Page 18 - Volume 18 Number 6

Twin Proficiency:
In the Slot
by Thomas P. Turner ACessna Citation CJ’s pilot
was attempting to land on a
relatively short runway (4,000 feet long) at a residential airpark. Witnesses report that the Citation touched down “about halfway down” the runway. Not surprisingly, the pilot could not get the jet stopped on the remaining runway; the Citation rolled off the departure end of the runway and down a small incline, coming to rest in a golf course water hazard. The pilot was able to keep the airplane upright, and all three occupants of the Cessna jet escaped unharmed.
The investigation of this particular mishap has only just begun.
Undoubtedly, there are multiple factors that have not yet been discovered or reported. This article does not attempt to explain the specific event. Instead, we use this incident to remind us of the many factors we must take into account every time we land an airplane.
If you were investigating the facts and conditions of a runway overrun, not to assign liability but to discover precisely what led to the accident, for the sole purpose of avoiding similar events in the future, where would you focus your attention? What might be the deciding factor, i.e., what one thing happened that, had
it not occurred, would have broken the accident chain and prevented a crash? Any number of possibilities might come to mind: braking action, landing long, application of thrust reversers and/or ground spoilers, even possible factors like pilot fatigue. Whatever factors may have contributed to a runway overrun, my opinion, in the final analysis, is that the one critical factor in almost all runway overruns is – the aircraft was not in the slot in the seconds before touchdown.
The Slot
By “the slot” I mean a position on short final where all the conditions
8. Short Final 110 KIAS
9. Threshold
96 – 100 KIAS
Gear – Recheck Down
10.Landing
Cond. Levers – Keep Full Fwd. Power – Beta/Reverse
7. Final 120 KIAS
11.After Landing Checklist
1. Leaving Cruise Altitude Descent/Approach Checklist
2. Arrival 160 KIAS 250 HP Level Fit – Clean Config.
3. Begin Before Landing Checklist
4. Midfield Downwind 140 – 160 KIAS 250 HP
Gear – Down
5. 130 – 140 KIAS
6. Base
Before Landing Checklist 120 – 130 KIAS
Flaps – As Desired
NOTE: These are merely typical procedures. The pilot maintains his or her prerogative to modify configuration and airspeeds as required by existing conditions, as long as compliance with the FAA approved Airplane Flight Manual is assured.
Flaps – Half
Figure 14-12. Example – typical turboprop airplane arrival and landing profile.
16 • TWIN & TURBINE
JUNE 2014