Interesting findings on Perimeter gear-up March/09

[trey kule]

Looks like they did a heck of a good job. Well done!

BTW, maybe some of the crews at Razz-J might want to consider this technique to avoid running off the end of a 10000 foot runway.

[200hr Wonder]

Are the gear hydraulic on the Metro?

Engine driven pump(s)?

What is there in the way of emerge rel?

By the looks of the over-fly shot, no sign at all of anything even trying to open...

Oh - another thing. I see the flaps are partially deployed. The flaps and their attmnt' points are probably fcuked now. Is the lndg speed too high w/ no flaps to belly land without them?

Is there an OMG, my f#%*ing gear won't come down! - "Checklist" for the Lawn Dart?

I'm not being cheeky here. I don't know jack about these machines and am curious. That's all.

'48

Yes there are 2 engine driven pumps. Pull the pin, and start pumping Ref speed on a full flap landing is around 110kts or so, with the flaps up your at least 20 knots faster, I would have to look at the emergency check list to give you a real speed.

And here is the long winded emergency extension bit:

Both D.C. electrical power and hydraulic pressure (approximately 250 psi minimum) are required for normal extension of the landing gear. Electrical circuitry for landing gear control and position indication can be switched to either the LH Essential Bus or the RH Essential Bus via one of the nine Bus Transfer Switches located on the cockpit LH console. Normally, the LH Essential Bus is selected. If a failure of LH Essential power occurs, the circuitry should be switched to the RH Essential Bus. Loss of electrical power from both essential buses or loss of hydraulic pressure will emergency extension of the gear.

The emergency gear extension system includes provisions for manual release of the mechanical uplocks, manual repositioning of valves to bypass the gear selector valve, and hydraulic hand pump. Stand pipes in the hydraulic reservoir reserve approximately one quart of hydraulic fluid for hand pump operation if a loss of normal system hydraulic fluid occurs.
Before using the emergency extension procedures, the airplane should be slowed down to the gear maximum gear extension speed (176KCAS) or lower. The Landing Gear Handle should be placed in the DOWN position in case of normal gear control returns. The Emergency Release Lever, located on the cockpit floor adjacent to the LH side of the copilot's seat, then is moved counterclockwise approximately 90 degrees. This action moves the cables to release the mechanical uplock on each gear and also to reposition two bypass valves located underneath the forward side of the hydraulic reservoir. The repositioning of the two valves allows the fuild trapped in the "up" lines of the actuators used for normal retraction to bypass the gear selector valve and return to the reservoir. The gear then free falls and their own weight plus the force of the airstream carry the gear to the down and locked position. After the gear has been allowed to free fall, hydraulic fluid, if available, is used via the hand pump to apply additional force. The hand pump, located on the cockpit floor adjacent to the pilot's seat, is blocked by an emergency gear valve. When this valve is rotated approximately 90 degrees counterclockwise, the hand pump bypass line is closed and, also the hand pump is unblocked. Then the hand pump can be actuated to provide hydraulic pressure to the "down" side of the RH actuator at each landing gear (the LH actuators are used during gear extension)

A shuttle valve is installed between an engine driven pump pressure line and an emergency hand pump pressure line; the valve is moved by hydraulic pressure to direct the higher of the two pressures to the hydraulic pressure gauge located on the copilot's instrument panel. Hence, if normal hydraulic pressure has been lost, the hydraulic pressure gauge will indicate hand pump pressure.

[AstroNOT]

Good Job, Boys!

What was the gear issue they had on the previous day?

[swordfish]

Mr. North's profound invitation:

Let the speculation BEGIN!!!!!

I speculate that the pilot-not-flying, on command, selected the gear lever to the "down" position and nothing happened. I further speculate that the crew returned the gear lever to the "up" position, then attempted this exact same sequence a couple more times before deciding to attempt a landing with the gear retracted. They subsequently were committed to an emergency landing.

Pure speculation, mind you...

[ScudRunner]

Good Job, Boys!

What was the gear issue they had on the previous day?

I heard it was two Girls, And its Perimeter they use 121.5 as company frequency.

[Rudy]

...its Perimeter they use 121.5 as company frequency.

