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Emergency landing in water

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Bill Vincent

Joined: 30 Jan 2006
Posts: 84

Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 3:26 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

Hi Gang

If I remember correctly, a few of you on the list have had engine 

failures and had to land in the water. 

At times the only open area I fly above is water; what is the proper 

procedure for an engine out landing in water with a Firestar II?

Do I unbuckle my seat beat?  Should I get the plane a few inches above 

the water then stall it in?  Does it want to turn upside down when the 

front wheels hit the water?

Thank you in advance 

Bill Vincent

Firestar II

Upper Peninsula of Michigan



Do Not Archive

_________________
Bill Vincent
Firestar II
Upper Peninsula of Michigan

ElleryWeld(at)AOL.COM
Guest

Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 4:13 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

Bill 



 Install floats First  land second



      If I was flying over water all the time and that nervous of a engine 

out I would replace the wheels with Floats



 I got a second set of floats if your interested 



    Ellery in firestar 



do not archive

wcm(at)tampabay.rr.com
Guest

Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 4:30 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

Ellery,

Do you have any pictures of a Firestar on floats.

If you do would you please post then on or off list.

Thanks

Chris Mallory

ElleryWeld(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 4:34 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

I think all I have for pictures of a firestar on floats might be one in my 

shop  I will look around and see if I can come up with something for you to look 

at 



        Ellery

do not archive

ElleryWeld(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 4:38 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

these are not to good but it gives you an idea 



Ellery

David.Lehman

Joined: 10 Jan 2006
Posts: 265
Location: "Lovely" Fresno CA

Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 4:55 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

Look here at Steve Boetto's beautiful Firefly on floats, it's the

inspiration for my Firestar on floats...



http://www.skyshops.org/FLOATSHOME/floats%20kob%20firefly.htm



David



On 5/21/06, ElleryWeld(at)aol.com <ElleryWeld(at)aol.com> wrote:

 	  Quote: 	
		  

 

 these are not to good but it gives you an idea



 Ellery





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-- 

  "Ultralight flying isn't about transportation; it's about the ma

gic of

pure, simple flight." - Scott Wilcox

_________________
ô¿ô

"Both optimists and pessimists contribute to the society. The optimist invents the aeroplane, the pessimist the parachute."

--- George Bernard Shaw

wcm(at)tampabay.rr.com
Guest

Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 4:56 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

Thanks



Chris Mallory



do not archive

---

ElleryWeld(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 5:00 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

Yea I have seen Steve Boettos firefly on floats 



            Ellery

kfackler(at)ameritech.net
Guest

Posted: Sun May 21, 2006 5:03 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

Are there not some floatplane instructors in your area with whom you could

consult?



do not archive



-Ken Fackler

Kolb Mark II / A722KWF

Rochester MI



---

George Myers

Joined: 10 Jan 2006
Posts: 76
Location: San Marcos, Texas

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 7:22 am Post subject: Emergency landing in water

The following is from the archives:

Unbuckling your harness before you hit might be a bit uncomfortable, but

then again it depends on which window your body is ejected through.

But, if you're forced to make a water landing, here are some things to keep

in mind.

The trick is not to panic and no - I not telling you do die calmly.

And that is probably the most least-likely-to-be-followed advice you'll

ever been given.

 

1. Take a deep breath before you hit, you'll be under water very soon, and

won't be coming back up for at least a few seconds. It helps to count, you

know, " 1 Mississippi, 2 Mississippi, etc. It's nice to know how long

you're really under, it might seem a lot longer than it really is.

 

2. Don't try for shallow water (of course, your in the "Channel" - so I

suppose that won't be a problem). When the wheels grab, the nose will

dolphin, just like Flipper, and dive about 6 feet before the wings stop the

momentum of the plane. Actually it's a rush; kind of like being hit by an

airbag in a car. It only takes a second to go from 40 mph to 0. Don't know

how many Gs that is. It also only takes a second for the cockpit to

completely fill with water.

 

3. The worst part is that it feels like the plane is sinking, it's not.

You're only a few feet under water, and the plane is actually slowly coming

up.

 

4. The rest is pretty simple, unbuckle your harness, leave your helmet on

but pull the wires loose from the radios, etc. Not having anything to

judge this against, I supposed I was doing rather well until the shoulder

harness tangled in my helmet/earphones. Just a noted this, because I could

not remember how to unbuckle my helmet. Had to pull it off from the back -

over my head. Perhaps it was the oxygen deprivation, but I was rather lost

in my own little world for a while - about 10 seconds, I think.

 

5. If you have a full enclosure, it probably will still be locked, so

unlock it or kick it out. By this time the plane will be floating, but you

will still be under water. 

 

6. Now just climb out onto the wings and wave down someone to pick you up,

you've got about 10 minutes before the plane sinks. I was in a FireStar,

and yours may act completely different. We've had a two-seater like yours

go in since my adventure. It touched one wheel down and did kind of a

half-turn and proceed to sink, neither of us flipped over. 

 

 	  Quote: 	
		  At times the only open area I fly above is water; what is the proper

procedure for an engine out landing in water with a Firestar II?

