Thank you for the kind compliment. I had outstanding emergency situation training from an "old guy" who is no longer with us. For that reason, when the engine failed, there was no panic. I had my right seat passenger wake the girls, tighten their belts and give them pillows to hug in the brace position while I went through procedures I had practiced many, many times. Thankfully, we were able to make it to the gravel bar. Today those girls have six children of their own! Safe flying my friend.
Great story! With a happy ending! Alaska is a special kind of flying that oftentimes makes aviation a challenge that’s not found in the lower 48. Fair winds!
@@privatepilot4064 Thanks for the comment. Alaska flying is getting easier with better weather reporting and more webcams but it's still a different level. Fly safe my friend.
Barry, I was in the NOAA helicopter that picked you up. I remember being surprised your plane was in such good shape based on the size of the rocks and boulders nearby. RCC had your ELT signal in a rougher location. We were glad to see you and the plane in one piece. 30 yrs ago WOW.
Steve Brock -- you are the one person I've always wondered about! I tried to contact you after the rescue but couldn't. Were you piloting or spotting? Either way THANK YOU! Were you doing something around Rainy Pass or Farewell Lake? Thank you for leaving your "real job" to search for -- and rescue -- us. Yes, so glad the engine quit near that nice gravel bar and not up in the area where you guys were looking. (The new ELT's are so much better!) Hats off man. Well done!
I mean.. You do realise that it's mandatory for you two meet up and do a video of the two of you reminiscing about that event now. Right? Even if it's just over Skype
The girls had a great time sampling the C ration survival rations and pretending they were serving gourmet food. Meanwhile, their moms weren't having such a great time wondering if they were alive! Safe flying to you.
kell490 I had a handheld aircraft radio, which I tried on several frequencies when four different airplanes flew over. No one answered, however. I was especially surprised an Air Force C130 was not, apparently, monitoring 121.5. I used the handheld to talk to the pilot who found us.
Very possible. It was Sporty's Pilot Shop's cheapest model and the airplanes that overflew us were all quite high -- too high to see the SOS we had marked out with rocks and TP unless they had really been looking. My airplane radio, by the way, wasn't much better! Most guys flew with radios off anyway. Lots of uncontrolled airspace in Alaska.
To all the new pilots out there, Barry's descriptions and actions are exactly the right thing to do, and the right way to prepare for it. Fantastic work. Before I could solo, my flight instructor made me demonstrate a circle to land, and land, power to idle (simulated power out). I practiced it enough to know that if I had a place to land below me, I could do it, always. That's not a required part of the pilot test. The pilot test just requires you simulated it, and it's normally called off 500' or so above the ground. Well, that won't let you know you can do it for real. Barry used S turns and a slip to bring in his plane, and he did it well and safely because he practiced it, and he stayed calm during the emergency and pulled it off. Without practice, you're probably going to end up too high or too low on final, and you can't go around when it's the real deal. So, fellow pilots, learn from Barry and practice this! (Sorry to soapbox, and I know everybody probably already does this...)
Thanks much, Tom, for the endorsement/compliment. You and I must have had the same instructor! It's also critical to keep practicing engine-out procedures to stay sharp. Countless times when I was flying alone I would pull the throttle, choose my "landing spot" and then see if I could get there without touching the throttle. It was especially fun when flying skis in the winter because I could often go ahead and do a touch-n-go on the frozen lake I selected. When the "real event" happened I knew exactly how big a "circle" I could draw for potential landing sites. BTW, the first thing I did when the engine failed was shut off electrical (because smoke was entering the cabin and I was concerned about fire), second thing was shut off fuel at the firewall (again, to not feed fire). Things got a lot simpler when it became clear we were not on fire but the smoke was just from oil on hot surfaces. I'm with you, Tom -- student pilots should insist on learning and repeatedly practicing engine-out procedures with instructors! Fly safe my friend.
Thanks, Fred. The girls did great. We actually did wake them on the way down to tighten their belts and have them hold pillows in front of their faces. They didn't say a word all the way down. We were all pretty happy to be on the ground, however.
@fukthegoog I'll bet it has to be one of these guys, they loved screwing up anything with wings- I'm anteing up a coupla sacrificial virgins on Osiris though: Resheph Anath Ashtoreth El Nergal Nebo Ninib Melek Ahijah Isis * Ptah Anubis Baal Astarte Hadad Addu Shalem Dagon Sharaab Yau Amon-Re Osiris* Sebek Molech
15 later years and this is still one of the best compilations of in-flight video with a fantastic outcome I’ve seen. Hope you are all still doing well.
Thanks for the kind comment. The "little girls" in the back seat are now in their 40s with 6 children between them. Time flies. I'm on an Alaska Airlines flight now. Just about to pass over the spot where I lost the engine. Life is good. Fly safe my friend.
Hi Barry, I purchased N170JA just about a year ago where the previous owner had abandoned her in Illiamna. I worked on getting the aircraft safe for fight and flew it to Willow on a ferry permit. Once there I did a very thorough annual and now have "Junkyard Annie" tied down at my own strip north of Trapper Creek. She has been neglected for a long time and I am slowly putting the much needed TLC back into her. You can see me landing her at my strip for the first time last winter by putting in "Fort Crosby" in the You Tube search bar. Thanks for the great video, I have watched many times. Randy Crosby
Very cool, Randy. I just got back to Oregon from 3 weeks in Galena, Alaska. I don't have an airplane here but every time I go back to the bush up there the bug hits bigtime! (I still have a cabin on the Yukon.) After spending nearly 1000 hours in N170JA and then watching it deteriorate on the side of a strip for years (I did keep track of it), it did my heart good to see you landing it again. As you well know airplanes are meant to fly. Keep me updated on your fix-up progress. She's a beautiful, gentle flyer. I hope you have as many great times with her -- and more -- than I did. Best wishes, Randy, and thanks again for the good news!
I can't tell if that's the numbers on the Cessna, the vid is so grainy, but that's a cool story, and great piloting, she held together in this emergency landing and was lucky to have this patch of beach to land on.
@@shable1436 In 1989 that was "good video!" Thanks for the comment. If you look up Randy Crosby, the current owner of N170JA (RUclips) you'll see more recent pictures of her. Fly safe, Shable.
@@mysticpass yeah 29 years ago, wow, I guess so. The other guys vid, yes I saw it circling the runway, good planes don't die, they just fade away. He is keeping her going and she still is worthy, I'm sure that gives you a nice warm feeling inside. Fly safe as well
Excellent job finding a suitable landing site within your glide path, and setting her down intact. There's no circling around for a second landing attempt, when your rubber band is broke. You saved four lives that day. Thanks for sharing the video.
