POTENTIAL GND CONFLICT RESOLVED AFTER APCH TO OCCUPIED RWY BY A BEECH D17S BUT NOT BEFORE THE PROP IS NICKED PRIOR TO A NEAR GEAR UP LNDG AND RESULTING GAR AT GXY; CO.
Synopsis
POTENTIAL GND CONFLICT RESOLVED AFTER APCH TO OCCUPIED RWY BY A BEECH D17S BUT NOT BEFORE THE PROP IS NICKED PRIOR TO A NEAR GEAR UP LNDG AND RESULTING GAR AT GXY; CO.
Narrative
THE FLT BEGAN AT JEFFCO ARPT AS ROUTINE PLEASURE FLT. I FLEW TO FORT COLLINS/LOVELAND TO PRACTICE LNDGS; BUT THERE WAS TOO MUCH TFC; SO I FLEW TO GXY ARPT; AS THE RWY IS LONG AND WIDE AND IS LESS CROWDED. AFTER HAVING MADE MORE THAN 3 LNDGS ON RWY 16; I WAS JUST TURNING FROM THE L XWIND LEG TO THE L DOWNWIND LEG; WHEN OVER THE RADIO SOMEONE COMPLAINED THAT I HAD NOT BEEN MAKING POS ANNOUNCEMENTS AT THE VARIOUS RPTING POINTS AROUND THE LNDG PATTERN. MY RADIO REPLY WAS THAT I HAD BEEN MAKING THE APPROPRIATE ANNOUNCEMENTS AND HAD BEEN DOING SO BEFORE I ENTERED THE PATTERN AND FOR EACH CIRCUIT AROUND THE PATTERN. AS I CONTINUED MY L DOWNWIND TO RWY 16; ABOUT MIDFIELD; I LOOKED W AND SAW A LOW WING FIXED GEAR ACFT (WHEEL PANTS OBVIOUS) AIRPLANE APPROX 1/2 MI W AND APPROX 200-300 FT ABOVE MY POS AND PERPENDICULAR TO MY FLT PATH. I CALLED OVER THE RADIO THAT I HAD HIM IN SIGHT AND TURNED E TO WIDEN MY PATH TO AVOID THIS PERSON WHO WAS CUTTING INTO THE LNDG PATTERN AND NOT COMPLYING WITH RIGHT-OF-WAY REQUIREMENTS. THIS PERSON TURNED N; WELL INSIDE MY POS; ONTO A VERY TIGHT L DOWNWIND CONTINUING TO DSND AND LANDED ON THE NUMBERS OF RWY 16. WHILE WATCHING THIS; I EXTENDED MY DOWNWIND FURTHER TO THE N TO PROVIDE ADEQUATE SPACING FOR ME FROM THE OFFENSIVE AIRPLANE NOW IN FRONT OF ME. I CALLED OUT THAT I WAS TURNING FROM THE DOWNWIND TO L BASE FOR RWY 16L. I CALLED AGAIN THAT I WAS L BASE TO FINAL RWY 16. I AGAIN CALLED THAT I WAS SHORT FINAL FOR RWY 16. I WAS APPARENTLY DISTR AS I WATCHED THIS ACFT AND OVERLOOKED MY NORMAL LNDG CHKLIST. THIS RWY IS 10000 FT LONG AND IT WAS OBVIOUS TO ME THIS PERSON WAS INTENTIONALLY TAKING AS LONG AS POSSIBLE TO TAXI TO A MIDFIELD TURNOFF SO AS TO INTENTIONALLY AFFECT MY FINAL APCH AND LNDG. I WAS ABOUT 1 MI BEHIND THE OTHER PLANE AS I CONTINUED MY FINAL APCH; WHILE STILL WATCHING THIS OTHER PLANE TO SEE IF HE WAS GOING TO EXIT THE RWY. IT APPEARED TO ME HE WAS ABOUT TO EXIT THE RWY WHEN I DETERMINED I WAS VERY LOW AND IT WAS BEST FOR ME TO ABORT MY LNDG EVEN THOUGH I WAS AT LEAST 4000 FT BEHIND THE OTHER PLANE. (I GUESS I WAS APPARENTLY SO UNNERVED BY THE ACTIONS OF THE OTHER PLT; IMPROPER ENTRY TO THE LNDG PATTERN OF AN UNCTLED ARPT; NEGLECTING THE RIGHT-OF-WAY RULES AND INTENTIONALLY DELAYING HIS EXIT FROM THE RWY; THAT MY ATTN WAS DIVERTED FROM MY LNDG CHKLIST PROCS CAUSING ME TO OVERLOOK EXTENDING THE LNDG GEAR.) AS I THROTTLED UP TO CLB AWAY FROM THE RWY; I SUDDENLY REALIZED I HAD BEEN DISTR AND HAD NOT EXTENDED THE LNDG GEAR AS THE GEAR UP WARNING LIGHT WAS ON. I CONTINUED TO CLB AND RADIO CALLED I WAS LEAVING THE PATTERN TO THE S TO COLLECT MY THOUGHTS. I DECIDED IT WAS A VERY CLOSE CALL AND IT WAS TIME I FLEW HOME TO JEFFCO TO PUT MY PLANE IN ITS HANGAR. AFTER LNDG AT JEFFCO; TAXIING TO THE HANGAR AND SHUTTING THE ENG DOWN; I STEPPED OUT OF THE ACFT AND NOTICED THE PROP BLADES WERE NICKED AND BENT. I THEN REALIZED I HAD NEARLY LANDED MY PLANE GEAR UP AND WAS VERY LUCKY. I DID NOT REALIZE; AT THE TIME I WAS LNDG AT GREELEY AND NOTICED THE GEAR WAS UP; THAT THE PROP HAD ACTUALLY TOUCHED THE RWY AND I HAD NO INDICATION; ON THE FLT BACK TO JEFFCO; ANYTHING WAS WRONG. THE ENG RAN FINE WITH ABSOLUTELY NO VIBRATION AND THE PROP FUNCTIONED NORMALLY. I WAS NOT AWARE I HAD ANY REASON TO SUSPECT ANY PROBS. THE PERSON IN THE OTHER AIRPLANE DID ME A FAVOR BY DELAYING HIS EXIT FROM THE RWY. IF HE WOULD HAVE CLRED THE RWY; I WOULD HAVE LANDED WITH THE GEAR UP; THEREBY WRECKING MY AIRPLANE; AT THE VERY LEAST. HAD THIS PERSON NOT BEEN AT GXY THIS DAY; OR IF HE WOULD HAVE ENTERED THE LNDG PATTERN APPROPRIATELY; I WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN DISTR FROM MY LNDG CHKLIST AND WOULD NOT HAVE DAMAGED MY ACFT.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.