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Yes I did it and it was a total non event in terms
of the actual landing.
I was on track to do an absolute greaser of a
landing, slight X wind from the left, nicely aligned with the centre line
and I heard this bang/bang/bang noise. I had enough time to reflect "flat
tire" and then I was on the ground. I realised what had happened and had
time to kill mags, master switch and fuel before we stopped. The aircraft
had drifted to right of centre line and the nose was pointing about 20degrees to
the right. You could see where the propellor tip had gouged the
runway, right on the centre line. I estimate the stopping distance as 400'
from the first asphalt divot the propellor made.
I was doing my last ride for a charity air display
day and the fire trucks were on the field as part of their display. They
were there very quickly and I had to plead with them not to cover everything in
foam!!
Damage was confined to the belly pan, bottom of the
pitot head, due to the left wing being down and into wind, bottom cowl
only required some body filler and repaint. The bottom of the rudder was
scrubbed through for about 2" long. No big deal there.
Engine tear down and a new propellor were the heart
breakers. No insurance.
My passenger did not seem to initially realise what
had happened.
Apart from the financial aspect it was a non
event. However I hate to think what the result would have been if it had
been a rough landing.
Ian B. Crowe
LNC 2
C-FKRO
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