Severe clear ice. Thank you Kansas city

avi8tor1983

avi8tor1983

Well-Known Member
I was caught in some severe clear ice and had to make an emergency landing. My windsheild except for my hot plate was down right covered, stalling the 208 at max power and 120 knots I had to keep it at a 500fpm decent to keep from a stall. Since all I could see was thru the hot plate Kansas city sent gave me radar vectors as best as he could to a small airport as I broke out of the clouds at 500 feet. Thank you kansas city! Thanks to the controller and all he did. You guys are our eyes when we have none!

Cheers:beer:
 
avi8tor1983 said:
I was caught in some severe clear ice and had to make an emergency landing. My windsheild except for my hot plate was down right covered, stalling the 208 at max power and 120 knots I had to keep it at a 500fpm decent to keep from a stall. Since all I could see was thru the hot plate Kansas city sent gave me radar vectors as best as he could to a small airport as I broke out of the clouds at 500 feet. Thank you kansas city! Thanks to the controller and all he did. You guys are our eyes when we have none!

Cheers:beer:
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Nice job! Seriously, that's some kinda ice. TKS or boots? How much was on it when you landed?

Crism said:
Good work. Sounds like that chapter I just finished in Fate is the Hunter.
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Great book. I've read it three times.
 
Am I the only one that misread this to read he caught ice in "severe clear" weather?
 
I had about 4 inches on the spinner and on any other surface that was not protected. It was learning expeiance as well as one that scared the hell out of me. I took some pics of the aftermath that I will put up once I can get to a computer.

Our 208's have boots allthough the van is am ice magnent.

The "clear sevear weather" was a typo. I was ifr from 7500 down to 500msl. I was given 7000 as an initial altitude, when I hit the ice I imediatly asked for higher. It came on so fast that I couldn't get above 7500. And after 10 mins I could no longer hold altitude.
 
avi8tor1983 said:
And after 10 mins I could no longer hold altitude.
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Don't be afraid to burn up the engine if you are getting close to the ground and still can't maintain altitude. I'd save it until you REALLY need it, but if you need to then use everything it's got.

Engines are cheap, but totaled airplanes and dead pilots are expensive.
 
Also on the GUY run during winter go through a lot of that ice-x. Try to wheedle the fuelers into putting it on for you. That sounds pretty scary. Can't wait to see the pictures!

I've only had ice so bad that I couldn't climb and started descending once, and lucked out and there was an inversion layer of warm air below me.

I can imagine what you were thinking: 'This is my first week!' and then a lot of stuff that would be censored by the profanity filter.
 
Wow that is intense. Glad you were able to keep calm and make it back down safely. Would you be willing to write up a more detailed account of the experience including pictures? I am always looking for real scenarios to use with my students and it sounds like this one could be an excellent teaching example. Of course I would keep the source of the information completely anonymous. Please PM me if you get a chance to put something together.
 
chuckles1225 said:
Wow that is intense. Glad you were able to keep calm and make it back down safely. Would you be willing to write up a more detailed account of the experience including pictures? I am always looking for real scenarios to use with my students and it sounds like this one could be an excellent teaching example. Of course I would keep the source of the information completely anonymous. Please PM me if you get a chance to put something together.
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I would be interested also, I have never picked up clear ice..
 
Had a similar experience in the 208. When I finally hopped down my knees wouldn't support me.
Good times!!!
 
I know some on here will call you a complete idiot. I sir, will not. And when I see you a JC 10', I'm gonna buy you a beer for telling us about it, and making it through it. Glad to hear you are ok. I can't wait for the pics.

P.S. I was once called an idiot for picking up ice in a 172 on these very forums. Mistakes happen, you live and learn. One for the books.

My log book entry for this one would have been "Phew, made it through that one, BARELY! Note to self, ice is bad"
 
mshunter said:
I know some on here will call you a complete idiot. I sir, will not. And when I see you a JC 10', I'm gonna buy you a beer for telling us about it, and making it through it. Glad to hear you are ok. I can't wait for the pics.

P.S. I was once called an idiot for picking up ice in a 172 on these very forums. Mistakes happen, you live and learn. One for the books.

My log book entry for this one would have been "Phew, made it through that one, BARELY! Note to self, ice is bad"
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I don't think anyone's going to call the OP an idiot. In fact, I don't think he made a mistake. He took an airplane certificated for known ice into icing conditions. I've done it all winter, as has everyone else.

Ice happens (can I coin that?).
 
avi8tor1983 said:
I was ifr from 7500 down to 500msl. I was given 7000 as an initial altitude, when I hit the ice I imediatly asked for higher. It came on so fast that I couldn't get above 7500. And after 10 mins I could no longer hold altitude.
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A thought or two: you will often/usually find the worst icing near the top of the layer. If you are in a position where you are descending for an airport it may well suit you better to ask for lower rather than trying to climb back out of it since you will need to descend back through the same layer again later. Often/usually you will fairly quickly get into less severe conditions rather than struggle trying to climb while you are packing ice onto the airframe at a scary rate. You might have been better off at 3 or 4 thousand feet in light/moderate ice rather than staying at 7 trying to climb and packing it on faster than you can get rid of it.

Note all the disclaimers above - those are general rules of thumb, not absolutes!

Nice job on using the resources at hand to get yourself on the ground safely!
 
This happened to JayAre once too, in a Beech 99 out in Utah/Idaho. He was lucky that ATC was able to vector him down a valley to an airport, because he wasn't going much further.

Good job getting it on the ground.
 
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