo Two said:

Did he catch the drystone wall on landing?

Would it have been possible to do a wheels-down landing on the road or did he have insufficient control?

Yes, intended the first field, it didn't work out, so ended up in the far field via the wall.

We can all provide critique from the comfort of an armchair, and it wasn't a 100% textbook forced landing, but in the final analysis he walked away from it...and by posting the video prompted those of us who fly behind that sort of engine to review our sudden donkey deficiency procedures.

Forced landings onto public roads do happen every so often in the US, but in the UK we understand that driving is generally more dangerous than flying, and hence that if you're having a bad day in an aeroplane, attempting to alleviate the problem by using a public road just increases the chances of it ending badly.

SOP in the 52 is to leave the gear retracted for a forced landing to reduce the chances of ending up with the aircraft on its back. In any tail dragger, if you had the option, you would do the same.

We could of course add critique that the forced landing - by my viewing at least - was conducted with the canopy shut, and the electrical systems alive....but, until you've been there and done that (and to date, my only Pan call was when the Pitts fuel tank sprang a leak...directly above by legs)...kudos to Andy for posting the video.

[AnotherClarkey]

My only piloting experience is in gliders and that video confirms my preference for decent airbrakes over an engine anyday! That thing dropped like a brick and then had the temerity to float the poor bloke straight towards a dry stone wall!

[hman]

I noticed he was yawing left and right as forward vision was restricted by the forward fuselage.

Bad enough being able to see where you are going without power let alone having to do that as well!

I read somewhere that a windmilling propeller actually creates more drag than a fetahered prop- presume the YAK prop couldnt be feathered?

Anyway- Great Video!

[mybrainhurts]

eharding said:

Forced landings onto public roads do happen every so often in the US,

Here you go...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBTkMEmxXSI

Oh st...watch the wing, watch the wing...and all that

[Mojocvh]

Frightening how events seem to speed up the closer to the ground he got.

Was the undercarriage lowered?



"Any landing you walk away from" etc....

[Eric Mc]

I assumed he didn't lower thr undercarriage. Did he clip the stone wall just before touch down?

It was an impressive bit of piloting.

Edited by Eric Mc on Sunday 10th October 08:43

[davepoth]

hman said:

I noticed he was yawing left and right as forward vision was restricted by the forward fuselage.

I don't know whether this is true or not, but every time Biggles broke down and needed to park in a field, he would "fishtail" the plane (i.e. move the rudder from side to side a bit) to slow the plane down, which I think was what the pilot was aiming at here, since he was travelling at a fair lick when he went down.

As a previous poster said, any landing you can walk away from, etc. etc.

[YAK50FLY]

Ed, canopy was opened at 04.17
I made one response to another forum to clear a few things up so will paste it below.
The only other comments I'll add - a practice force landing with the engine on feels very different, getting a view past the nose on a 50 at low level without power/crabbing meant keeping the speed up/weaving and flaps would have been helpful.

From Flyer forum:

Engine seized, reduction gearbox disintegrated = freewheeling prop
ATC kindly supplied by Carlisle ATC and CAA, radio cooked

Field sizes... take a look c/o google maps. Its wet & boggy and short fields aplenty and I'm from the area so elected to head west. Its certainly not flat.
Large field unfortunately had big holes in it recently made by a JCB. The final field was upslope, left to fallow so better drained.
It was impossible to walk on the big field due to the mud sticking to everything so in hindsight very lucky it was the smaller final field... stone wall was 1.5ft high, fence posts a little higher.

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?client=safari&q=...

180kmph+ so that steep turn ok and scrubbing speed off without flaps I’ll admit was tricky.

Please don't take an engineers word for it that everything is okay after deep maintenance.... I was 2hrs 50mins out of the engineers hands.

[Eric Mc]

Thanks for the details.

I think the planes Biggles was flying were a bit different to Yaks.

[eccles]

This was posted a while ago on another forum......
http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/showthread.php?t=...

[speedtwelve]

Yak50fly

Good effort, mate. Well done on walking away, and hope the aeroplane is flying again eventually.

I've flown over 4000 hrs without any of the donks quitting (yet!), but it's probably only a matter of time...

[LD1Racing]

YAK50FLY said:

Please don't take an engineers word for it that everything is okay after deep maintenance.... I was 2hrs 50mins out of the engineers hands.

2hrs 50 isn't too bad. My old man got less than 3 minutes out of Eshott before a fuel line became blocked and he had to stick it in a field the other side of the A1. AAIB report pending.

Good work on the landing though, hope you get the big Yak sorted, lovely aircraft.

[cavok]

Excellent job, well done in difficult circumstances. I share a Pitts S2A and certainly hope that little bugger keeps going!(Although obviously I plan on the basis that it's not..)

[Flintstone]

mybrainhurts said:

eharding said:

Forced landings onto public roads do happen every so often in the US,

Here you go...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBTkMEmxXSI

Oh st...watch the wing, watch the wing...and all that

He even rolls it into a car park

[Munter]

YAK50FLY said:

It was impossible to walk on the big field due to the mud sticking to everything so in hindsight very lucky it was the smaller final field... stone wall was 1.5ft high, fence posts a little higher.

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?client=safari&q=...

Notes there appears to be a pub at this location.... You know I can think of cheaper less dangerous ways to pop out for a sneeky pint.

Well done getting it right enough to walk out of.