Thank you @usmc6157. As you well know training and lots of practice makes all the difference in an emergency. I constantly practiced engine out procedures when I was flying alone so I knew very well how the airplane would perform and how far I could glide from any altitude. At the same time, we were fortunate to have a "good spot" within reach. Thanks for your service to our country, and fly safe my friend.
Great dead stick landing. Staying calm and flying the airplane is great airmanship. My instructor used to pull the throttle and coach me about how to fly the plane no matter what. Then, on a night cross country, the number one cylinder swallowed the intake valve, and we both automatically assumed roles like we’d done it dozens of times. He was on the radios while I trimmed for best rate of glide. We both tried to restart with no joy, but I kept that airspeed locked and like you said, altitude is your friend. We found a municipal airport, turned on the VASI and runway lights and made it to the runway. He used to tell me, “Even if your on fire, fly, fly, fly. Keep your mind on flying. Airspeed and focus on landing sites. And above all, fly the airplane”. Glad y’all made it safe. Thanks for the great video.
That's great, Harry. Sounds like we had the same stick n' rudder instructor sitting beside us. Nothing like practice, practice, practice so when the real thing comes, you just do it. Glad you walked away. Hope that's your last incident. Fly safe.
I've been coming back to this video over the years, it's truly one of the most exciting (and challenging) aspects of aviation. But I'm finally now a student pilot myself, and watching experiences like yours is definitely a great learning tool. I hope I'm never in such a predicament, but if I ever am, I hope to stay as level-headed as you were! 🙂
Congratulations on your student pilot training. I hope you are fortunate enough to have a great "basics" instructor like I had years ago. I hope you never have an in-flight emergency either, but if you do, solid training and practice, practice, practice will keep you calm. If you're interested, I told the whole story and showed much more video of the engine failure when I spoke at a church Sportsman's Banquet earlier this year. ruclips.net/video/Gd5p5BAJdfw/видео.html Congratulations again on your flight lessons. Enjoy yourself and fly safe!
@@mysticpass Thanks for your kind words of encouragement, I definitely plan on getting as much quality training time as possible before I even consider doing my first solo! I'll keep you posted on how things go :) Edit: I just watched the video you linked above with the talk you and your wife gave, it brought a tear to my eye. Keep up the good work, and I never stop being amazed by the aviation community.
Engine quits in the Alaskan bush, you set it down like such a boss that the kids think of it as a rest-stop rather than an emergency. Then swap the engine on-site using logs as a hoist. Sir you are from a time and place where people are made of tougher stuff that's sadly lacking in this world.
Very kind of you if not somewhat overstated, Thomas. I will allow lots of kudos to my mechanic friend for his ingenuity. Mine was just one of dozens of airplanes he patched up in the bush and ferried home for repairs. Quite a guy, and he would never take a dime from me for it. THAT kind are rare! Thanks for taking the time to comment, Thomas. Fly safe!
Thanks for the comment. Yes, the girls were fantastic. Neither said a peep all the way to the ground. There were some delighted squeals once we got out of the airplane however! Safe flying to you.
An entire story...a happy ending. This is an awesome little video. You made it. Well done. Everyone walked away to live another day and those lovely children get to grow up. You did a great job. BRAVO!
Thank you Moogy. The lovely little girls are both in their 30's now -- with beautiful little children of their own! Thanks so much for the comment. Fly safe!
Hi Barry - I just wanted to thank you for posting the video. I practised my first engine failure today and even knowing my instructor was going to call "Climb away" at some point it was still a stressful time. Huge respect to you and your piloting skills
hermand Good for your instructor for having you practice engine out procedures. Don't stop practicing after you get your license. I practiced constantly (when I was flying alone). You need to be able to accurately "feel" that circle of possible landing spots based on how high you are and the winds. Practice enough and the real thing isn't much different -- except there's no "climb away." Good luck to you and fly safe.
Great comment, gehlen52. You are so right. Every time I look at my four grandchildren (children of my daughter in the back seat) I can't help but think what "could have been." I'm a blessed man. Safe flying to you.
Happened 25 days before my date of birth. As a FI, with I am guessing very little experience on yourself, that was perfectly executed. I guess you have had 23 years of safe flying since then, and I wish you many more years of safe flying! Much respect sir for the calm and professional behaviour with such precious cargo on board.
Awwwwww,what a great video. Soooo happy that all worked out with no injuries. Just a Beautiful family with a Beautiful rescue. I was 20 when this was recorded. Wow, I hope you and your family are great and your children grew up happy and healthy. God bless(ed) y'all. Thank u so much for posting. Lots of love. Atlanta Ga. 2.14.2020
Thank you for posting! I assume you had to land somewhere in the proximity of the Kichatna Mountains Southwest of Denali? I was impressed by the way you executed the “S” flight pattern to lose altitude quickly yet managed your limited energy to put it down right where you wanted to. Glad you all walked away safe, and had a great friend who swapped out the engine. Again, priceless video! Thank you.
Yes, you are right. Those mountains are some of the most spectacular in the Alaska Range. I enjoyed going through there in good weather just to take in the geology. Thanks for the kind comments. Fly safe.
What I find amazing about this entire video is that everyone was safe and walking around nice and calm, knowing that this could have turned out a whole lot worst. Great job!
Thanks for the comment Orlando. If the engine failure had happened even a couple minutes later we would have been in a narrow rock gorge where there was no place to land. We were "fortunate" it happened where it did. Fly safe.
@@mysticpass As a private pilot I pray I don't have to deal with this, but if I have to I have my training and this video to lean on, Luck might have played a role, But "luck is only where opportunity meets preparation". Had you not been prepared, no amount of luck could help you guys, calm collective and well executed . This is quite instructive for me. Thank you!
@@orlandospencer Very kind of you, Orlando. The best thing I did was I constantly practice engine-out procedures when I was flying alone. Just like in pilot training, I'd pull the throttle back to idle and choose my "landing spot." I got to know the airplane as a "glider" really well so I could fairly consistently set up an approach and make my selected spot. When the engine failed it was just like I had practiced. The big difference, of course, was I knew I had only one shot and three lives beside my own were on the line. When the engine first failed smoke came into the cabin. I immediately shut off electrical and the fuel at the firewall. My go-to spot if we caught fire was directly below us. It was a tiny, rough area that would have destroyed the airplane and probably would have killed us all but if you're on fire you have to get down. When I realized we weren't on fire, I picked a spot about half a mile away. That spot would have wrecked the airplane but I figured some of us might live. We had a nice tailwind so when I got to that spot I still had 1500 feet of altitude. That's when I picked the nice gravel bar about 3/4 of a mile farther away. You'll notice that I did an S turn on final and slipped it in to get stopped before the ravine that is about 50 feet in front of the airplane. I hope you never do an actual emergency but I have a feeling with your kind of careful preparation you'll do just fine.
