RIGHT SEAT RULES #32

ARE REAL FORCED LANDINGS DIFFERENT FROM WHAT WE HAVE BEEN TAUGHT? JIM HAS OVER A DOZEN OF THEM WITHOUT SCRATCHING AN AEROPLANE SO HE HAS A GOOD IDEA OF WHAT WORKS ON THE DAY.

- JIM DAVIS

REAL FORCED LANDINGS PART 2

LAST time I said I'd tell you about seven things you can fiddle with that may restore some, or all of the power, plus the main things to look for when you choose a field.

CAN YOU FIX IT?

THE PRIMER - Confirm it's in and locked. If the engine has died completely, you may get a bit of power to stretch your descent by pumping the primer. It's worth a shot.

MIXTURE - Try smoothly enriching and leaning - either may restore the power. I met a guy recently who did a forced landing because his engine failed as he descended to land at the coast. He admitted he had always flown up-country and didn't realize he had to richen the mixture as he came down into the denser coastal air. If a turbocharger fails this may cause the mixture to become so rich that the engine dies. Simply leaning way back can restore most of the power. Twenty-five years ago a heavily loaded Piper Chieftain crashed just after takeoff on the reef, killing all ten on board. Investigators found a failed turbocharger. Had the pilot pulled the mixture back a couple of inches he would have saved nine lives - plus his own.

PITCH - Try fiddling with it. It's very unlikely to restore power, but pulling it into coarse will make a real difference in stretching the glide. I'd be inclined to leave it until your final approach and only use it then to adjust your glide path if you need it.

Fuel Selector - Try every position - and give it time to take effect - at least ten seconds. Yes even the off position might give you fuel. I read of a Partenavia P68B that crashed because the selector body, behind the upholstery, had sheered a bolt and swivelled such that the apparent OFF position would actually have been ON.