PA46 PLT RECOUNTS RWY EXCURSION IN GUSTY LLWS CONDITIONS AT COS.

2006-04 · NASA ASRS report 692789

Date: 2006-04 · Aircraft: PA-46 Malibu/Malibu Mirage/Malibu Matrix · Phase: approach

Anomalies: ground-excursion-runway|inflight-event-encounter-loss-of-aircraft-control

Synopsis

PA46 PLT RECOUNTS RWY EXCURSION IN GUSTY LLWS CONDITIONS AT COS.

Narrative

I WAS FLYING AS PIC ON A BUSINESS TRIP BTWN LAS AND COS IN MY PIPER MERIDIAN AT FL250 ON AN IFR FLT PLAN. MIDWAY DURING THE FLT SEGMENT; ZLC ANNOUNCED A NEW SIGMET FOR OCCASIONAL SEVERE TURB BTWN ALAMOSA AND LAMAR; CO; BTWN FL290 AND FL430. I OBTAINED THE METAR FOR COS WHICH RPTED WINDS OF 290 DEGS AT 20 KTS GUSTING TO 30 KTS WITH NO MENTION OF LLWS. HOWEVER; DURING CRUISE DSCNT; I OBTAINED THE ATIS BROADCAST FROM COS WHICH RPTED SIMILAR WINDS BUT ADDED A CAUTION FOR LLWS. THE SKY WAS 11000 FT SCATTERED WITH VISIBILITY GREATER THAN 10 MI AND THE BAROMETRIC PRESSURE WAS 31.03. TEMP WAS 17 DEGS AND DEWPOINT WAS -17 DEGS. DURING CRUISE DSCNT I REDUCED TORQUE TO OBTAIN MANEUVERING SPD FOR THE MODERATE TURB I WAS EXPERIENCING BUT FORTUNATELY DID NOT ENCOUNTER ANY TURB WORSE THAN MODERATE. I REQUESTED AND WAS GRANTED THE GPS 30 APCH. ON THE GPS 30 APCH I REQUESTED A 'WIND CHK' AND WAS GIVEN '290 DEGS AT 20 KTS.' THE APCH TO LNDG WAS STABLE BUT REQUIRED SLIGHTLY MORE L WING DOWN AND R RUDDER TO MAINTAIN RWY ALIGNMENT DURING THE LAST 100 FT BEFORE TOUCHDOWN. I EXPERIENCED AND RPTED TO THE COS TWR A LOSS OF 10K IAS AT 200-300 FT AGL ON THE APCH. I INTENTIONALLY CARRIED SOME ADDITIONAL TORQUE FOR THE LLWS; AND CONSEQUENTLY; CROSSED THE RWY THRESHOLD AT 95K INSTEAD OF THE CUSTOMARY SPD OF 90K. AS I CROSSED THE RWY THRESHOLD; THE ACFT WAS STRAIGHT AND ALIGNED WITH THE RWY CTRLINE. I CLOSED THE THROTTLE COMPLETELY AS I CROSSED THE THRESHOLD AND RAISED THE NOSE OF THE ACFT SLIGHTLY. THE NOSE UP ADJUSTMENT RESULTED IN A SLIGHT BALLOONING OF THE ACFT. VERY SHORTLY THEREAFTER; I WAS 1/2 WAY BTWN THE CTRLINE AND THE R RWY EDGE AND WITH MORE YAW TO THE L THAN FELT COMFORTABLE BUT WITH MAIN GEAR AND NOSEWHEEL ON THE RWY SURFACE. I CORRECTED THE L YAW WITH R RUDDER; AND IN THE NEXT INSTANT FOUND MYSELF OFF THE RWY; OUTSIDE OF THE RWY EDGE LIGHTS AND ALIGNED STRAIGHT AND PARALLEL WITH THE RWY CTRLINE. THE EXPERIENCE SEEMED AS IF I WERE INSTANTANEOUSLY PICKED UP AND MOVED OFF OF THE RWY -- I DID NOT EXPERIENCE A GRADUAL DRIFT TO THE R AND DO NOT BELIEVE THE LNDG GEAR WERE IN CONTACT WITH THE GND DURING THIS BRIEF INTERVAL THE ACFT WAS MOVED TO THE R AND OFF OF THE RWY. ROLLING PARALLEL TO; BUT OFF; THE RWY; I ALLOWED MY SPD TO DISSIPATE AND THEN GRADUALLY BROUGHT THE PLANE BACK TO THE RWY CTRLINE. THE TWR INQUIRED IF I WERE OK; TO WHICH I REPLIED THAT I WAS FINE AND WAS SORRY FOR MY POOR PERFORMANCE IN THE XWIND. I ALSO COMMENTED THAT I DID NOT FEEL I HAD HIT ANY OF THE RWY EDGE LIGHTS. MY REQUEST TO ROLL TO THE END OF RWY 30 WAS GRANTED. AT THE END OF RWY 30 I WAS THEN GIVEN PERMISSION BY THE TWR TO CROSS THE N END OF RWY 35L AND TAXI TO PARKING. WHILE TAXIING ON TXWY A; I FOUND MAINTAINING