SCARIEST MOMENT

J

jetman

New Member
What is the SCARIEST
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experience you ever had flying?
I remember some close calls and not been scare AT ALL //// [what a fool///]like as a 50 hrs PPL been caught VFR in a snow storm making it back to a near by airport and greassing the landing in almost cero vis in what i thoght was a great disply of piloting skills//////// :
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:And then the others ......like on final at an uncontrolled airport, no traffic at all ,and in a fraction of an instant a 150 crossed from right to left missing eachother by a whisker,later i found out the other pilot was using the WRONG frequency /////
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i was so SCARED and upset at the whole incident that i considered quieting flying///////[din't]
What was your scariest moment ?
 
A few weeks ago on a flight from Austin to Dallas I had a bowel problem 15 minutes after I took off. I think I had eaten some fried cheese-stuffed jalepenos the night before. Anyway, I honestly thought I was going to have to divert to the nearest porcelain throne so I could send the browns to the superbowl, but I managed to hold it in for the hour and a half flight.

That and having a comm failure at night in class C.
 
Climbing out of TLH in a PA28-161. Just as I reached a cloud layer at 5000 (climbing to 7000), my engine coughed... not once... not twice... but continuously for about 10 seconds.

I immediately leaned, shut off the fuel pump - went wings level and waited.

No other problems after that... but it scared the beJesus out of me!

My choices were (in case the engine failed completely) TRY to turn back to the airport (wasn't going to happen - I was too far away) or set best glide speed and aim for the waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

Luckily, it never came to that and the engine ran smooth the rest of the way home....

... but, I pity the line guy who had to get that nipple my butt made in the upholstry.
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R2F, were you already at full rich when you leaned? I ask because my first inclination would be to richen the mixture upon power loss unless you were already at full rich.
 
Can't say I've had any scary experiences. I classify a scary experience as one which caused fright, followed by true fear. Sometimes you have something happen that causes fright, but is over soon enough to keep from causing fear. I've had a few of those.

A month or so ago we were flying along at 6000 feet being vectored for an approach into Chicago Midway when ATC called out VFR traffic 200 feet below us at 11 o'clock. We spotted the traffic, which was actually some 200 feet above us (this was an important discrepancy in my mind, since it made me believe his transponder was incorrectly reporting altitude), same direction.

I disconnected the AP when we got the "Traffic, Traffic" TA from the TCAS, when the captain said "look, he's turning." I looked, and there he was, turning towards us. Well at this point the TCAS gave an RA saying "Climb, Climb" and I started to climb as smoothly and quickly as possible to keep from blowing the FA who was still up in the cabin out through the floor. This is where the altitude discrepancy from his transponder was a concern, since our TCAS was giving an RA based on the altitude he was reporting at. But he was actually above us.

As I'm climbing 2000 FPM (2500 FPM was the top of the red arc/bottom of the green: target vertical speed), we get an "Increase Climb" RA. At this point our pitch angle and his location mean I can't see the airplane anymore, so I'm starting to tighten up a bit. A few seconds later we get the "clear of conflict" notification from the TCAS, and I breathe a sigh of relief. I was concerned the whole time about this VFR aircraft which was turning towards us, but it was the few seconds I couldn't see it anymore and had yet to clear that had me truly nervous.
 
ohh ohh. I finally get to add something to one of these. A long time ago(13 or 14 years) when I was a student pilot (I still don't have a PPL) I was flying solo in the local practice area and was doing landings and takeoffs at Zephyrhills Airport. I was on final maybe 20 feet up when out of nowhere this ultralight climbs in front of me off of a taxi way. I did a go-around and missed the guy but I hope it scared him as much as me.

Needless to say my practicing was done for the day.
 
I flew through a wind shear of about 50mph in my paraglider while in Switzerland. I thought was going to die.
 
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I was flying solo in the local practice area and was doing landings and takeoffs at Zephyrhills Airport.

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Ahhh Zephyrhills.
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What was your scariest moment ?

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One time when I was instructing, the hobbs meter quit. I thought I wouldn't be able to eat dinner that night.
 
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What was your scariest moment ?

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One time when I was instructing, the hobbs meter quit. I thought I wouldn't be able to eat dinner that night.

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Man oh man........you almost had to go without value menu #6 from Taco Bell......

