Excellent point Bill,

In my "engine out" the engine did not actually quit (the prop broke), so increasing the throttle would have resulted in potentially catastrophic failure of the engine mounts.  That was actually a far greater concern, since losing the engine from the airframe = certain death.  However, I intentionally left the engine running under the old AF theory that "if it's running, don't stop it - you may need a burst of thrust just before landing to avoid a powerline or some such."

So, I was speaking to my experience, not a true engine out - my bad for not thinking it through before writing.

This is a perfect example of why you can never have too much systems knowledge, and why I like to participate in these forums even if I say something wrong- because what I learn (or re-learn) may save my life...

Thanks for the pointer, and hope it helps someone!

Cheers,

Bill Reister


Bill wrote:

Hi Bill,

 

Your recent post about making the "sacrifice the airplane" decision on the ground was excellent advice. I've helped repair a gear up Lancair landing and it did very little damage to the airframe (235).  

 

I've got one little, tiny, minor, not all that important, good mostly for hangar flying, point to make though. You said "the glide ratio is pretty darned good if all the levers are pulled aft". It is, and the prop in high pitch (pulled aft) makes a substantial difference. However, once all of the important stuff has been done and assuming that the engine is windmilling, you can actually improve the glide ratio a very small amount by OPENING the throttle. The pistons then aren't pulling against the low pressure caused by the closed throttle.

 

Bill Harrelson

N5ZQ 320 1,750 hrs

N6ZQ  IV under construction