High enough, it would seem, that the V-tail Beechcraft Bonanza acquired the nickname "Doctor Killer"
Posted on 12/23/2004 6:21:20 AM PST by MississippiMasterpiece
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Albert Kolk's small plane banked uncontrollably in darkness over the Monashee mountains, then began spiraling. "Seat belts!" he barked to his teenage grandson and two young friends. Then he reached for a red lever in the cockpit. Suddenly, an orange-and-white parachute as big as a house opened above the plane and gently landed his stricken aircraft in a rocky clearing.
If the maker of the parachute that saved Kolk's life this past spring succeeds, one day commercial aircraft like regional commuter jets may have similar safety systems. First, though, there's the challenge of creating a parachute robust enough to rescue bigger, faster planes.
"Weight and speed are always the challenge," acknowledged Robert Nelson, chairman of Ballistic Recovery Systems Inc., which sold about 500 of its $16,000 parachute systems this year for use by small private planes and pilots like Kolk.
The company's most advanced parachute right now can accommodate nearly 4,000 pounds. While small planes can weigh up to 2,000 pounds and cruise about 175 miles per hour, regional jets weigh 80,000 pounds and fly at more than 600 miles per hour.
That's why Ballistic Recovery Systems is working with NASA -- which gave it $670,000 for research -- to design a new generation of emergency parachutes that would work on small jets and could be steered by pilots as they drift to the ground.
Kolk, a rancher who was piloting his private plane April 8 from Seattle to his ranch in British Columbia, remembered reaching for the parachute handle as his plane slipped into a dangerous flat spin over the mountains in British Columbia, "like how a dog chases its tail."
A seasoned pilot, Kolk said he had never experienced such a disaster in over a decade of private flying.
"I knew I was in trouble. I couldn't straighten out," Kolk said. "When that chute opened, it was a peaceful, wonderful feeling."
Kolk's experience is one of four cases where parachute-equipped planes landed safely beneath a canopy since U.S. regulators approved the system six years ago. Ballistic Recovery Systems, based in St. Paul, Minn., says eight lives were saved in those four incidents, plus dozens of other people in accidents involving smaller parachute-equipped ultralight planes that resemble motorized gliders.
The parachute, stored behind the rear seats in small planes, is fired with a rocket through the rear windshield; it's attached with high-strength lines to the plane's wings, nose and tail.
They are increasingly popular among private pilots, and for good reason: The government said 626 people died in general aviation crashes in 2003, compared with 81 people aboard commercial airlines.
Aviation experts question whether parachutes will ever be attached to the largest passenger jets, such as the Boeing 747, which weighs more than 900,000 pounds. "The speed and weight of those planes would seem to preclude a system like that," said James Hall, former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board.
Most of the estimated 500 parachute systems Ballistic Recovery Systems sold in 2004 went to aircraft manufacturer Cirrus Design Corp. of Duluth, Minn., which includes them as standard equipment on its line of small private planes. U.S. regulations allow owners of some Cessna small planes to install parachutes, but only about a dozen have bought the add-on equipment so far.
Brent Brown, a lawyer in Roanoke, Va., was having one added to his plane. Brown, who often flies twice a week over the mountains in western Virginia, said he couldn't imagine choosing to save money by not adding the new safety equipment. "I would feel awful silly on that terrible, terrible ride down," Brown said.
The emergency parachutes aren't flawless. Two families in Syracuse, N.Y., are suing Cirrus, Ballistic Recovery Systems and others for a combined $67.5 million over a fatal crash in April 2002. The case is pending in federal court.
The families said the pilot, a plastic surgeon who bought the plane six days earlier, tried to open the parachute but it failed. Defense lawyers have denied the system malfunctioned, and federal investigators concluded the parachute never opened "for undetermined reasons."
In another accident, one month before the Syracuse crash, pilot Paul Heflin of Lexington, Ky., repeatedly pulled hard on the parachute handle when his plane began a steep, uncontrolled dive from 3,000 feet. "He was pulling for his life," recalled Heflin's passenger, Benjamin Ditty. Both suffered minor injuries but walked away from the wreckage.