@@mysticpass Thank you much for the blow-by-blow operation of how you trained and subsequently handled this emergency. Thank you so very much. I am adding all you have said here to me flying knowledge.
@@mysticpass I always wonder in those kinds of situations how one knows how to time that very last turn before the landing. What made you decide that you had to make another turn at 2:26 instead of taking your chance?
To this day, I think this is one of the best cockpit videos of a catastrophic engine failure on youtube. You did exactly what needed to be done to save yourself and everyone onboard. Flying in the mountainous terrain has got to be daunting to begin with. You stayed calm, new the aircraft to a T and handled the situation greatly. I am sure you've got so many comments on this that you don't even check your account anymore. But hats off to you.
I know this was a long time ago but it pays to have footage like this. Aviators like you show us how to keep a situation under control and one thing at a time. Great video and thanks for sharing!!!
Thanks charlieb303. The video is dated for sure (ha! my passenger was using a state of the art camera at the time). I have always been amazed at how the girls handled everything. Neither said a peep all the way down. They squealed after they climbed out on the ground, however! Fly safe.
Alaska resident here, since 1975 and I have seen a lot of situations like this one turn out much different. You did a great job getting that plane down safely. Alaska is a fantastic place, incredibly beautiful but flying in the "bush" has a high degree of risk and takes many lives each year.
Thanks, Alan. We were really fortunate the engine failure happened when it did. A couple minutes later we would have been inside Mystic Pass, where there is just a rock gorge all the way to the floor. Fly safe!
@@mysticpass yes sir, never done any flying in Alaska, I've always wanted to but just never have had the opportunity, flew with a friend in British Columbia few yrs back, i live in North Carolina, mostly east coast flying, but once again, thank god you and your family made it out safe, and again great job sir stay safe. 👍
Thanks for the comment, ThomasGrillo. Yes, you are so right. If the engine failure had happened a few minutes later, we would have been in a narrow rock gorge (read no survivors). Fly safe.
Thanks Gary. We were fortunate to have a nice gravel bar within reach. A couple minutes later we would have been in a rock gorge - no survivors. Fly safe.
Thank you, sir. Just tonight I was with my daughter & her husband's four wonderful children. Hard to imagine what "could have been" if we had been farther into the pass in 1989. Safe flying to you.
Sir that was a textbook landing, you did everything right! Great job with the S turns to get you to the touchdown point you wanted. Thanks for sharing this video, it may help others that find themselves in this situation. So glad that no one was hurt. Did something similar in a 140 but had no place other than trees, mountains and a very narrow logging road.
Thanks for the comment. Yes, he was an amazing guy. Mine was just one of dozens of bent airplanes he rescued from the bush. Not only that but he was a great friend. I miss him. Fly safe.
I remember when my dad and another friend/coworker had to drive in a rental cube truck with a turboprop in the back and all the tools they could think of to upstate New York from Milwaukee to change an engine on a Beechcraft 100. They did it in the middle of winter, at an abandoned airport in an empty hanger. They had to go out and buy a torpedo heater cause it was like 10 below zero. My hats off to any aircraft mechanic that can do that kind of work in any conditions like that.
Good airmanship. Did you talk with anyone before putting down? My worst civilian landing began when a large crow flew through the propeller arc of a Mooney I was flying. The entire windscreen was covered with blood, bone, guts and feathers. The three bladed prop took all of it in stride, fortunately. I called the tower at my home base and told them what had had happened. They asked me if I wanted to declare an emergency and I told not them not at that time but I would let them know. I flew on instruments for about 20 minutes until I got close enough to contact approach, I reiterated what had happened and again they asked me if I wanted to declare an emergency, I declined but just asked for vectors to a straight in. I lined up using the ILS and when I got close enough to the field I slipped the aircraft in so I was actually looking through the side windscreen. Man did I catch some shit when I taxied into GA that day!
+Steve Hammond Yikes. Crow yuk on the windshield doesn't sound good. Good for you for getting it down. I had to land on lakes (skis) a few times that way when my windshield iced up -- but lakes offer a lot more margin for error! When the engine quit I was 120 miles from the nearest flight service station and below the peaks of the Alaska range so I didn't bother with the radio. My priority was shutting off electrical so we didn't catch fire. I had a poor old Escort 110 radio (replaced afterward) at the time. While we were on the ground I tried "mayday" calls using a handheld radio when four airplanes flew high over us. Each time I called on standard FSS frequencies, along with 121.5 (where my ELT was blasting) but no one responded. I was especially surprised a C-130 military airplane didn't hear our distress calls. Alaska is so vast that most VFR pilots don't even monitor radios when they're out of range of a FSS. I was guilty of that, too.
+Steve Hammond--You are one of the few that practice Forward Slips in USA lately..Many USA pilots could have wrecked the Mooney due they cant Forward Slip well..They cant do Forward Slips well and could have landed on a ditch next to the big runway..Too many Clods with Pilot Licenses is the root of USA GA LOC problem..
Thanks @maxasaurus3008. I practiced engine-out proceedures countless times when I was flying alone, so I knew well what the airplane would do gliding. No surprises. The only difference, as you say, was the others on board. The girls were awesome! Not a peep all the way to the ground. Both girls married and now have 7 great kids between them.
Thanks, Markie. As the bush pilot friend who flew in a replacement engine said, "I'd say you made a nice emergency landing but you are not that good. You had Help! I have no doubt he was right!" Fly safe.
@@mysticpassHi, thanks for the kind words,ld say good decision making too on your part, my friend, that counts for a lot, may all of your landings be happy ones. BTW how did you get the C170 out of there in the end?
Hi Barry, great work! I love C170s and C180s. An aero-engine change in the wilds? In the UK some would struggle to do that in a heated hanger Lol! Well done my friend, well done! I watched a documentary with a downed PC12 and it got airlifted off of the ice, if I recall, by a Kaman K-Max? At $7million they were keen to get it back before the weather got to it.
Love your humor! I'm probably as surprised as anyone that a relatively low time pilot (900 hours at the time) could land a dead engine airplane and walk away. Very thankful every time I look at one of my delightful grandchildren! Best wishes to you and safe flying.
Thanks, John. I was fortunate to have some very good instruction early-on. One old instructor in particular drilled into me the importance of constantly thinking through, and practicing, emergency scenarios during flight.When the engine quit I thought, "Okay, this is the real thing. I have only one chance to do it right." It wasn't heroic in any way, just doing what I'd practiced many, many times. Safe flying to you!
I found myself thinking about this incident again today... Wow! What a dead-stick pilot you are! It’s tempting to believe that lots of factors “lined up” for you but I think on balance you yourself lined up those you were presented with as best you could. The Sully joke was that he had wanted all his career to say “we’re going in the Hudson”. I trust you didn’t hope to be able one day to use your engine-out practice!
