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Single Engine Go-Around in a Seminole (or other light twin)

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lstorm2003

Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2006
Posts
13
Guys,

I was wondering how you all feel about this... Let me set the scene for you...

You are making a single engine approach to land at an airport with an elevation of 50ft MSL. Density altitude is about 900. Your aircraft is at about 250 pounds under max gross weight and the failed engine is feathered.

Unfourtunatly the runway is only 2500 feet with no over-run and there is a body of water when the runway ends. The gear is down, the flaps are extended, you are at about 100 feet when you cross the runway threshold, you think you have the runway made, but then suddenly the wind shears from a negligible headwind to a 15 knot tailwind. Your aircraft initially descends but now you are using runway fast, since your ground speed has increased! You are now at about 40 feet AGL, 85 knots IAS, with a little less than 1/4 of the available runway behind you.

Do you attempt to force the aircraft onto the ground with this tailwind? Or do you attempt a single engine go-around?

Comments?
 
I haven't flown a Seminole much so I don't know about that one, but if I were flying the twin commanche, I'd probably go. I know it will do it, and initial climb rate isn't much of a factor since there's just water at the end of the runway. After it gets cleaned up it'll climb just fine. I'm really adverse to being in enclosed spaces that don't float in water.
 
I'll go with that answer. Since there's just water, and the engine is feathered....go around. Flaps, Gear, Flaps, Flaps...slow climb is okay out over the water....

-mini
 
Make the decision sooner

I fly a Duchess which is similar performance to the Seminole. Actually, my single engine service ceiling is higher, so rate of climb in this situation might be slightly better.

My Duchess manual says about 2000 feet to land over a 50 foot obstacle given the scenario you outlined prior to the wind shear. At 100' over the threshold, you aren't going to land on that runway even without the wind shear issue. This would be particularly true at 85 knots, however, I understand why you might want to stay at that speed. The decision to go around should be made much sooner. Strike One!

In this scenario you are at full flaps prior to having the runway made. 100' over the threshold on a 2500 foot runway is not having the runway made. Strike two!

Now you are down 3/4 of the runway at 40', 85 knots, and thinking time to go-around. You may well be in the water by the time you get up the power and take the hit from retracting that first notch of flaps. Are you sure you want to go for strike three?

When I was checking out in the Duchess my instructor did an engine cut on take-off at about 400 feet. Things went pretty well. The Duchess takes off with flaps up and all that really needs to be done is to get the gear up and secure the bad engine. In that scenario, the gear was already up and he set zero thrust. Slow climb to pattern altitude and I started setting up the approach. It was a nice Texas day with winds at about 30 knots gusting higher and not down the runway. Base was into the wind.

Gear down, first flaps on downwind, turn base, added the rest of the flaps on base and suddenly realized that this turkey was not going to get to the runway. I expressed that concern to the instructor and his response was "Well, what are you going to do?". I told him I needed to get rid of the flaps and he said "You better get going". I could not believe how much altitude I had to trade to get rid of the first 10 degrees or so of those flaps. We made the runway, but we would not have if I had left the flaps at full.

My personal opinion, if you decide to try the single engine go-around at the place and configuration you have postulated, be careful, watch out for VMC and make sure you ditch before you loose control. Your chances of striking out are very high, very very high.

If you ask me what I would do in that situation, I would tell you that I already made the decision to land when I put out the last of the flaps. Or, I would have gone around when I realized that I could not cross the threshold below 50 feet. The scenario you have created is the killer scenario.
 
It depends on how strong a swimmer you are, doesn't it?
 
In this situation, i would probably try to force the airplane onto the ground. Your drag penalties are so high with the gear and flaps out, something like -600fpm iirc, that you would have to get the airplane cleaned up in a hurry to get any sort of a positive climb rate. With no altitude below you, it appears you are swimming one way or another.
 
Don't forget you can fly in ground effect over that body of water.

Go around the boats, though.
 
CalifDan said:
Your chances of striking out are very high, very very high.

Only if you shouldn't be flying the airplane in the first place. The Seminole has manual flaps. Go-around: full power, BAM! no flaps, gear up, There's a positive climb rate in the amount of time it takes to move your hand from the throttle to the floor (or at least not negative, and who cares if you're climbing, there's nothing to hit). The twin commanche has electric flaps, but it will also stop the descent with the flaps down at that weight, so no worries. VMC? If you can't keep it at blue line, you shouldn't be in that airplane.
 
CalifDan said:
In this scenario you are at full flaps prior to having the runway made. 100' over the threshold on a 2500 foot runway is not having the runway made. Strike two!

Now you are down 3/4 of the runway at 40', 85 knots, and thinking time to go-around. You may well be in the water by the time you get up the power and take the hit from retracting that first notch of flaps. Are you sure you want to go for strike three?

Actually I said you were at 40' with a little less than 1/4 of the runway behind you. Meaning you still have a littler over 3/4 of the runway remaining in front of you. Therefore I think it *might* be possible to coax the aircraft onto (or if you are unlucky, into) the ground.
 

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