Posted on 09/16/2005 2:50:04 PM PDT by linkinpunk
Jeep, Doing 80MPH, Drives Under Plane To Fix Landing Gear
UPDATED: 5:16 pm EDT September 16, 2005
NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. -- It was a literal fix on the fly at the New Smyrna Beach Airport. Three men in a jeep drove within feet of a small plane to fix its landing gear while it was still in the air.
The jeep had to go just about as fast as it could go down the runway, and the small Cessna had to slow to almost stalling speed for it to work.
"It's not something, from a safety standpoint, we would promote under normal circumstances," said New Smyrna Beach spokesperson Shannon Lewis.
An instructor and student were approaching the airport, ready to land, when they noticed their landing gear wouldn't lock in place. They radioed in their predicament and then circled for about an hour before crews on the ground could come up with a plan to get them down safely.
"We went through the normal procedures, emergency procedures, did a little bit extra by driving out," said Tony Perna, Epic Aviation.
With emergency vehicles in place, the Cessna flew in low and slow with a jeep right beside it. After several passes at about 80 miles per hour, the three-man crew in the jeep was able to see the problem and figure out how to fix it.
On a final pass, the men used a five-foot long pole to push the landing gear into place and lock it. With that done, the plane was able to land safely.
The instructor was flying the plane during the low passes. Epic Aviation would not let Channel 9 speak with him.
The airport will now investigate to see if the impromptu in-flight inspection broke any major rules.
"Investigating the incident and determining if any action needs to be taken," said Lewis.
When the airport is done with their investigation, they will forward their report to the Federal Aviation Authority.
"The Jeep Beneath My Wings", by The Gutsy Guys.
If you fix landing gear on 707s.
Heh.... I've seen a few of these rescues... People at their best, when it works!
Didn't I see this in an episode of Thunderbirds?
Do they consider the non-locking of the landing gear an incident?
Thanks for the ping Aeronaut! Looks like maybe a cutlass which is what I have...
Liberals minds at work.
I love my Wrangler. My wife loves her Grand Cherokee.
Very interesting, Was it a Cessna 177?
172?
Stupidity in flight is a death penalty offense.
Think of it as evolution in action.
OK, now who of the guys on this board are not painfully envious of this stunt?
Yeah, could have been a retractable 172, in fact from a distance thats what it looks like.
They do stuff like this at airshows. But they have "waivers" for specific stunts at airshows.
There is an FAR that basically makes it illegal to do anything dangerous, with no definition of what's dangerous.
I would have done this on either the Jeep end or Cessna end. But there is precedent to worry about such stunts. There was a Senator (I think it was Terazza Kerry's deceased hubby, Senator Heinz) that was killed when the plane he was in had a midair with a helicopter. They had the gear hang in the plane, and the helicopter flew up underneath to get a look, and apparently the downwash sucked them into each other.
Really stupid move.
This is what I love about men: guts and ingenuity!
I have seen films of something like this twice, once about 1984 with landing gear problems. They actually put their hands on the gear. When it opened and locked, it almost knocked the guys out of the truck they were using.
The other, a C133 (big, big airplane) cutting a static line on a guy that was twisted in it. That took place at Fort Bragg I think in the early 60's.
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