In the event of a forced landing, wood or water?

[TroyBranch]

I have spent hours over northern Ontario and Quebec. Hours of nothing to safely land on, on the same flight. My first choice was always the bogs. There is usually some with at least smaller trees. So first choice was the Bogs, (with hopefully no Moose) Then smallest trees and then just trees. I always thought about the water next to the shore. But I know the 10 will flip, it would be very difficult to get myself out let alone my family. So water is not an option for me. In the mountains I think about the clear cuts and hopefully miss the biggest stumps. If you get banged up and knocked out. The water will not wait for you to wake up, the trees will.

In the west with our really talls trees, I just....... don't want to think about it.

[dmaib]

Originally Posted by aerhed

Another plus for the RV-10. Just blow the doors on final and go for the shallows.

My wife and I have decided that blowing the doors is exactly what we would do shortly before touchdown, if forced to ditch. We have a training session prior to each trip to the Bahamas where we re-familiarize ourselves with our life vests and the raft, and talk through these scenarios.

I have read, and believe, the statistics about water ditchings being more survivable than forced landings on land, but getting out of the airplane becomes the primary objective once one survives that ditching. I don't think there is any one "perfect" choice. As many here have noted, each situation will call for a different solution.

Great thread!

[skelrad]

I just read a short article about this not too long ago. Basic, but worth reading.

http://flighttraining.aopa.org/stude...emergency.html

[alpinelakespilot2000]

Originally Posted by TroyBranch

In the mountains I think about the clear cuts and hopefully miss the biggest stumps. ....
In the west with our really talls trees, I just....... don't want to think about it.

I've thought much about this and wondered while reaching no definitive conclusion...

Tall trees, the top of which will absorb quite a bit of fwd energy but leave a fair amount of downward potential, or a clearcut where there will be no way to miss the massive stumps, none of which will absorb any energy? Neither seems fun, but at the moment I would be very hesitant to try to land in a clearcut in the West. If I did consider a clearcut, I'd be much more likely to consider the eastern slopes of the major ranges than I would the western slopes, just because of the potential stump size.

[donaziza]

I was asking similar questions maybe 6 months ago. Someone on VAF said maybe put a sawzall in your plane to cut yourself out if inverted or just plain trapped. ( He told the story of a guy who engine failed onto land, an RV 6 I think near Martha's Landing, flipped and drowned in water because the land was marshy ) Well a sawzall won't fit, but that little "Milwaukee Hackzall" just barely fit in my 8. Its now installed. Hope I never need it. When I bought it and was testing it, it cut a ruler shaped piece of steel in half in less than a minute. Ought to cut an RV 8 in half in about 20 seconds.

[johnf_1]

All: For me, this issue is one of the real big, "every second" issues that make flying so challenging and provocative. Not speed, not data from the panel, not "is my butt sore", but "where am I going to park it if need be". I mind roads, traces,trails, driveways, parking lots, athletic fields, golf courses, even roofs of monster warehouses (Tracy)...With two dead sticks and a couple of interruptions, I am acutely aware of that deafening silence and the immediate shift from the lazy hypothetical to the event that is coming up, really soon, and effecting outcomes that may involve some pain and lengthy rehab. The decisions come fast and may (actually, probably do tho I have not explored alternative choices a lot) make a difference....lots of good ideas, here...Best, J FYI: my former hanger mate Bill Bruce (RIP stalled at Cloverdale) touched down a little short in Baja on a dirt/sand strip, and dug his way out of his flipped RV6, so I have not ruled out a soft field choice, just hate the idea. Still preferring water....

[java]

I REALLY don't want this to turn into a tip up vs slider debate. I do wonder if I were to unlatch my tip up before a water landing if it would both provide some short term protection while also tear off forward with the deceleration G's, allowing an easier exit.

Overall, I'm in the camp of assessing the situation at the time. I don't like either option. Where I fly the trees are tall and solid, and the water is cold... like, real cold (had to add that for our Texas friends who don't understand cold).

This thread has been good. It's made me think. I just don't think for me that the answer is binary.

[Snowflake]

I don't think the answer is binary for any of us. When the day comes, you probably won't have the choice of land vs. water, you'll probably be over lots of one and almost none of the other. Just remember to post up here and let us know how it worked out.

I have the emergency release on my tip-up, and ditching procedure (water) for me would involve pulling that and releasing the canopy latch just before touchdown. I don't know that the canopy would depart, but my gut feel is that it would depart as the aircraft flipped.

Something else to consider... Hyperventilating will boost the oxygen content in your lungs and increase your ability to hold your breath under water. So if you're going in, remember to breathe deeply as you approach. Every little bit helps.

[WhiskeyMike]

With some minimal learning/practice, an easy-to-use device such as the Spare-Air 170 can provide enough breathing air to permit a panic-free egress from an inverted aircraft after a ditching scenario as long as the canopy/doors can be opened. Fairly inexpensive and reusable too…

http://www.spareair.com/product/mode...#TabbedPanels1

Having and quickly donning some goggles so that you can see what you’re doing will enhance an effective underwater egress even more. Again, very reasonably priced…

http://dipndive.com/aqua-sphere-kaye...k-goggles.html

[donaziza]

Not a bad idea from Whiskey Mike above, I printed the info on the little O2 cylinder. If I ever fly to the Bahamas, I'll buy one. But the eye only swim goggles is another story. Having done some scuba training, one learns how to clear water out of your mask by exhaling with your nose. ( You'd most likely be putting on your mask underwater after you've already flipped assuming one had the foresight to have them very close if flying over water.) Goggles that don't cover your nose, forget it, you're not going to get the water out from around your eyes.