Forced landing in corn field

P

p40whk

New member
Hello everyone, I'm new to these forums and would like to ask for a little advice. Our club just bought a 1965 7GCAA that had been flown very little over the last 4 years and after doing an inspection of the plane I released it to our members for check out flights (I'm an A&P). We had been flying the plane regularly for 2 weeks when one of our student pilots experienced fuel starvation 300 feet after takeoff. The instructor took control of the plane and did a wonderfull job of bringing it down safely in a muddy corn field.

The left main gear seperated from the fuselage at the under belly attach point and the plane slid on its belly a short distance. The left wing tip hit the ground but there is only mud on the tip and no fabric damage. The prop is bent and I know we will have to do a tear down inspection.

My question is; what is required to be done to the wing since it has hit the ground? Is there any info on inspections/ repairs that I can find that will help us get this plane back in the air? Most of the shops around here are backed up for months and we do not want to wait that long. If any of you have had similar experiences with this then please send me your suggestions.

The FAA findings for the cause of the fuel starvation was a clogged vent tube. Any way to keep this from happening in the future?

Thanks for all your help.

JAS
 
I don't have that experience in dealing with the problem ,could only say what I would do. Does it still have the wood spars? Will it be used for acrobatic flight? If the answer to both is "yes" I personally would seriously consider uncovering the wing to look at the spars. I say again that would be what I personally would want to do.

Woodie
N29763
 
Read the AD,

If there has been an impact on the wing it must be inspected fully. Pull off all the covers and inspect the spars....

If I were renting it, and I was once renting my plane to others, I would pull the cover off.....if it breaks you do not want to explain to a jury later that you did the minimum required by the FAA, in order to save the cost of a cover.
 
There is an AD on the wood spars, and they refer you to several service letters/bulletins, etc., and those are all available right here in this site. I suggest you print all of them off and read and study them VERY carefully. There are three MAIN areas of concern after a tip strike: the tips of the spars, just outboard of the strut attach points and the root attach points. All but the tips can be given a 'cursory' inspection without removing any fabric, the tips will need a patch cut out. HOWEVER....If my name were going in the log books I'd be VERY, VERY, VERY THOROUGH, and not cut any corners in the inspection. Remember, real live humans are going to be getting in this airplane and performing aerobatics, which put more than just your standard stresses on the structure. Be anal...and inspect the hell out of it, then inspect it again, and have others inspect it, too.

As for the vent system...add that to your 100 hr/annual inspection check sheet.

YOU CAN NEVER BE TOO THOROUGH!!!!!

Rareblair
 
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