Oh snap. No you didn't.

[HS-748 2A]

200 hr, thx for that. Good answers.

'48

[Widow]

Landing gear stuck so plane forced to touch down on belly

By: Gabrielle Giroday and Bill Redekop


They stepped onto the plane Tuesday morning in crisp white shirts and navy blue ties, ready for another day on the job. But within three hours, the two young female pilots and eight passengers were circling Winnipeg with landing gear that wouldn't descend. Their only choice was to make an emergency landing on the plane's belly.

Capt. Kristen McCallum, 26, and her first officer, pilot Marie-Eve Robichaud, 25, shrugged off compliments Tuesday evening about their spectacular handling of the 18-seat Perimeter Aviation flight. No one was injured as the plane skidded to a stop around 12:15 p.m. at James Richardson International Airport.

Passengers clambered out onto the snow-lined runway, including a mother carrying her infant in a blue snowsuit.

"I just figure this is my job and this is what I'm trained to do," said McCallum, a Regina-born pilot who has flown for Perimeter for two-and-a-half years.

Perimeter Flight 640 was flying in from St. Theresa Point, 500 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, when the no-wheels landing was necessary.

The pilots were heading the plane, twin-engine turboprop Metroliner, for a routine landing around 11:45 a.m. when they found landing gear on the right side of the aircraft was apparently stuck.

To buy time, the pilots headed away from the Winnipeg airport to the St. Andrews Airport for 10 to 15 minutes of radio consultations with the airline's maintenance department.

"They tried several emergency gear extensions, everything in the aircraft flight manual to get that gear down," said Trevor Ryder, Perimeter Aviation's operations manager, who was on the radio with the pilots during the half hour of circling around.

The pilots tried various procedures to loosen the landing gear -- such as jimmying the control lever back and forth, trying the manual release, and G-moves, a series of steep inclines and declines to jostle it loose.

"It was all unsuccessful," said Ryder, explaining that the pilots then flew back to the Winnipeg airport.



"The whole focus is trying to get that gear down before we land, and obviously, if it comes to the point where fuel is a consideration, then we need to land the aircraft before it runs out of fuel."

The two pilots even tried a "touch and go" -- skimming the ground and bopping the plane's bottom on the runway. None of it loosened the gear that holds the wheels -- and the plane was running out of fuel.

Meanwhile, pilots were preparing passengers for the next move: the belly landing.

"You can't really train for that. You might know the procedure but you can't really practise that," said Robichaud, who said she "barely felt" the force of the landing because she was focused on the task at hand.

"(The passengers) were a bit shaken up afterwards, but they were happy. They shook our hands, they were so happy they made it down safely because you don't know what to expect beforehand."

Robichaud, a Neguac, N.B.,-born pilot, trained at Moncton Flight College and started working at Perimeter in 2006. She credited McCallum for her professionalism, and the passengers for remaining level-headed.

"They were pretty calm," said Robichaud, mother of a 16-month-old son, as she rested at home Tuesday afternoon.

"(The captain) briefed them, explained what happened... I went back before landing and I made sure they were not freaking out or anything and to make sure once we get on the ground (they knew) what the procedure was for evacuating."

McCallum was resting at home Tuesday night and was reticent to discuss the incident.

"I'm wanting to unwind from the day," she said.

During the flight, passenger Rachel Harper said she was thinking about her three small children back home.

Harper said the pilot kept talking the passengers through it.

"She kept giving us updates. She kept everyone calm," said Harper.

"It wasn't even bouncy," said Thomas Harper, another passenger on board who went on to describe the landing as "smooth." But Harper, who could still joke afterward that he is "not related to Stephen," said he repeated a little prayer once safely on the ground.

"I'm OK right now but I don't know how I'll feel in a little while," Harper said.

Another passenger, Ian Knott, recalled hearing the mechanical sounds through the floor as the crew tried to unstick the landing gear. The landing gear had actually become wedged into a wheel well and wouldn't come down. "Nobody was talking" before the plane made its unorthodox landing, Knott said.

Ryder downplayed the danger of the landing.

