So you have an approach where ATC wants you to fly high till late. So you retard the throttle below the warning threshold. (some system just have a throttle switch)and the horn bleeps. At some point you stop noticing the horn.
In that scenario I need a steep approach angle. That requires the gear to be extended. Problem solved 
I use GUMPS, regardless if in a fixed, or retractable gear plane. I go through phases of flying different types, in the same day. It is quite astonishing, that if you do not use some form of check, how much can go pear shaped, quickly..
Especially if moving from fixed, to retractable. I find, and it may just be me, that when doing that, I actually have to concentrate quite hard and remind myself what I am flying. That old mind trick again…in the video, everyone else appears to realise that it is turning sour, but no one says. They all perhaps feel that the PIC will wake up shortly and go around, but nope, in they go.
If you watch the Megeve video, you notice that the gear warning horn sounds constantly.
The human mind filters sounds and a constant sound will not be noticed anymore.
People (native speakers) I have asked to translate it said to me that they thought the pilot(s) discussed the sound and thought it was an overspeed warning. So, if that’s accurate, complete muppets who got into a nice €200k TB20GT and trashed it – because they could not be bothered to get familiar with it. Or any other plane for that matter – which GA SEP has an overspeed warning?
Sure the mind filters out sounds as the first thing at times of high workload but they had plenty of time to fly a leisurely approach.
The TB20 flies completely differently with the gear up. Actually it’s damn hard to make it fly the approach unless you fly a shallow “glideslope”.
The SR22 (with either GFC700 or DFC90 Autopilot) has a Under- and Overspeed Warning (and some others like “bank angle”, “flap overspeed”) … but if the pilots had known the airplane just a bit they should have known that the TB20 doesn’t have that.
That was not an impressive performance I’d say
Use a checklist. Every day, every flight. Especially if you fly different planes mixing fixed and retractable gear.
I always use FUC on short final for every aircraft I fly as a mental check:
Flaps
Undercarriage
Clearance
Don’t say it out loud as it tends to frighten your partner in crime.
As what next says, use a checklist. I see a lot of pilots (including professionals) who think they’re too cool to use a checklist and do it from memory. All it takes is something to break your normal routine and you think you’ve done it but you haven’t.
Professionalism means doing it right every time, even when you don’t have to.
Without wanting to stray too far off topic, checklists aren’t ALWAYS appropriate. I know some people will argue against it and I also want to point out that this is my own opinion and I am not attempting to present it as a 100% correct statement.
When I used to fly single pilot stuff, checklists worked well on the ground, but trying to do a checklist when battling strong winds and bad weather down an ILS doesn’t always work. I have seen some applications where a small checklist is stuck on the panel somewhere, not unlike the control column checklists on 737s and the like, but these tended only to have (not talking about the 737 versions here) the essentials like flaps and gear, and if you could remember to do the checklist then you could remember to do your own GUMPS or whatever you use. That is how the company operated for 40 years and has not had a gear up incident so far.
A final checklist that you memorize is just as good. Every pilot should be able to memorize those 3 or 4 items … In the Cirrus whenever the “500” voice alarm comes up I say “final checklist”… landing light, full flaps, mixer rich
Checklists might work fine in multi crew operations. They might even work ok (I don’t know as I’ve no experience of it, but they might) under IFR on an ILS.
But checklists have no place in a busy VFR circuit. You absolutely must keep your eyes outside as much as possible when in a busy circuit. Looking at a checklist is too dangerous at this point. All such checks should be committed to memory.
I’ve never seen nor heard of anyone who was taught to, or who did, use a checklist for downwind checks nor for final checks. These should all be committed to memory.
I too don’t agree with the statement that anyone who flys a retractable, will eventually land gear up. But I do think anyone of us could do so. The important thing is to recognise when it’s most likely. I think it’s most likely when you become distracted for some reason. It might be for example a change of runway after you’ve already joined the circuit. It might be a very busy circuit which leaves you struggling to maintain sufficient separation. It might be after you’ve done something wrong and got a few harsh words from ATC. It might be flying an non-standard approach due to an unusual airport configuration. It might be knowingly landing downwind due to runway slope or one way runways. It’s something that takes you out of your usual routine. That will cause a distraction, and possibly mental overload. This is what will get you, and what you have to recognise once it starts to happen.