DIRECTIONAL CTL AND WAS DIFFICULT DUE TO STRONG XWINDS. THE RUDDER CTL OF MY NOSEWHEEL STEERING WAS BARELY ABLE TO HOLD A STRAIGHT DIRECTION ON THE TXWY. ONCE I ARRIVED AT THE FBO; I WENT INTO THE TERMINAL AND IMMEDIATELY CALLED THE TWR. I THANKED THEM FOR THEIR ASSISTANCE; AGAIN APOLOGIZED FOR MY NON-PROFESSIONAL LNDG AND REQUESTED THAT THEY HAVE GND MAINT CHK THE RWY EDGE LIGHTS TO MAKE SURE I HAD NOT CAUSED ANY DAMAGE. THE TWR INFORMED ME THAT THEY HAD JUST COMPLETED A CHK OF THE RWY EDGE LIGHTS AND NO DAMAGE WAS FOUND. I COMPLETED A THOROUGH INSPECTION OF MY ACFT; INCLUDING A METICULOUS INSPECTION OF THE LNDG GEAR AND WHEEL WELLS AND FOUND NO EVIDENCE OF DAMAGE. THE RETURN FLT THE FOLLOWING DAY TO MY HOME ARPT OF FCM WAS UNEVENTFUL. I LANDED AT FCM ON RWY 28R WITH WINDS OF 320 DEGS AT 20 KTS GUSTING TO 25 KTS WITH NO PROB AND NO INDICATION OF EQUIP MALFUNCTION. I HAVE SPENT 2.5 HRS WITH ONE OF MY INSTRUCTORS WORKING ON XWIND LNDGS AND EMER GARS. ALL OF THOSE LNDGS AND PROCS WENT WELL; ALTHOUGH WE DID DISCOVER THAT MY R BRAKE HAD 2-3 TIMES THE TRAVEL COMPARED WITH THE L BRAKE. I HAD NOT NOTICED THIS PREVIOUSLY AND DO NOT KNOW IF THIS EXISTED PRIOR TO MY POOR LNDG AT COS OR MAY HAVE BEEN THE RESULT OF THE LNDG. SINCE HAVING MY MECH BLEED BOTH BRAKES; BRAKING WITH L AND R BRAKES IS AGAIN SYMMETRICAL. IF THE ASYMMETRY DID EXIT PRIOR TO THE COS LNDG; THIS MAY HAVE BEEN A CONTRIBUTING FACTOR MY DIFFICULTY IN MAINTAINING LONGITUDINAL CTL ON THE RWY. I HAVE THE FOLLOWING THOUGHTS ABOUT MY COS LNDG AND WAYS TO IMPROVE PERFORMANCE IN THE FUTURE: 1) LLWS ADVISORIES WERE IN EFFECT; AND I WAS LNDG AT A HIGHER INDICATED AIRSPD THAN IS CUSTOMARY. ALTHOUGH I BELIEVE THAT CARRYING EXTRA TORQUE UNDER SUCH CIRCUMSTANCES OF LLWS IS APPROPRIATE; HIGHER SPD AT FLARE OR TOUCHDOWN COMPROMISES DIRECTIONAL CTL AFTER LNDG. 2) I BELIEVE THAT ONCE I FOUND MYSELF DISPLACED TO THE R OF THE RWY CTRLINE AND HAD THE YAW TO THE L; I WAS MOST CONCERNED ABOUT LONGITUDINAL DIRECTIONAL CTL AND FAILED TO MAINTAIN ADEQUATE L AILERON DEFLECTION. 3) I MAY HAVE BEEN BETTER OFF ONCE I WAS DISPLACED TO THE R AND YAWED L TO HAVE ABORTED THE LNDG AND GONE AROUND FOR ANOTHER APCH. I AM LIKE SO MANY PLTS IN THAT WE OFTEN TRY TO SALVAGE EVERY LNDG AT ALL COSTS. PROMPTLY ADDING TORQUE AND GOING AROUND MAY HAVE BEEN MORE PRUDENT IN MY SITUATION; FOR I HAD MUCH RWY AVAILABLE AHEAD OF ME. I HOPE I SHALL ACQUIRE LESS RELUCTANCE TO ABORT EITHER AN UNSTABILIZED APCH OR A POOR INITIAL LNDG FLARE OR ROLLOUT AND GAR FOR A SECOND TRY. 4) I THINK THAT AS I FLARED FOR THE LNDG; I RECEIVED A STRONG; LATERAL XWIND GUST. I PROBABLY WOULD NOT HAVE SUSPECTED THIS HAD I NOT HAD SUCH A CHALLENGE CTLING MY FORWARD DIRECTIONAL ROLL AS I TAXIED S ON TXWY A TO THE RAMP AFTER LNDG. THIS EXPERIENCE WAS FRIGHTENING. I FEEL THANKFUL NO ONE WAS HURT AND NO EQUIP OR PROPERTY WERE DAMAGED. THIS HAS SERVED; HOWEVER; AS A MEANINGFUL LEARNING EXPERIENCE AND AN OPPORTUNITY FOR ADDITIONAL TRAINING.

Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.

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