"The danger is not significant," he said. "It's right out of the flight manual... Crews are trained in it."

The plane will fly again, he added. "Put on two new engines, two new propellers, some sheet metal on the bottom and it should be operational again."

Link includes vid of landing: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/ ... 02847.html

[Chuck Ellsworth]

Good job girls.

Once again this reinforces the importance of carrying enough fuel to deal with unforeseen circumstances such as this.

[Blakey]

Capt. Kristen McCallum, 26,


We sure have our share of Kirsten's around this business! They all seem to handle themselves pretty well too! Looked like a textbook job.

[Doc Driver]

"The two pilots even tried a "touch and go" -- skimming the ground and bopping the plane's bottom on the runway. None of it loosened the gear that holds the wheels -- and the plane was running out of fuel."

Sounds sketchy.

[HS-748 2A]

"The two pilots even tried a "touch and go" -- skimming the ground and bopping the plane's bottom on the runway. None of it loosened the gear that holds the wheels -- and the plane was running out of fuel."

Sounds sketchy.

Yes Doc', that must have required some rapid feathering-unfeathering-and-lighting of the stoves to to do all that bopping and hopping and touching-and-going eh..

'48

[AstroNOT]

Good Job, Boys!

My apologies....Good Job, Ladies!!

[Topspin]

A question:

I've never been near a retractable beyond flight simulator.

I always thought that the majority of emergency gear systems were gravity driven, gear unlocked, falls out and locks. At this point, I always thought they couldn't be brought back up in the air. At least that is my thought reading the material above as well. So if they had a problem with the right mian, if they tried the emergency controls, should the nose and left main not both be down in the pics? Can a hand pump create anything even near close enough to the 250 PSI quoted, to bring that gear back up?

Not saying this is what they did, but just popped into my mind.

[200hr Wonder]

A question:

I've never been near a retractable beyond flight simulator.

I always thought that the majority of emergency gear systems were gravity driven, gear unlocked, falls out and locks. At this point, I always thought they couldn't be brought back up in the air. At least that is my thought reading the material above as well. So if they had a problem with the right mian, if they tried the emergency controls, should the nose and left main not both be down in the pics? Can a hand pump create anything even near close enough to the 250 PSI quoted, to bring that gear back up?

Not saying this is what they did, but just popped into my mind.

From my training I do believe it is about 80 pumps to get about 500 psi of pressure so 250 PSI is not that hard to get. As for once it is down it is down, with this system just reverse the steps and assuming you have hydraulic pressure to get the gear back up it will go back up. Don't quote me on this but I think there are some RGs that once down are down, however not the Metro. Now from what I can see it would appear that the flaps where down on landing so it seems logical to assume that they had hydraulic pressure for the landing. The flaps in a Metro will not operate without hydraulic pressure, there is a procedure for a complete hydraulic failure consisting of a zero flap landing and emergency gear extension.

[Pratt X 3]

All the way from the first page of this discussion incase you forgot/missed it. It appears that 2/3rds of the landing gear system was working so they were able to cycle the gear.

Narrative: PAG 640, a Perimeter Aviation Metro with 2 crew and 8 passengers, was on approach to Runway 18 at Winnipeg after a flight from St. Theresa Point when the crew carried out a missed approach due to landing gear problems. The right main gear would not extend in the down and locked position. The crew attempted a landing with the right main gear up and possibly hoped to free the gear to extend, however, this was unsuccessful and they subsequently elected to land gear up on their second approach. The aircraft landed successfully on its belly and came to a stop on the runway. The aircraft landed between Taxiways P and Q at 1809z and all 10 occupants were evacuated and were transported to the hospital as a precaution. There were no obvious injuries and there was no fire after landing. Runway 18 was closed and it is estimated that the runway will be closed for at least one hour. Operations were switched to Runway 13. Inbound ACA 261 was delayed during the incident. Two investigators from TSB are at the site. This aircraft was involved in an unsafe gear incident the previous day at Winnipeg, as noted in CADORS 2009C0523.

[BTD]

200 Hr is correct.

If you do an emergency gear extension in a metro, you must rotate a lever, and pull a pip pin. this will release the uplocks and allow the gear to free fall. Then you use the hand pump to build pressure in the system to ensure the gear is locked.