Thanks, Hal, for the very thoughtful comment. I am grateful for my old WWII era "stick n' rudder" instructor. No heads up displays (no radios) in his old Taylorcraft and Aeronca. Just get to know your airplane. We were fortunate in so many ways. If the failure had happened even a couple minutes later we would have been in a steep rock gorge. No survivors there. As my A&P friend who swapped engines on the gravel bar said, "Barry, you're not this good a pilot. You had Help." I agree. Fly safe my friend.
Adit Morey Thank you, Mr. Morey. I had a great old-time stick 'n rudder instructor and I learned in old T-crafts and Aeronicas. Nothing like getting the fundamentals down! Safe flying to you.
Barry Arnold that's true Mr Arnold. In flying airplanes , fundamentals are essential. I fly a dhc-2 , but only in FlightGear flight simulator. I do know some tips in flying planes, but I can't exactly and properly implement them due to physical constraints as a result of a health condition. I try as much as I can to land it properly , but find a Cessna much easier.
+Barry Arnold--too bad they are so many Mild Maneuvering CFI's now in USA..They have created a crop of Mild Maneuvering Pilots doing LOC all over houses, cars, trees, and over flat fields where most trained before the 1980's could have land easily..
Yes, I considered myself fortunate to have a outstanding 80-year-old stick 'n rudder instructor who believed that things like spin recovery and emergency procedures were essential elements of flight training.
Although I never actually had to use short landing techniques or emergency land, my instructor was a total nut on short landings. Every landing during his instruction had to be the shortest possible. I really became quite irritated with it. I like long, smooth finals, easy, soft landings. He was always insisting, even with mile long runways, land as short as you can. Practice it. Because one day, you might really need it. It's funny how such flamboyant instructors influence your flying style. I quit my silly long approaches and soon caught a little of his "Air Craft Carrier Deck Fever"- within reason- I never liked too much low and slow. Seemed a good way to drill real estate. But, I can see here how it actually could pay off some day. I retired from flying in 1998.
It's because of faithful people like you who are willing to do the "boring stuff" at CAP that guys like me get rescued, so thank you! Safe flying to you.
I first saw this video when it was posted 15 years ago and I STILL find myself watching this today. I hope everybody is doing well. I'm not sure if I ever asked in previous comments over the years but how did you get your airplane out of there, was it fixed and does she still fly today? Greetings from Maine!
@@mysticpass I'm just an avid aviation buff, I can't fly yet. My four life goals so far have been become a Marine, become a cop, earn my pilot's license, and move to Alaska. So far I got two down, hopefully in about 18 months or so I can start my lessons, then it'll be off to Alaska. In any case, merry christmas to you as well!
@@nonyabeeznuss304 Your goals all sound great, Tom. When you get pilot training, find an old "stick 'n rudder" instructor who will take you up in a tail dragger and teach you spins and engine-out procedures until you dream of them. There's a lot of fantastic tail-dragger (and ski) flying in Alaska's back country. Thanks for serving our country! Fly safe!
@@mysticpass The local instructor down here is a crop duster during farming season who offers lessons in his old J-3 cub in the off season. I see him in his Pawnee doing acrobatics that would make a WW2 fighter pilot envious when he's out dusting, I reckon if he can fly that good he can probably teach a thing or two about stalls and deadstick landings.
@@nonyabeeznuss304 Perfect! Excellent choice! Even if you never use the emergency situation skills you learn, just knowing you have them in your pocket will make flying that much more fun.
Thank for the comment free roamer. The girls were fantastic. Once we were on the ground it turned into a camping adventure for them. Safe flying to you.
I've watched this video many times and I am very glad this had a happy ending. I went down in a 152 10 years ago and like you, walked away and didn't even scratch the airplane. I would LOVE to experience flying in Alaska. Here in Maine, the mountains are merely hills compared to AK. A VERY nice job you did!
Thanks Matthew. You and I are in a small club - not one anyone asks to be in, that's for sure. I'm glad you found a suitable place to put down. You probably didn't have the added benefit of a passenger videoing the whole thing either! I'm living in Oregon now but heading up to my Alaska cabin for three weeks soon. It is incredible country. Maine isn't bad either though -- particularly in the fall! Safe flying my friend.
Did anyone else notice the lack of screaming 10 year old kids?!? I realize the footage has been edited but even so, all occupants were cool as a cucumber. Great S.A and landing. Thanks for the upload. 🙏
Thanks for the comment, Kentucky Bluegrass. We woke the girls to tighten their seat belts and have them hold pillows in front of their faces. Neither of them said a peep all the way to the ground. Fly safe.
@@mysticpass That in itself is amazing. In '89 I would've been 12y/o myself. I can tell you with absolute certainty that I would've belted out a scream or two😂 Glad you guys were able to make a safe landing and fly another day. God Bless 🙏
GVad The Pilot Couldn't agree more on the value of the CAP. The CAP pilot who found us was Ken Eggleston, of Bethel, AK. I wrote him a thank you note and his wife framed it -- of all the searches he'd done, I was the only one to thank him. Kind of sad! Fly safe.
+Barry Arnold I am so happy your video had a happy ending that had to be very stressful with your two young daughters on board nice flying or more of a nice landing your landing gear mist be very sturdy were you just very lucky you had a decent landing place or was it more like the weather that helped you land like that I'm not a pilot but I've had a few lessons and I realize that minimal power is needed to land that wouldn't have been the case if the wind shear was up or wouldn't it have mattered?I'm really happy all your family were rescued so soon God bless :-)
+bigbadlove Very pleased for you. Jjust goes to show when we fly we should be prepared for eventualities ELT and flares and a couple of blankets as a minimum
Awesome video, shows what happens when you obey the 6 Ps. Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance. Loved the way it turned into an impromptu camping trip with the girls running around enjoying themselves.
All I know is I'm a BIG fan of CAP. I appreciate the countless hours spent to make flying safer and to assure resources are readily available when search and rescue is necessary, as it was for me.
Great work Barry. Your judgement was perfect on the forced landing. Weird about the ELB not being accurate on your position but at least you were carrying one unlike so many dummies that are flying around without one.
Thanks, Peter. I learned that the old ELT's fairly frequently miscalculated position by several miles. There just weren't enough satellites but it was much better than nothing. The FAA told me that the old system was a joint Russian-American venture and it was a Russian satellite that first picked up our signal. When the chopper came in to pick us up the pilot said he was relieved. Where they were searching 5 miles away in a high glaciered area they expected to find wreckage and bodies. Fly safe.
