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Date: Mon, 08 Jan 2007 02:39:52 -0500
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From: Barry Hancock <sportform@cox.net>
Subject: "Wind 040 at 30, gusting to 39"

PRELUDE

After delivering an L-39 back to a customer at Burbank where I  
encountered -20 wind shear at 1000' (was ready for it and a non- 
event...but it was just a sign of things to come), I hopped in 122LL  
for the short ride back to Chino.  40 knot winds at BUR were pretty  
much right down the pipe, and after cinching my 5-point harness as  
tight as I could get it, I blasted off into the wonderfully clear yet  
predictably bumpy Santa Ana conditions.  With extra fuel on board in  
case I needed to land somewhere other than CNO, I left the BUR  
control area and was handed off to SoCal approach.  No sooner than I  
took my hand off the throttle to reach for the flip-flop button did  
the first one hit...WHAM!  Knowing it was coming was one thing, but  
to suddenly get slammed into the canopy like someone just dropped a  
ton of bricks on the wings was another.  After adjusting my headset,  
switching over the SoCal, and picking all the contents of my center  
console out of the passenger seat and my lap, I asserted positive  
control of the aircraft to try to maintain something close to 5500'.   
I flew the next 10 minutes with my left hand on the stick, and my  
right hand in a fist between my head and the canopy.  I was deathly  
afraid of removing my "cushion" to switch radio frequencies, which  
happens about every 15 miles in the LA basin.  Anyway, I now know  
what it feels like to be a rattle ball inside of a spray paint can...

THE REAL FUN

"Chino Tower, good afternoon, Experimental Lancair 122LL, out of 2  
point 5, with Yankee."  "Lancair 122LL, Chino Tower, good afternoon,  
make straight in runway 8, winds zero-four-zero at three-zero,  
gusting 39"..."Oh boy, fun!" came my reply -  of course it was said a  
bit sarcastically.  As I was receiving this information I could see  
nothing but a dust cloud where I knew the airport was...recent land  
development has left untold acres barren and dry...the silty dirt  
that remains from decades as cow pastures was now creating a cloud of  
"dust" (if you must know, it's really fine cow dung!) that was  
completely shrouding the approach end of the runway.  As I hit 3  
miles out and began slowing to gear speed, tower came back "wind zero- 
five-zero at 33 gusting 45"...."lovely" I thought.  This was followed  
by "uh, 2 lima lima, the dust is only over the first couple hundred  
feet of the runway, then it's clear after that".  Oh great, so I only  
get to fly *through* a 40 foot high and 500 feet wide cloud of cow  
crap at a 30 degree crab to the runway in gusting winds approaching  
the crosswind limit...that's MUCH better than it looked...NOT!

Pre-landing checklist complete and on short final, tower came back,  
"wind 040 at three-zero, gusting 42".  No need to respond, all i knew  
is that I was getting beat to crap, and I was focused....ready to go- 
around at the first sign of problems.   Recalling a piece I read a  
long time ago by Barry Schiff about "Kicking it straight", I was  
firmly in execution mode...but if I ran out of rudder to "kick it  
straight", I'd be perfectly happy to go somewhere else for awhile and  
wait out the winds.

As I entered the cloud of blowing dung dust, the visibility was  
greatly reduced, but I could still make out the numbers and the  
runway markings.  Aside from the slightly, um, sweeter smell, we were  
tracking the centerline, on glide slope, and on adrenaline.  Keeping  
my speed +10 for any unforseen windshear, etc., I carried the crab to  
about 5 feet off the runway and chopped the power....  What happened  
next would have made even Barry Schiff proud.  Full right rudder,  
left stick, hold it off and...........squeak, squeak....squeak!!!!!   
Straight, soft, and on centerline....I almost couldn't believe it!   
Jabbing the rudder and getting half flaps up ASAP, I let out a big  
long blow of air....not remembering when I took my last breath..lol.   
As I applied the brakes and got down to definite control speed, all I  
could do was key the mic and say, "I'm retiring after that  
one"...."Roger that, 2LL, nice job, contact ground when clear."

LOGBOOK ENTRY

After putting the plane away and giving her a nice pat for being such  
a good girl, I opened my log book to record the days flying  
activities.  In  the comment section for 122LL BUR-CNO .5  I entered  
"fist cushion, landed 08, best crosswind landing ever".  I can't wait  
'til I'm 60 and retelling this to my grand kids....the day grandpa  
mastered 60 knot crosswind landings in the greatest little airplane  
ever built... ;)

Barry