We didn't even make it to the runway.
As we were taxiing up to the ramp, we heard a call come in that a Piper Arrow in the pattern was declaring an emergency. After trying everything, the nose gear still wouldn't go down and lock. He stated his intention to land on the runway without it. He offered to let us take off first, but the airport then came on the radio and warned us that the airport would be closed, possibly for the rest of the day, after the plane was down and disabled on the runway. Therefore, we wouldn't be able to come home, even if we got out.
We parked the plane at the top of the ramp and walked up to the runway. Since I always have cameras with me, we decided to video the landing. The pilot did a great job. We got lots of still photos and a good video of the landing which even ended up on the evening news in Philadelphia that night.
Here are pictures and video of the event.
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| Just about to touch down. No nose gear. |
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| Mains down, holding the nose gear off nicely. |
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| The nose drops and the prop is destroyed. |
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| Skidded to a stop. |
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| Quick exit |
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| Fire truck raced out in seconds |
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| There was plenty of emergency equipment on hand |
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| Relief! |
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| No one injured |
Here is the video of the landing. Turn the sound up. The noise of the prop hitting is awful.
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We were pretty bummed out that our day was canceled.
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| Nancy with the plane in the background |
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| Unhappy grounded pilot. Look at that sky! |
As a consolation prize, it was fun to see our video on the evening news and to hear Nancy on TV saying " What a great landing!"
We'll try again on the next sunny weekend.
Oshkosh awaits!
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