Lived in central AK for four years. Bush piloting in mountainous terrain is unforgiving. I’m just glad I didn’t have to read that those two little girls were casualties. 🙏🙏🙏
Thanks, Nick. You are right. We were fortunate to have a great place to put down. My "little girl" is now 41 years old with four kids of her own! Fly safe my friend.
Wow, talk about everything going right in a bad situation - handy gravel bar, clearly good dead stick landing, the right equipment for a short/soft - and a tent and sleeping bags. You couldn't ask for a better resolution. Excellent work.
Hats off to the Civil Air Patrol. Well done on a great landing. Seeing everyone around the campfire and laying around is a testament to not panicking. Well done.
You're not far off! The girls had a great time pretending they were Julia Child as they heated MRE survival rations over the fire. Great sports! Fly safe.
This video is a perfect example of why to do proper maintence and pre-flight AND post-flight inspections of your aircraft when your a pilot. Glad everything worked out.
Thanks Andrew. Yes, the grand kids have all seen the video and heard the story -- probably more times than they want! Ken Hughes, Sr, the A&P was quite a pilot/mentor -- and mechanic. I miss talking to him (died a couple years ago). Fly safe my friend.
Thanks Bobby. I was flying a lot, knew the airplane well, and had practiced engine out procedures countless times. Still, trust me, my heart was beating hard! A friend, who is a pilot and mechanic flew in another engine and swapped engines right there on the gravel bar. Fly safe!
It's nice to learn from someone's success for a change. Thanks for posting this great story. You guys made it look like pulling over to change a tire. Great job.
Thanks, Jefferson. You're right on the surprises. I guess that must be part of what attracts us to it. Yes, I've told the story a few times. The most powerful thing to me is looking at the four grandchildren from my daughter and her husband and realizing that if the1989 engine failure would have happened even a couple minutes later, none of us would be alive. We would have been in the steep rock gorge to the right. I'm grateful to be alive. Safe flying to you.
Wow. It made it 1,000 times more suspenseful and nerve racking when you panned down and showed your two children sleeping. This one scared the heck out of me and I'm sure it rattled you also. Glad y'all made it out with out a scratch. Great flying buddy. God Bless
+skyym3 It was even more verve racking to my wife, who had long since come to terms with the fact that I could get hurt or die in Alaska's wilderness. Until we were overdue on our flight plan she had never even thought about possibly losing both her daughter and her husband.. All the way down I kept telling myself I had only one chance to do it right. Speaking of "God bless," I would not be surprised if I had some Help from above. Thanks for your comment. Fly safe.
Thanks for the comment John. The video is 5 years old and the event took place nearly 32 years ago! Yes, the airplane got a new ELT and Nav/Com after the emergency landing! Fly safe.
Hi Barry, if possible can you describe the procedure of how you landed after the engine failed, like the speed you maintained, flap setting, how you chose the landing field, anything you feel is important. Thanks in advance
My first concern was fire because when the engine overheated, smoke was coming into the cabin. I shut off the electrical master switch and the engine fuel supply while I looked for a spot to put down if we caught fire. The spot I chose was directly below us. It was a tiny island in the river and I'm not sure any of us would have survived putting down there but if you're on fire you have to get out of the air. After the engine quit and it was clear we were not on fire I trimmed the airplane to glide at 60 MPH. It was like I could hear my old flight instructor saying, "Fly the airplane first!!" One thing that helped was I constantly practiced engine-out procedures when I was flying alone. From altitude, I'd pull the throttle to idle, pick out a potential landing spot and then see if I could get there without touching the throttle (until just above the trees). When the engine quit my first thought was "this is the real thing. I've got only one shot." I looked for a better spot to land since we weren't on fire. About a half mile away was a bigger stretch of beach so I headed there. We might have survived if we had landed there but that spot would have destroyed the airplane. When I got there I still had 1200 feet of altitude. I looked south and saw the nice big bar where we ended up landing. I thought if we could get there, not only would we all survive but I might even be able to save the airplane. I set up an approach for that third landing spot. When I made the final turn to the gravel bar we were actually still too high (we had a nice tailwind). That's why in the video you see me doing a big "S-turn" on final approach. I wanted to lose altitude but I didn't want to pull on flaps until I knew I could make the landing spot. On short final I pulled on full flaps and put the airplane in a "slip" (opposite aileron and rudder controls) to lose altitude quickly. I wanted to land as slowly as possible and stop very fast because about 400 feet down the gravel bar I could see a ditch I had not seen earlier. If we hit that ditch we would have nosed over. You can see the ditch on the video. We stopped about 100 feet short of it. The airplane had a HORTON STOL (short take off and landing) kit installed. That not only made it a very gentle glider but it let us touch down at just 40-45 MPH instead of 55 or 60 MPH. I always carried lots of survival gear, including sleeping bags, an ax, a bear gun, and plenty of C-ration food. In the winter I also carried snowshoes. I hope these details help -- and I hope you never have to choose an emergency landing spot! Fly safe Aditya Negi!
A great example of a clear head under pressure. I'm sure you leveraged all of your STOL practice! I'm glad everyone is OK and it was a happy ending. Very inspirational. Thank you for posting.
+Wayne Lacey Thank you, Wayne. You are absolutely right on practice. I practiced engine-out procedures a lot when I was flying alone. I'd pull the throttle and see if I could make it to a chosen spot before adding throttle. It was a great way to relieve boredom on long flights across Alaska. I got good at estimating how far my 170 could "glide." Little did I know how important that practice would be one day! Speaking of STOL -- this airplane had a Horton STOL kit on it that made it very gentle at low airspeeds. Fly safe!
Thanks, Mr,Buttery. The 170 is a very gentle and responsive glider. I practiced "engine out" procedures all the time when I was flying alone so the airplane wasn't hard to fly when the real emergency happened. Still, I'd rather not do it again. Fly safe!
@@mysticpass Almost all my 1500+ hours has been in gliders and I can tell you it's a lot easier to land a sailplane (even off-airport) than to deadstick a light aeroplane like that beautiful 170B. Nicely done! it looks like you also made sure you had reserve altitude in hand before the engine started acting up and were aware of the terrain around you and where there would be the best chance for a successful off-airport landing which in my opinion shows great airmanship.
Great question, Antiochia and Taurum. The engine had about 1100 hours since the last rebuild. It had been running great. We never did learn why the ring broke. Fly safe.
I've watched this video many times since it was uploaded and it's a great "watch". Those young ladies handled it just as well as the pilot. When I went down in 2005 with my 16 year old niece onboard, she too didn't say a word and we made a safe landing to a 700' road and like you, your passengers and the airplane, not even a scratch. I dream of one day making the trek from Maine to Alaska so I can get in a plane with one of you guys out there so I can see the turf and see up close how to fly the bush.