Do I unbuckle my seat beat? Should I get the plane a few inches above

the water then stall it in? Does it want to turn upside down when the


	


Do Not Archive

b1bookie(at)lycos.com
Guest

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 7:07 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

Hi Bill...........I don't post very often, but I can give you some insight on 'water-landings. First we need to understand that we are flying 'Anchors with Wings' and therefore we go down with the ship. My experience was in a Quicksilver returning from Ventura Ca. to Camarillo Airport. I was flying with a buddy who was just ahead of me and above me about 50 feet. I was doing approx 50 mph about 10 feet above the water having a great time when 'silence set in'. The shoreline was almost all rock clifts in that area. I had just enough time to say to my buddy "I'm going in Harold" and headed very gently for the shore to get to shallow water. I tried to flair as much as I could but going down wind it wasn't easy. All of a sudden there was a 'rush' of water and straight to the bottom I went. This Quicksilver had a pod in front which saved being fliped over on my back. No flotation at all. I was sitting on the bottom in eight ft. of water which was over my wings. I just sat there for a moment or so just trying to realize this really was happening. I got out of my seat belt and radio gear and floated to the top of the wing. Had a problem getting my helmet off but remained calm and tried to wave for help. The tide was now bring the plane closer to shore and I am standing in about 4 ft. of water. Finally, a young man jumps in to help me and is telling me I am going to loose my plane.  I finally convinced him to help me drag the plane about a hundred yards to the west where there was a small beach area. To make this short, we were able to save the 'Bird' with a good fresh water bath and a few broken tubes. Earlier in the day I had been distracted while changing spark plugs and had only hand tightened them. It took about one hour for the plug to come out of its hole to bring the silence.

If you are in deep water, you can kiss the bird by-by, but you can save yourself if you have some kind of vest flotation available to you. The floats for your plane would be the best solution, but also practice emergency water landings so you will be ready if it were to happen.

Hope this helps your decision.



Do not archive

[quote] ---

Masqqqqqqq(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Mon May 22, 2006 7:10 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

Landing on water is a scenario that I've gone through in my mind a 

hundred times, but never actually done.  If I know i'm going to be flying over 

water, I always wear a lightweight kayaking life jacket.

     I fly an UltraStar with no enclosure.  One of the methods I've 

considered is to unbuckle, toss my helmet, and just before the machine touches water, 

just get out.  Can't be much different than falling off water skis.

   Another method, and probably the best idea, is to deploy the BRS.  Won't 

flip, cuz you're coming straight down.  And the chute is going to be ruined by 

the water anyway, might as well use it.  And if the plane sinks, maybe all 

those lines connected to it might aid recovery.  

    Of course, until it happens, if it happens,  I'll never know how I'll 

react.

JetPilot

Joined: 10 Jan 2006
Posts: 1246

Posted: Tue May 23, 2006 8:16 am Post subject: Re: Emergency landing in water

I bet with those skis on your firestar you could do a pretty good landing on the water, then just sink when you lose the last little bit of speed

_________________
"NO FEAR" - If you have no fear you did not go as fast as you could have !!!

Kolb MK-III Xtra, 912-S

Russ Kinne

Joined: 27 Jan 2006
Posts: 182

Posted: Wed May 31, 2006 2:50 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

FWIW -- I have no experience w/Kolbs but suspect they'd overturn in a  

water landing . Advice for Cessnas & such is to cinch the seatbelt  

AND SHOULDER BELTS  tight so you won't be bashed in to the panel &  

mebbe unconscious -- open both doors so they won't jam shut; hold it  

off as long as poss, full flaps, drag tail if you can. When you're  

upside down, put an arm against the ceiling before you undo the  

seatbelt, and get out. A Cessna will float 30-60 seconds, PLENTY of  

time to get out with that much incentive. Climb on top of wing & wave  

to rescue boat which hopefully is racing towards you!

Hope this is of some help.

Russ



On May 21, 2006, at 7:23 PM, Bill Vincent wrote:



 	  Quote: 	
		   

 <emailbill(at)chartermi.net>



 Hi Gang

 If I remember correctly, a few of you on the list have had engine

 failures and had to land in the water.

 At times the only open area I fly above is water; what is the proper

 procedure for an engine out landing in water with a Firestar II?

 Do I unbuckle my seat beat?  Should I get the plane a few inches above

 the water then stall it in?  Does it want to turn upside down when the

 front wheels hit the water?

 Thank you in advance

 Bill Vincent

 Firestar II

 Upper Peninsula of Michigan



 Do Not Archive

slyck(at)frontiernet.net
Guest

Posted: Wed May 31, 2006 5:07 pm Post subject: Emergency landing in water

A Kolb might flip but if the wings are sealed like mine -no

inspection holes - it should float.

-BB   do not archive

On 31, May 2006, at 6:46 PM, russ kinne wrote:



 	  Quote: 	
		   



 FWIW -- I have no experience w/Kolbs but suspect they'd overturn in a

 water landing . Advice for Cessnas & such is to cinch the seatbelt

 AND SHOULDER BELTS  tight so you won't be bashed in to the panel &

 mebbe unconscious -- open both doors so they won't jam shut; hold it

 off as long as poss, full flaps, drag tail if you can. When you're

 upside down, put an arm against the ceiling before you undo the

 seatbelt, and get out. A Cessna will float 30-60 seconds, PLENTY of

 time to get out with that much incentive. Climb on top of wing & wave

 to rescue boat which hopefully is racing towards you!

 Hope this is of some help.

 Russ



 On May 21, 2006, at 7:23 PM, Bill Vincent wrote:



> 

> <emailbill(at)chartermi.net>

>

> Hi Gang

> If I remember correctly, a few of you on the list have had engine

> failures and had to land in the water.

> At times the only open area I fly above is water; what is the proper

> procedure for an engine out landing in water with a Firestar II?

> Do I unbuckle my seat beat?  Should I get the plane a few inches above

> the water then stall it in?  Does it want to turn upside down when the

> front wheels hit the water?

> Thank you in advance

> Bill Vincent

> Firestar II

> Upper Peninsula of Michigan

>

> Do Not Archive

>

>

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