Well, offering an opinion as a (retired) commercial diver, not afraid of water but somewhat conscious of the difficulty which our species has in breathing it, I’d say its an absolute no-brainer.
I’ve made a couple of hundred landings with wheels on water, but anyone who thinks they can do that dead-stick with tricycle gear and in darkness really needs help in an institution. By contrast, I’ve witnessed a night landing at minimum controllable speed into the top of a mature Sitka spruce plantation, and the pilot walked away without a bruise or scratch. Unless you’re flying some rocket ship with dismal landing performance (in which case you might consider an airframe parachute), and unless you lose control, it’s by no means easy to kill yourself landing on terra firma of any description.
Maoraigh wrote:
" Reason being that many beaches here have volleyball nets which of course are invisible at night."
Unfortunately most are steel poles or some very sturdy wooden ones. The nets are under tension, so the poles must be be properly anchored. Wouldn’t want to hit them.
" Reason being that many beaches here have volleyball nets which of course are invisible at night."
How firmly fixed are the net supports? An SE which is not a pusher configuration might push them over.
Snoopy wrote:
That’s some serious piloting skill!
No kidding !!
As to the OP question. As always – it depends. Around here there is a coastline and I would try to either land on the beach or ditch in direction of the beach with the intention of coming to rest on said beach. Reason being that many beaches here have volleyball nets which of course are invisible at night. I would not try to ditch in the ocean proper for all the reasons @Pilot_DAR has already laid out. At the end of the day, you prob90 don’t have much of a choice, especially at night and will have to work with whatever you find.
As an aside, ForeFlight has an extremely helpful glide range feature that adapts to the terrain and at least gives you some idea where you can and cannot glide to. You could also try to use the FF synth vision feature, although I don’t know the accuracy of it. I’ve tried deadstick landings with it in the sim and that worked well, but have yet to try that (with a safety pilot!!) in the real airplane.
Thanks @Ibra for those links. Chilling reads.
From the second one:
Both the pilot and his passenger were experienced microlight pilots used to landing in small fields. The pilot selected full flap, switched off the aircraft’s fuel and electrical systems and initiated a diving turn, maintaining the airspeed at 75 kt. The approach was made into wind at about 60 kt and aligned with the diagonal of the field. The aircraft was purposely landed heavily in an attempt to remove as much forward momentum as possible. The pilot then aimed the aircraft at the top left- hand corner of the field so that the left wing would obliquely impact a bank that formed the left edge of the field. This caused the aircraft to ground loop forcing the tail into the bank at the far end of the field. The tail absorbed the majority of the impact forces. The pilot and his passenger stepped out of the wreckage unhurt. The pilot contacted ATC using a hand held radio to inform them that no one had been injured.
That’s some serious piloting skill!
Chances of survival are inversely proportional to angle of arrival, so the more parallel your arrival to the surface, the better. However, if the surface can swallow you up afterward, that must be considered. I’ve seen fatal accidents in a plowed field, which though pretty well parallel to arrival, then swallowed the plane up, and killed the pilot.
There is no one single answer to this question, so, do two things: Practice actual forced landings to a stop as often as you can, and all the time you’re airborne, always be rolling over in your mind, where am I going to land if it quits right now. I do this extra while flying the amphibian at lower altitudes (less than 1000 AGL), as I will pre-select the landing gear position based upon the most likely surface. Always up over water, sometimes down over land during the day.
Does it really matter? you will fly a slow speed and acceptable rate of decent, the impact will be ugly but all it matters is the stopping distance and caution not if it’s water, tarmac or trees, if that is enough then you will walk or swim away
The problem is that if you can’t walk away or swim but you are still alive after the crash with no emergency services, you will be dead
Both were mid-November and mid-October in English Channel, one ditched and one crash landed on hardcore small rock island
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5422ecc6ed915d1374000135/dft_avsafety_pdf_502332.pdf
I will go for the dark spot in land or the beach near shores !
Reading all this, I think perhaps ditching is not such a good option after all. It will be very circumstantial at least, and not really all that survivable without warm clothes, life west and a rescue team coming for you. You really also need a PLB and some signalling light.
I have done a North Sea helicopter survival course. With a survival suit, no problem, you can stay in ice cold water for days. With just a life west, it will be hours. With nothing, we are counting minutes.
Inevitably so much depends on the circumstances.
I do a fair amount of windsurfing and surfing, as well as sailing. It forces you to realise if you get stranded for some reason even a few hundred yards or metres off the shore you have a problem, especially in cold water, true of Europe most of the year. DO NOT underestimate how difficult it will ne to recover yourself. Of course if you have a raft, jackets and the means and training to deal with the hazards of being in the water and a reasonable expectation of being receovered if any real distance from shore, then I think it becomes a more attractive option, but do not underestimate how difficult bobing around in the sea even a short distance from the shore will be. A good plan would also be to land much closer to the shore than you might think.
Familarity with the terrain beneath you also improves your chances. Landing beside a busy road or somewhere with some artificial light may help.
Maoraigh wrote:
A wooden Robin with an instructor and student was ditched in winter in the Cromarty Firth in Scotland. Engine failure due to a fly, in the carb from manufacture, blocking a jet.
Minor correction Maoraigh, it was a Robin HR20, metal not wooden. Nicest rental I ever flew out of Dalcross.
I remember that accident well and I think what really lost the student was that the tide was on the flood which carried him quickly beyond the dock where he maybe had a chance of being able to get out. A sad business.