Thanks for the kind words, Matt. Wow, what happened with your airplane in 2005 that you went down? Sure glad everyone came through fine. Alaska is incredible "flying country." Your cross-continent trip would be so much fun! Fly safe my friend.
Camshaft failure. High time and highly abused 1979 Cessna 152 flight school rental, the same one I got my ticket in back in 1992 but it was still a fun airplane to fly and the cheapest to rent. It was all up to date on maintenance, etc and it was on its second engine. Engine began running rough and losing power and I tried to nurse to the airport that was 8 miles away but it conked out and at 1100' there was not much time to find a place to set down so my road of choice was close enough to make and it was free of traffic so I went for it without hesitation.Talk about adrenalin. I was prepared to do whatever I had to do to save my niece even if it meant killing ME and or destroying the airplane but with a little luck and emergency procedures bashed into my head, I got it down on 700' with 250' to spare and turned off in a guy's driveway. Still makes me chuckle when I think back to that day because the guy was watching March Madness and he said he got up to go to the fridge to get a beer and there was a plane in his driveway. He said the first thing he did was look at his beer as if to think he had too many of them and he was seeing things. When that engine stops, like I think you proved in your video, you're still a pilot and you have a job to do and to do it under those conditions requires you to stay calm and keep flying the airplane. Hopefully, that never happens again to either of us !
Good for you, Matt. I know exactly the feeling you had when your engine let you down and you knew you had to save your niece. I remember thinking I've only got one shot at this and I have to do it right. All the times I had rehearsed emergency scenarios (both in my mind in in the airplane) no one else was with me. It never occurred to me my daughter's life could be on the line, too. It was tough for my wife knowing we were missing in the mountains. She had long since come to terms with me dying in an airplane but not her daughter. Anyway, we're all alive. Thank God.
You picked a beautiful spot for a forced landing! ;) Great outcome, and those girls didn't seem too worried about waiting it out. Changing an engine on a gravel bar? Priceless! Great video, cool story!
Thanks for the comment, Rod. I'm grateful to have gotten my early flight instruction from an old "seat of your pants" WWII pilot, who emphasized keeping your head in emergency situations and practice, practice practice! We were fortunate to walk away. Fly safe!
albeit it was an emergency, and a potentially serious situation, the overall outcame was rather surprisingly pleasant to watch. It ended up being a nice day in the country with the family. Well done, thanks for the upload.
Thanks. For us in the airplane the danger was over (except for the grizzlies) once we were down. The girls had fun playing Julia Childs with the C-Ration survival food. For the moms waiting for calls from search and rescue it was a bit more intense! Safe flying to you.
The best thing about high wing Cessnas is that you can pretty much plunk them down in most any back yard without dying in the process. Most times even without ruining the airplane.
Yes, and I had a Horton STOL kit installed that let me touch down with full flaps at just over 40 MPH. Not much stopping distance required as you say. Interesting so many people are afraid to fly in single engine airplanes when the survival rate (over twins) in emergency landings/crashes is not even close. Fly safe!
I love that you continue to be engaged in this post, answering questions and keeping it current. You should be commended for your piloting skills and your youtube skills:)
![Noob To Max With DRAGON REWORK In Blox Fruits [FULL MOVIE]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/LnBMOinoOvA/mqdefault.jpg)
Thank you for the kind compliment. I had outstanding emergency situation training from an "old guy" who is no longer with us. For that reason, when the engine failed, there was no panic. I had my right seat passenger wake the girls, tighten their belts and give them pillows to hug in the brace position while I went through procedures I had practiced many, many times. Thankfully, we were able to make it to the gravel bar. Today those girls have six children of their own! Safe flying my friend.
Amazing !!
What a beautiful ending! Good job, sir!
@@No-turbo Thank you. Fly safe!
Great story! With a happy ending! Alaska is a special kind of flying that oftentimes makes aviation a challenge that’s not found in the lower 48. Fair winds!
@@privatepilot4064 Thanks for the comment. Alaska flying is getting easier with better weather reporting and more webcams but it's still a different level. Fly safe my friend.
Barry,
I was in the NOAA helicopter that picked you up. I remember being surprised your plane was in such good shape based on the size of the rocks and boulders nearby.
RCC had your ELT signal in a rougher location. We were glad to see you and the plane in one piece. 30 yrs ago WOW.
Steve Brock -- you are the one person I've always wondered about! I tried to contact you after the rescue but couldn't. Were you piloting or spotting? Either way THANK YOU! Were you doing something around Rainy Pass or Farewell Lake? Thank you for leaving your "real job" to search for -- and rescue -- us. Yes, so glad the engine quit near that nice gravel bar and not up in the area where you guys were looking. (The new ELT's are so much better!) Hats off man. Well done!
I mean..
You do realise that it's mandatory for you two meet up and do a video of the two of you reminiscing about that event now. Right?
Even if it's just over Skype
@@clivedoe9674 I like it! I'll try. Thanks for the comment, Clive, and fly safe.
An adventure no one would like to face , I am glad every is alright
Tks for sharing
Thanks for the comment. Fly safe my friend.
@@mysticpassthank you , best wishes 👍
Engine failure turns into a camping trip I love it.
The girls had a great time sampling the C ration survival rations and pretending they were serving gourmet food. Meanwhile, their moms weren't having such a great time wondering if they were alive! Safe flying to you.
Barry Arnold One other question was were you not able to use the radio to talk to anyone flying over, or did you not want to run down the battery?
kell490 I had a handheld aircraft radio, which I tried on several frequencies when four different airplanes flew over. No one answered, however. I was especially surprised an Air Force C130 was not, apparently, monitoring 121.5. I used the handheld to talk to the pilot who found us.
Barry Arnold Possibly the handheld just didn't have enough power to work from the ground.
Very possible. It was Sporty's Pilot Shop's cheapest model and the airplanes that overflew us were all quite high -- too high to see the SOS we had marked out with rocks and TP unless they had really been looking. My airplane radio, by the way, wasn't much better! Most guys flew with radios off anyway. Lots of uncontrolled airspace in Alaska.
To all the new pilots out there, Barry's descriptions and actions are exactly the right thing to do, and the right way to prepare for it. Fantastic work. Before I could solo, my flight instructor made me demonstrate a circle to land, and land, power to idle (simulated power out). I practiced it enough to know that if I had a place to land below me, I could do it, always. That's not a required part of the pilot test. The pilot test just requires you simulated it, and it's normally called off 500' or so above the ground. Well, that won't let you know you can do it for real. Barry used S turns and a slip to bring in his plane, and he did it well and safely because he practiced it, and he stayed calm during the emergency and pulled it off. Without practice, you're probably going to end up too high or too low on final, and you can't go around when it's the real deal. So, fellow pilots, learn from Barry and practice this! (Sorry to soapbox, and I know everybody probably already does this...)
