Twin Comanche Nose Gear Up Landing

SteveCostello

My member is well-known.
Even managed to save the props/engines, which is either a.) impressive, or b.) foolish.

I don't think I've seen too many gear-up landings where the pilot made much of an effort to save himself the rebuild and prop replacement. On a Twin Comanche, I kinda get why you'd want to, but at the same time... isn't that what insurance is for? I mean... he was tapping the starters all the way up until he was almost on the ground, not to mention the possibility of needing to go around (although, that looked like a HUGE runway, so he could probably have floated for 6,000 feet and still had plenty of room).

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Even managed to save the props/engines, which is either a.) impressive, or b.) foolish.

I don't think I've seen too many gear-up landings where the pilot made much of an effort to save himself the rebuild and prop replacement. On a Twin Comanche, I kinda get why you'd want to, but at the same time... isn't that what insurance is for? I mean... he was tapping the starters all the way up until he was almost on the ground, not to mention the possibility of needing to go around (although, that looked like a HUGE runway, so he could probably have floated for 6,000 feet and still had plenty of room).

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It's a 310. No, he didn't save the engines. A 310 has TCM engines, and the service bulletin says any impact, engine running or not, that requires more than minor dressing of the prop is a tear down. Seeing as those props are bent, he's getting new engines too.
 
Forgive me if I'm wrong, but wont the engines need an overhaul if the props are torqued at all? Looked like the props touched anyway.

It'd be pretty hard to get it perfectly, I'd just fly it in and let insurance cover the rest.
 
The second the aircraft lets me down like that (assuming it's not pilot error), I hope it never takes flight again. I want it's last flight to know I won, it didn't.
 
Dang it. That's what I get for not looking closer at the airplane. Why I thought that was a Piper... :bang:

But yeah... if I ever do a gear up, the last thing I'm going to worry about is the engines. I'll let the insurance companies figure that isht out.

I see I also somehow managed to pull a double post. This thread is FULL OF FAIL on my part.
 
This video has been posted here a few times. That is from a flight school in Van Nuys that I wouldn't fly at if the end of the world was coming, and I needed to get out. I'd(you) be better off walking.
 
It's a 310. No, he didn't save the engines. A 310 has TCM engines, and the service bulletin says any impact, engine running or not, that requires more than minor dressing of the prop is a tear down. Seeing as those props are bent, he's getting new engines too.

A tear down does not necessarily mean new engines, and it doesn't even mean overhaul. I've torn down an engine that had a prop strike worse than that one (though it was a Lycoming) and it was mostly just getting the crankshaft, connecting rods, and some accessory gears magnafluxed IIRC. That engine was fine and not too terribly expensive to tear down.

Chances are good this pilot saved those engines from being scrapped as well, though it certainly needed a tear down inspection.
 
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