If you need to pull the gear back up. Put the pin back in and rotate the lever back, and pressure can again build in the system.

I have no idea what caused this, but metros have been known to have a gear get stuck up if the gear doors are incorrectly rigged.

I think it was mentioned earlier, but for one main gear failing to extend the manufacture recommends:

Depressurize prior to touchdown
Land with all gear retracted
Full Flaps
Shut off electrical power just prior to touchdown
Feather both engines

Good job to the crew.

BTD

[mattedfred]

i think the registration is SLZ. i think this was an ex air montreal machine that the big P got back in 97'. it used to be white and blue. does anyone recall the registration of the two metros that geared up back in 96' or 97' in YWG? i never had one hang up on me but i did have frozen squat switches that wouldn't give us gear safe indications without several cycles.

[boeingboy]

Flap attachment points will be fine. Sometimes the flaps will partially retract due to the blow up system (in case they extend at too high an airspeed) Even if they don't they grind down pretty quick.

All gear is hyd and retracts fwd. Emergency release cable trips the uplock hooks and the gear freefalls to dwon with the airflow pushing them to the locked position. In the rare event they don't fully lock - the emerg hyd hand pump is used to build enough press to lock the gear down.

[Brown Bear]

You guys sure do go on and on.....

[KenoraPilot]

The Girls did a great job! Couldn't ask for a better out come!

[Widow]

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Tire problem factor in plane's belly landing
Gear deployment wasn't possible
By: Kevin Rollason

7/11/2009 1:00 AM

PUT a tire that's too wide on your car, and you'll find it won't stay on the rim -- but if you try the same thing with an airplane's wheel, you might have to make a pancake landing on a runway.

That's part of what federal aviation crash experts have determined happened to a Perimeter Aviation plane earlier this year when its landing gear failed to come down and the two pilots were forced to make a belly landing at Winnipeg's Richardson International Airport on March 3.

The two crew and eight passengers on board, en route from St. Theresa Point to Winnipeg, walked off the plane with no injuries, but were taken to hospital as a precaution.

Peter Hildebrand, regional manager of the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, said on Friday the twin-engine Metro II plane's right landing gear door didn't open all the way because the tire was about a centimetre too wide, causing it to hook up on the gear door's raised ledge.

Hildebrand said not only was there a problem with the ledge, but the gear door was also installed incorrectly.

"The landing-gear doors aren't like your car's door, which is installed at a factory and goes years without change," Hildebrand said.

"Landing doors are subject to vibration (and) high speed and they're out in the cold and heat. They have stress and they're always in a state of flux.

"And then you put on a newly recapped tire. It (the doors) would work with the original tire, but when you put one on a bit larger, it changes things."

Hildebrand said it all culminated in the pilots not being able to put down their right landing gear.

Hildebrand said the plane was manufactured in 1976 by the Fairchild Aircraft Corp. He said the landing gear door on later Metro IIs were designed without the ledge, which on the earlier models were there to give the door more strength.

And Hildebrand said in the wake of the pancake landing, the manufacturer reissued its 1984 notice on tire-size information for airlines flying the aircraft.

Mark Wehrle, Perimeter's general manager, said they've already designed a new device to ensure the tire's width is the right size before it is put on a plane.

But, Wehrle said "tires tend to grow from the heat and the centrifugal force.

"And it's a tight fit there. The original aircraft had much smaller tires, but then they put in larger tires... and the manufacturer's specifications change over the years."

Wehrle said the company is also looking at redesigning the landing gear doors.

Wehrle said the plane was damaged on its belly, flaps and propellers, but it has been repaired and put back into service.

"The damage was very minimal," he said, noting it cost less than $30,000 to fix.

"Our pilots did a great job of setting it down fairly gently."

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/ ... 50907.html

[boeingboy]

Hmm...........Tyipical Perimeter.

[flyinhigh]

I know that they fly not but honeslty tundra tires on a metro.

[ScudRunner]

The damage was very minimal," he said, noting it cost less than $30,000 to fix

That would be a complete write off for a Perimeter Metro.