You know its a bad landing when you're upside down!

[fatherson]

Originally Posted by Chuck Hagerty

Now, what’s the point I’m trying to make by telling this lengthy story? Like I said in the first paragraph, I hope this helps someone else to evaluate their skills more closely. Especially those of us who are low time pilots.

Thank you, Chuck. You're right, not everyone here is a pilot's pilot; there are plenty of people with low-time, low-experience, and in need of much more training. I'm one of them. So there is zero to be "embarrassed" about in relating your story. I deeply respect the courage you are showing by doing so.

Feel blessed that you are both recovering. Feel thankful that you have rich experiences to help you appreciate living. Feel rewarded by the lifetime of gratitude people like me have for you, for your story, and for the lessons I will take from it that I hope will make me a safer builder and pilot.

I am forever in your debt. Anything else you'd like to share would be welcome.

--
Stephen

[Ironflight]

I, too, add my thanks for you sharing your story Chuck. The thing to remember is that many high-time pilots have mishaps - it is not just guys with fewer hours in their logbooks, Inattention, complacency, trying something "different" they can all get us.

In fact, anyone that figures that they are experienced enough to need no further learning, or are impervious to an accident is someone to watch out for.

The more I learn, the more I realize I still have to learn....

Here's hope for quick healing!

[pgroell]

Thanks for sharing.
I think that in an RV one should always think that going around early during the landing roll is always an option.
Mastering rebounds can be tricky.
To go around, only power and attitude are initially important, flaps can be dealt with later with the power usually available on our planes. (Due to a blown flaps fuse, flying a whole pattern with full flaps after go around was a non-event).
Switching from landing-mode to going-around mode is difficult (even among airline pilots), more so if the decision has to be made in a split-second like during a rebound during landing. Things that can be done to mitigate this are remembering the go-around procedure during the final approach (what do I have to do? where will I go?) and training.
My 0.02cts (from low time RV pilot, but high time airliner pilot)

Hoping for the best for your's and your wife's health.

[Vlad]

Chuck thanks for sharing. It was too much excitement for you that day and a rush if I read it right. The more I fly the more I understand how less I know and how unexperienced I am. It's not about hours in the logbook. Reread Ironflight post it's all there...

[N941WR]

Chuck,

Thanks for sharing and I wish you and your wife a speedy and complete recovery!

Even with 500+ hours in my RV, I still prang a landing every once in a while and learn something new on every flight. As the saying goes, ?There but the grace of God, go I.?

I?m sure you have replayed this flight in your mind over and over again. One thing that I just do out of courtesy to other pilots is I never fly a straight in approach to an uncontrolled field. There are a few reasons for this. First, there could be a no-radio plane in the pattern (Cub, T-Craft, etc.) that you will cut off. Second, an airplane with a radio, sitting on the ground may/will not transmit that far and you could cut them off. Third, the FAA does not consider you in the pattern when more than three miles from the airport. And fourth, by flying the pattern the same every time, I have a set routine I follow for every landing. This consistency in approach helps make my landings ?repeatable? / ?consistent?. They may not always be good landings but at least they are consistent and repeatable.

Again, I wish you both a speedy recovery!

[Chuck Hagerty]

Thank you all for the kind comments. The healing process is slow but appears to be going well. The first surgery was done the day after the accident and involved fusing the C6 & C7 vertebrae. The second surgery was done 15 weeks after the accident because one of the breaks in the C1 vertebrae was very wide and had not healed. That involved installing a screw that pulled the two halves of C1 together. I get another CT scan this Monday to see how much bone growth has occured and hopefully I'll be out of this neck brace and into rehab in the next 4 or 5 weeks.

My wife, the saint, is doing well. Sometime during those first four days in the ICU, she said, "don't worry, I'll fly with you as soon as the plane is fixed". Or at least that's what I think she said...it may have been the drugs. No, she really did say that!

One thing that we should have done before landing was to pull the harness and belts much tighter. They were snug, but if they had been pulled really tight, that may have helped some. My canopy is a tip up and your head is not far from it.

After NTSB was done looking at the plane, it was eventually taken to Royal Aircraft Services in Hagerstown, MD. for repairs. Those guys are doing a great job. Bob, one of the mechanics, built his own 7A a year or two ago and is the perfect guy to be working on my plane. They say it will be finished in a couple more weeks. Thanks Bob, Austin and Mike...keep up the good work.

This definitely was a "life changer" in more ways than one. Thankfully, most of those changes have been for the good, but those are entirely different stories that are too long to tell here. Thanks again and be safe.

[Chuck Hagerty]

Originally Posted by N941WR

Chuck,

Thanks for sharing and I wish you and your wife a speedy and complete recovery!

Even with 500+ hours in my RV, I still prang a landing every once in a while and learn something new on every flight. As the saying goes, ?There but the grace of God, go I.?

I?m sure you have replayed this flight in your mind over and over again. One thing that I just do out of courtesy to other pilots is I never fly a straight in approach to an uncontrolled field. There are a few reasons for this. First, there could be a no-radio plane in the pattern (Cub, T-Craft, etc.) that you will cut off. Second, an airplane with a radio, sitting on the ground may/will not transmit that far and you could cut them off. Third, the FAA does not consider you in the pattern when more than three miles from the airport. And fourth, by flying the pattern the same every time, I have a set routine I follow for every landing. This consistency in approach helps make my landings ?repeatable? / ?consistent?. They may not always be good landings but at least they are consistent and repeatable.

Again, I wish you both a speedy recovery!

Thanks Bill. Both your comment and Vlads comment are right on the money. I have replayed that flight hundreds of times in my head and believe that if I had done a standard pattern approach, I would have been better prepared for the landing. For me, this had been a bunch of flying that day and this second flight had been my longest X-country to date. A bit of sensory overload perhaps?

Good advice.

[GeneL]

Ditto what Bill said about uncontrolled fields. One question, do you have five point belts in the 7A? I found that in mine no matter how tight I pulled the belts in my 7A I could bounce off the canopy (I'm only 5'5") in turbulence. I worried about breaking the canopy! I switched to Crow 5 point belts and now stay in the seat no matter what. Lots of safety for under $300.! Simpsons are also great belts. Get well quick, and get back on that horse.

[scrollF4]

Chuck,
I'll add my very best wishes for your wife's and your speedy recoveries. I also am grateful that you offered your experience so that we can all learn and fly safer.

I have questions regarding the tip-up: How did you egress the aircraft? Were the two of you able to extract yourselves from the cockpit, or were you stuck in there until help arrived?

I'm building a 7A tip-up, and I admit I haven't sorted my egress plan and in-cockpit emergency equipment list. This is the very scenario that nags me most.

Again, get well soon. How splendid that your wife is raring to return to the air...You have a marvelous lady there.

[Chuck Hagerty]

Originally Posted by GeneL

Ditto what Bill said about uncontrolled fields. One question, do you have five point belts in the 7A? I found that in mine no matter how tight I pulled the belts in my 7A I could bounce off the canopy (I'm only 5'5") in turbulence. I worried about breaking the canopy! I switched to Crow 5 point belts and now stay in the seat no matter what. Lots of safety for under $300.! Simpsons are also great belts. Get well quick, and get back on that horse.

I've got 4 point Hookers and when they're tight, they seem to do a good job. I see a lot of guys using Crow, but haven't flown in a plane with those installed. Thanks.