The parachute popped open just after the plane crashed, "which was not too convenient for us," Ditty said. Months after Heflin's crash, Cirrus ordered all its customers to immediately replace a vital cable in the parachute system.
Heflin said he still has faith in the parachute, but Ditty -- who also flies -- said he would never rely on one again. "It was supposed to work," he said.
Some pilots insist they'll never fly without a parachute.
"People are crazy not to fly with them," said William Graham of San Diego, an instructor pilot whose plane landed beneath a parachute this spring near Stockton, Calif., after it unexpectedly flipped upside down at 16,000 feet. Graham, who was flying with his wife, Barbara, said they drifted onto a farm field so gently the landing didn't break fragile Christmas ornaments and glass bottles aboard the plane.
Video of the parachute is available at:
http://wid.ap.org/video/video/airplanechute.rm
That would have scared the crap out of me! Not enough to close my eyes and spiral 16K feet to certain death.
High enough, it would seem, that the V-tail Beechcraft Bonanza acquired the nickname "Doctor Killer"
Forked Tailed Doctor Killer.
Kinda funny, they are the easiest airplane to fly I've ever encountered.
>>If a plane is capable of recovering from a spin, why would anyone want to pull a chute and crash land with the resulting damage?<<
How about engine failure at night, over mountains or in hard IMC ? Control surface or structural failure? You might get lucky and fly your way out of these situations, but if it's me and I have the option, I'll take the slow ride down under the canopy and let the insurance company worry about the damage to the plane.
Agreed. And I didn't realize that W visited the Cirrus factory - great! They're building and selling planes at an amazing rate. I am so happy for the Klapmeier brothers - two truly nice guys who had a great idea. Starting in the experimental regime, and refining from there to become certified ... AND running the company like a business - good for them!
I got a demo ride in a G2 to Oshkosh this year ... niiiiice plane!
Agree about spins. I took an hour of spin training in a 152 Aerobat before I soloed. I am VERY glad I did - especially when it came time to practice the stall series solo.
Unfortunately, one of the major causes of takeoff accidents is the departure of the pilot's actions from their training. Depending on the point during takeoff when you lose power (or whatever), some pilots attempts to turn back to the field (not even landing downwind, but going for the same direction as their takeoff!) too low or too close, instead of landing straight ahead, or if that's not possible, choosing a different place to set down.
I have had an engine failure at night over mountains. I landed safely at an airport. Obviously hard IMC would make it tougher. I try to follow Chuck Yaegers precepts and try to avoid three challenges because I can only handle two : )
Control surface or structural failure?
Sure I would like a parachute then : )
You might get lucky and fly your way out of these situations, but if it's me and I have the option, I'll take the slow ride down under the canopy and let the insurance company worry about the damage to the plane.
What is the difference between descending at 800 fpm and 35 mph or descending at 1200 fpm with no forward speed?
On a more practical note, the Cirrus has around a 600 pound payload with full fuel. That effectively makes it a three seater with zero baggage allowance.
So everyone is going to fly the plane over gross. That means more stalls, longer takeoffs, longer landings, slower cruise, higher fuel burn, etc. The last 70 lbs can make a big difference.
Since most accidents occur during take off and landing anything that increases my chance of a stall is to be avoided (weight mostly). An extra 70 pounds of useless parachute certainly won't help me when I am trying to recover from a stall at 500'.
In a class of mine we discuss ways to "system engineer" a safe crash landing system. Ejector seats have a concern since they depend on the weight of the passenger. But a section of seats might be successful or a system that weighed the passengers and adjusted the chute. The plane would also have to be separated using pyrotechnics to allow the smaller sections to be free to open their chutes.
<< Do doctors have a high crash rate? >>
Off the top of my [Forty+ years career Aviator's] head -- and having had several medico partners through the years -- I'd venture the highest of any profesion.
Poor fellows also cannot write legibly and/or run businesses!
The families said the pilot, a plastic surgeon who bought the plane six days earlier, tried to open the parachute but it failed. Defense lawyers have denied the system malfunctioned, and federal investigators concluded the parachute never opened "for undetermined reasons."
Sheesh. If the plane had not been equipped with a chute wouldn't the guy be just as dead? Seems like the lawyers needed another plaintiff as the plane manufacturer doesn't have deep enough pockets.
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