Oh the humanity of it all!!!!
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Final approach into PIE in IMC got conflicting instructions from ATC and ended up hitting the wake of an L-1011 that landed right in front of us when we were about 200 feet above DA. Stalled the airplane at about 500 feet in IMC, ended up going weightless after recovery (probably from hitting the wake again when trying to climb out). Everything in the airplane went flying (thank God our seatbelts were on tight). Never saw the airport ... only the water when recovering from the stall at about 100 feet. I still think about it and am surprised we survived.
 
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Final approach into PIE in IMC got conflicting instructions from ATC and ended up hitting the wake of an L-1011 that landed right in front of us when we were about 200 feet above DA. Stalled the airplane at about 500 feet in IMC, ended up going weightless after recovery (probably from hitting the wake again when trying to climb out). Everything in the airplane went flying (thank God our seatbelts were on tight). Never saw the airport ... only the water when recovering from the stall at about 100 feet. I still think about it and am surprised we survived.

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what type of aircraft were you in?
 
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what type of aircraft were you in?

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Piper Aztec ... slightly smaller than an L-1011.
 
IMC on a vor into GNV I was in the right seat friend in left seat he was insterment rated I am in the middle of that training. He was flying the approch I was working the raidos and check lists for him, and when it is time to turn on the landing light I flip the switch and the 8 year old passanger in the back wakes up see the fog and screams into the head set."Ahhh I see the ground we are going to crash!!!" needless to say we missed and we where both freaked out. We where at 1200 feet with a 600 limit but climbing at that time just felt good
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new landing check list item - turn off backseat intercom
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X-country flight from SZP-SMX, had my ppl for only a few weeks. Just south of SBA I developed carb-ice and the engine was not puting out full power. I didnt know it was carb-ice at the time, but looking back that is what it was. Called app and told them I would be landing at SBA, do to a rough running engine. Next thing I know they are asking for fuel and soles onboard, in a 150 it wasnt much anyway. Still, not thinking that ATC was going to give my priority, and that I would be asked to enter left base to the GA runways, I asked for the straight in to the airline runway. He didnt answer and just told me to contact tower. Still at 3,000 feet(didnt want to decend incase I lost all power), I called the tower. I was told "N714HH cleared to land on any runway, wind XXX at XX). I was shocked that they would not tell me what runway to use. Only a few miles south of the airport I started to decend, so know I am too high. I didnt think I would have the power to go around, so I made it fit. Floated all the way down the runway until I forced it on the ground about 1500-1000 feet from the end. Taxied off, looked around and saw the fire trucks going back to the station(shocked that the fire trucks came out). I see operations checking the rwy. After I parked the airport police came and asked me about what happened and looked at my licence. I think the people looking on, thought I did something wrong. Well, I was scared, but learned alot. I went back to the books and read up on carb-ice. I learned alot about what to do different next time.

Any incident you walk away from, is a learning tool.
 
As a pilot with only 100-odd hours, I thankfully don't have too many stories to share here . . .
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Scariest moments both have to do with close-quarters traffic. First was a Cessna that busted class C and flew RIGHT in front of me just after I turned from crosswind to downwind for closed traffic. Couldn't see him before the turn because he was just behind and slightly to the side of me at my altitude. Couldn't have been more than 1/4 mile between us. ATC called the traffic just a bit late . . .

Next was when my instructor and I were heading from a practice area to a local uncontrolled field. We were still on the departure freq with flight following and about 12 miles from the destination airport. ATC called an unknown target at 11 o'clock, no altitude info, three miles. Got him in sight and he passed right under us, maybe 750 feet below. Looked like a Mooney. All of a sudden my instructor says, "Holy #&$*! He's doing a chandelle right underneath us!" Sure enough, we take evasive measures and he shoots right though where we would have been if we'd stayed on course. Glad I had someone in the left seat because I couldn't see him due to the fuselage. I still don't think he ever saw us. Just went back the way he came, happy as a clam in mud.

Most recent experience was today. Second time in a complex, going into slow flight, gear switch to 'down' . . . no green lights, no gear-coming-down noises. Recycle the switch . . . still nothing. Check the lights, all functional. Have a rather dumfounded, stressful moment before I realize that my instructor has pulled the breaker. Bastard!
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With my head down and eyes closed practicing getting disoriented and recovering from it quickly, the plane got very quiet. I looked up and we were in a spin, but the engine had stopped! That was a little nerve-wracking, but it started back up again after 5 or 6 tries.

Nick
 
My scariest moment so far was having my CFI paycheck in one hand an then looking in the other and seeing my first bill for my student loans...yikes!
 
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