Thanks much, Tom, for the endorsement/compliment. You and I must have had the same instructor! It's also critical to keep practicing engine-out procedures to stay sharp. Countless times when I was flying alone I would pull the throttle, choose my "landing spot" and then see if I could get there without touching the throttle. It was especially fun when flying skis in the winter because I could often go ahead and do a touch-n-go on the frozen lake I selected. When the "real event" happened I knew exactly how big a "circle" I could draw for potential landing sites. BTW, the first thing I did when the engine failed was shut off electrical (because smoke was entering the cabin and I was concerned about fire), second thing was shut off fuel at the firewall (again, to not feed fire). Things got a lot simpler when it became clear we were not on fire but the smoke was just from oil on hot surfaces. I'm with you, Tom -- student pilots should insist on learning and repeatedly practicing engine-out procedures with instructors! Fly safe my friend.
Wow, you all kept so calm it was like that was an expected part of the trip. Great Vid
Excellent pilot! Stayed calm and didn't even wake or panic the children!
Thanks to God for Grace!
Thanks, Fred. The girls did great. We actually did wake them on the way down to tighten their belts and have them hold pillows in front of their faces. They didn't say a word all the way down. We were all pretty happy to be on the ground, however.
The Grace of God for sure!
@@mysticpass The skill and demeanour of pilot, I'd say. Well done!
@fukthegoog I'll bet it has to be one of these guys, they loved screwing up anything with wings- I'm anteing up a coupla sacrificial virgins on Osiris though:
Resheph
Anath
Ashtoreth
El
Nergal
Nebo
Ninib
Melek
Ahijah
Isis *
Ptah
Anubis
Baal
Astarte
Hadad
Addu
Shalem
Dagon
Sharaab
Yau
Amon-Re
Osiris*
Sebek
Molech
@@mysticpass hats off to you, sir. You have my utmost respect. I would have been so proud of those children, who are probably in high school by now.
I enjoy how you chronicled the aftermath, wait, and eventual recovery. Thanks for posting!
+blancolirio Thank you! Safe flying to you!
You handled that as every pilot would like to, especially with such Precious Precious Cargo.
15 later years and this is still one of the best compilations of in-flight video with a fantastic outcome I’ve seen.
Hope you are all still doing well.
Thanks for the kind comment. The "little girls" in the back seat are now in their 40s with 6 children between them. Time flies. I'm on an Alaska Airlines flight now. Just about to pass over the spot where I lost the engine. Life is good. Fly safe my friend.
Hi Barry, I purchased N170JA just about a year ago where the previous owner had abandoned her in Illiamna. I worked on getting the aircraft safe for fight and flew it to Willow on a ferry permit. Once there I did a very thorough annual and now have "Junkyard Annie" tied down at my own strip north of Trapper Creek. She has been neglected for a long time and I am slowly putting the much needed TLC back into her. You can see me landing her at my strip for the first time last winter by putting in "Fort Crosby" in the You Tube search bar.
Thanks for the great video, I have watched many times. Randy Crosby
Very cool, Randy. I just got back to Oregon from 3 weeks in Galena, Alaska. I don't have an airplane here but every time I go back to the bush up there the bug hits bigtime! (I still have a cabin on the Yukon.) After spending nearly 1000 hours in N170JA and then watching it deteriorate on the side of a strip for years (I did keep track of it), it did my heart good to see you landing it again. As you well know airplanes are meant to fly. Keep me updated on your fix-up progress. She's a beautiful, gentle flyer. I hope you have as many great times with her -- and more -- than I did. Best wishes, Randy, and thanks again for the good news!
I can't tell if that's the numbers on the Cessna, the vid is so grainy, but that's a cool story, and great piloting, she held together in this emergency landing and was lucky to have this patch of beach to land on.
@@shable1436 In 1989 that was "good video!" Thanks for the comment. If you look up Randy Crosby, the current owner of N170JA (RUclips) you'll see more recent pictures of her. Fly safe, Shable.
@@mysticpass yeah 29 years ago, wow, I guess so. The other guys vid, yes I saw it circling the runway, good planes don't die, they just fade away. He is keeping her going and she still is worthy, I'm sure that gives you a nice warm feeling inside. Fly safe as well
These planes never die I guess!
Excellent job finding a suitable landing site within your glide path, and setting her down intact. There's no circling around for a second landing attempt, when your rubber band is broke. You saved four lives that day. Thanks for sharing the video.
Humble thanks for the comment, Barny. Love the "rubber band is broke" imagery! You must have a great sense of humor. Fly safe.
Any emergency landing you can walk away from is a good landing.
Mightiflier any landing*
That's true, provided we agree that when you're covered in burning fuel, you run every which way you go.
Wrong, that was a great emergency landing. The plane can be reused.
@@cbr7170 Not true man, not true at all haha
Any emergency landing where you can fly the plane again is an EXCELLENT landing!
Outstanding flying skills. Lives were saved that day because of you and being prepared for such an incident…hand salute!
Thank you @usmc6157. As you well know training and lots of practice makes all the difference in an emergency. I constantly practiced engine out procedures when I was flying alone so I knew very well how the airplane would perform and how far I could glide from any altitude. At the same time, we were fortunate to have a "good spot" within reach. Thanks for your service to our country, and fly safe my friend.
Great dead stick landing. Staying calm and flying the airplane is great airmanship.
My instructor used to pull the throttle and coach me about how to fly the plane no matter what. Then, on a night cross country, the number one cylinder swallowed the intake valve, and we both automatically assumed roles like we’d done it dozens of times. He was on the radios while I trimmed for best rate of glide. We both tried to restart with no joy, but I kept that airspeed locked and like you said, altitude is your friend. We found a municipal airport, turned on the VASI and runway lights and made it to the runway.
He used to tell me, “Even if your on fire, fly, fly, fly. Keep your mind on flying. Airspeed and focus on landing sites. And above all, fly the airplane”.
Glad y’all made it safe. Thanks for the great video.
That's great, Harry. Sounds like we had the same stick n' rudder instructor sitting beside us. Nothing like practice, practice, practice so when the real thing comes, you just do it. Glad you walked away. Hope that's your last incident. Fly safe.
I've been coming back to this video over the years, it's truly one of the most exciting (and challenging) aspects of aviation. But I'm finally now a student pilot myself, and watching experiences like yours is definitely a great learning tool. I hope I'm never in such a predicament, but if I ever am, I hope to stay as level-headed as you were! 🙂
Congratulations on your student pilot training. I hope you are fortunate enough to have a great "basics" instructor like I had years ago. I hope you never have an in-flight emergency either, but if you do, solid training and practice, practice, practice will keep you calm. If you're interested, I told the whole story and showed much more video of the engine failure when I spoke at a church Sportsman's Banquet earlier this year. ruclips.net/video/Gd5p5BAJdfw/видео.html Congratulations again on your flight lessons. Enjoy yourself and fly safe!
