Comments on: My second in-flight emergency http://blog.xcski.com/2003/12/07/my-second-in-flight-emergency Everything I used to bore people on newsgroups and mailing lists with, now in one inconvenient place. Fri, 08 Aug 2008 19:18:42 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6 By: Phil Gustafson http://blog.xcski.com/2003/12/07/my-second-in-flight-emergency#comment-87 Phil Gustafson Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000 http://xcski.com/wordpress/?p=87#comment-87 I had my first and only almost-engine-failure in, I think, 1976. I was flying as a solo student from Hayward, CA, to Livermore, where I was to meet the FAA examiner to get my license. At the time Dirty Harry's C-150's were $10/hr. wet for the older ones and $12 for the newer. I forget which I had, but it did the runup fine. Turned out it could just barely splutter into the air. I found the 100-fpm best climb sufficiently disconcerting to say "I'll declare an emergency if I have to", and putter the Cessna into a very low pattern and an over-the-numbers turn to final. Hayward was a very busy airport, so I was used to truncated downwinds and the landing was no big deal. Harry said I was full of shit and the plane was fine. But it was in the hangar for quite a while afterwards. I got into another 150 and went over to Livermore, but my concentration was shot. It took me two checkrides to get my ticket. Phil I had my first and only almost-engine-failure in, I think, 1976. I was flying as a solo student from Hayward, CA, to Livermore, where I was to meet the FAA examiner to get my license. At the time Dirty Harry’s C-150’s were $10/hr. wet for the older ones and $12 for the newer. I forget which I had, but it did the runup fine. Turned out it could just barely splutter into the air. I found the 100-fpm best climb sufficiently disconcerting to say “I’ll declare an emergency if I have to”, and putter the Cessna into a very low pattern and an over-the-numbers turn to final.

Hayward was a very busy airport, so I was used to truncated downwinds and the landing was no big deal.

Harry said I was full of shit and the plane was fine. But it was in the hangar for quite a while afterwards.

I got into another 150 and went over to Livermore, but my concentration was shot. It took me two checkrides to get my ticket.

Phil

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