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Prop strike (merged)

Peter wrote:

What kind of flying technique would produce this, on a twin? Or was it a nose gear collapse?

Both propellers were dinged, so the first thing that came to mind was gear-up landing. So although I did not try very hard, I did try to see if there was belly damage and could not find any. And as you can see, the gear is down.

I wonder whether excessive bank to one side and then the other could have done this – as a result of crosswind, or just a very bad landing.

Last Edited by Aviathor at 27 Mar 14:35
LFPT, LFPN

Or a gear up landing, pilot realises during the flare and goes around, but too late – the props have already struck. Makes a circuit and puts the wheels down for the second attempt.

Like this one:

Andreas IOM

A heavy landing may cause a prop strike as the engines ‘bend down’ from the force of the main gear in the heavy landing – checking condition of rivets on the trailing edge ahead of the flaps, and wrinkles near the main landing gear underwing skin surface, is part of a good walk around.

A heavy landing will stretch the rivets, and repaired rivets in the area behind the engine is a good sign and of heavy abuse.

Oxford (EGTK), United Kingdom

Or a gear up landing, pilot realises during the flare and goes around, but too late – the props have already struck. Makes a circuit and puts the wheels down for the second attempt.

Done at night, at Wick, Scotland, by a scheduled passenger flight, which then flew back over water to Aberdeen instead of making a circuit.

Maoraigh
EGPE, United Kingdom

I have just merged into this thread another thread from April 2015, involving the famous Aerostar go-around after a prop strike referred to in Alioth’s 27th March post above.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

From here

Someone should send the mafia around to pay a visit to that pilot. He’s doing us all a huge disfavour. We have enough challenges to keep flying without an idiot like that hurting our cause. Everyone makes mistakes, but looking around for a “deep pocket” to help with the invoice isn’t really fair play.

LSZK, Switzerland

If I may be a devil’s advocate, and I would probably never support that pilot myself, unfortunately this is the position. If you run an airfield you have to prevent potholes. There is (well, in any country with a functioning justice system – not all!) a due diligence defence e.g. a rabbit could dig a hole overnight – same with holes in tarmac roads, as I have just learnt here at a cost of £500 – but operating a grass surface does require the operator to keep it in a good condition OR ensure there are signs saying you cannot taxi on it. Most people who run a grass strip, or run airfields with grass surfaces, don’t care about this and if somebody gets a prop strike (which happens much more often than most would believe) they just vanish in the nearest rabbit hole in the hope that the pilot won’t bother to sue. That works until you get a pilot with money and the phone number of a good lawyer…

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Sure, and that depends a bit on what is in the AIP and markings on the field. I’m not personally familiar with the setup at Rotterdam or if the grass surface in question was being operated. Many airports have a note in the AIP saying “taxi only on runways or taxiways” or something similar which really means “if you go on the grass you’re on your own” ;-)

The poster did mention something about not following procedures …

It would be interesting to hear at some point how this case works out.

LSZK, Switzerland

The Rotterdam Aeroclub has parking spots with tie downs. See picture below. You are supposed to push the aircraft back into the parking spot by hand.
Yet this Cirrus pilot was taxiing into the spot under power and got a prop strike. No he’s sueing the Aeroclub… So sad…

I agree that is dumb – if the requirement was publicised well enough.

However I got a £20k prop strike in 2002 doing almost exactly that, in a brand new plane with 1hr on the tacho, so IMHO much depends on how much “training” the pilot got outside the PPL training environment. IME this kind of stuff is just not covered. You are trained to taxi and if the plane doesn’t move, you push the black knob a bit further forward And my prop strike was with an FI in the RHS…

It’s a worthy debate as to how much we are supposed to know.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom
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