@@mysticpass Thanks for your kind words of encouragement, I definitely plan on getting as much quality training time as possible before I even consider doing my first solo! I'll keep you posted on how things go :)
Edit: I just watched the video you linked above with the talk you and your wife gave, it brought a tear to my eye. Keep up the good work, and I never stop being amazed by the aviation community.
nice landing ! you saved your family!
you're a hero man!!
優しい言葉をありがとう。 私の家族が救われたことに感謝します。 飛行機に乗っているときは安全を確保してください。
Engine quits in the Alaskan bush, you set it down like such a boss that the kids think of it as a rest-stop rather than an emergency. Then swap the engine on-site using logs as a hoist. Sir you are from a time and place where people are made of tougher stuff that's sadly lacking in this world.
Very kind of you if not somewhat overstated, Thomas. I will allow lots of kudos to my mechanic friend for his ingenuity. Mine was just one of dozens of airplanes he patched up in the bush and ferried home for repairs. Quite a guy, and he would never take a dime from me for it. THAT kind are rare! Thanks for taking the time to comment, Thomas. Fly safe!
Fascinating. It's great how everyone, including the children, stayed calm. There's a good short story there!
Thanks for the comment. Yes, the girls were fantastic. Neither said a peep all the way to the ground. There were some delighted squeals once we got out of the airplane however! Safe flying to you.
An entire story...a happy ending. This is an awesome little video. You made it. Well done. Everyone walked away to live another day and those lovely children get to grow up. You did a great job. BRAVO!
Thank you Moogy. The lovely little girls are both in their 30's now -- with beautiful little children of their own! Thanks so much for the comment. Fly safe!
Hi Barry - I just wanted to thank you for posting the video. I practised my first engine failure today and even knowing my instructor was going to call "Climb away" at some point it was still a stressful time. Huge respect to you and your piloting skills
hermand Good for your instructor for having you practice engine out procedures. Don't stop practicing after you get your license. I practiced constantly (when I was flying alone). You need to be able to accurately "feel" that circle of possible landing spots based on how high you are and the winds. Practice enough and the real thing isn't much different -- except there's no "climb away." Good luck to you and fly safe.
Great example of being prepared. Very well done!
Thanks for the comment. Fly safe!
The girls are over 40 now but forever 10 in the video, priceless recording.
Great comment, gehlen52. You are so right. Every time I look at my four grandchildren (children of my daughter in the back seat) I can't help but think what "could have been." I'm a blessed man. Safe flying to you.
Now that was scary. A cool head and excellent skills saved the day. Well done, sir!
Thanks for the comment, Steve. You are right. One engine failure is enough for a lifetime! Fly safe my friend.
Happened 25 days before my date of birth. As a FI, with I am guessing very little experience on yourself, that was perfectly executed. I guess you have had 23 years of safe flying since then, and I wish you many more years of safe flying! Much respect sir for the calm and professional behaviour with such precious cargo on board.
Awwwwww,what a great video.
Soooo happy that all worked out with no injuries.
Just a Beautiful family with a Beautiful rescue.
I was 20 when this was recorded.
Wow, I hope you and your family are great and your children grew up happy and healthy.
God bless(ed) y'all.
Thank u so much for posting.
Lots of love.
Atlanta Ga. 2.14.2020
Thanks for the nice comment, Corey. Yes, the "girls" are now 41 -- with 8 kids of their own between them! Fly safe.
Thank goodness all were safe. Thanks to your skills it turned into one helluva story for all!
Thanks for the comment, The Schiznit. We were most fortunate! Fly safe.
I'm very glad everything worked out for you guys and the small ones
masso172 Thanks. Me too! Fly safe.
Thank you for posting! I assume you had to land somewhere in the proximity of the Kichatna Mountains Southwest of Denali? I was impressed by the way you executed the “S” flight pattern to lose altitude quickly yet managed your limited energy to put it down right where you wanted to. Glad you all walked away safe, and had a great friend who swapped out the engine. Again, priceless video! Thank you.
Yes, you are right. Those mountains are some of the most spectacular in the Alaska Range. I enjoyed going through there in good weather just to take in the geology. Thanks for the kind comments. Fly safe.
What I find amazing about this entire video is that everyone was safe and walking around nice and calm, knowing that this could have turned out a whole lot worst. Great job!
Thanks for the comment Orlando. If the engine failure had happened even a couple minutes later we would have been in a narrow rock gorge where there was no place to land. We were "fortunate" it happened where it did. Fly safe.
@@mysticpass As a private pilot I pray I don't have to deal with this, but if I have to I have my training and this video to lean on, Luck might have played a role, But "luck is only where opportunity meets preparation". Had you not been prepared, no amount of luck could help you guys, calm collective and well executed . This is quite instructive for me. Thank you!
@@orlandospencer Very kind of you, Orlando. The best thing I did was I constantly practice engine-out procedures when I was flying alone. Just like in pilot training, I'd pull the throttle back to idle and choose my "landing spot." I got to know the airplane as a "glider" really well so I could fairly consistently set up an approach and make my selected spot. When the engine failed it was just like I had practiced. The big difference, of course, was I knew I had only one shot and three lives beside my own were on the line. When the engine first failed smoke came into the cabin. I immediately shut off electrical and the fuel at the firewall. My go-to spot if we caught fire was directly below us. It was a tiny, rough area that would have destroyed the airplane and probably would have killed us all but if you're on fire you have to get down. When I realized we weren't on fire, I picked a spot about half a mile away. That spot would have wrecked the airplane but I figured some of us might live. We had a nice tailwind so when I got to that spot I still had 1500 feet of altitude. That's when I picked the nice gravel bar about 3/4 of a mile farther away. You'll notice that I did an S turn on final and slipped it in to get stopped before the ravine that is about 50 feet in front of the airplane. I hope you never do an actual emergency but I have a feeling with your kind of careful preparation you'll do just fine.
@@mysticpass Thank you much for the blow-by-blow operation of how you trained and subsequently handled this emergency. Thank you so very much. I am adding all you have said here to me flying knowledge.
@@mysticpass I always wonder in those kinds of situations how one knows how to time that very last turn before the landing. What made you decide that you had to make another turn at 2:26 instead of taking your chance?
To this day, I think this is one of the best cockpit videos of a catastrophic engine failure on youtube. You did exactly what needed to be done to save yourself and everyone onboard. Flying in the mountainous terrain has got to be daunting to begin with. You stayed calm, new the aircraft to a T and handled the situation greatly. I am sure you've got so many comments on this that you don't even check your account anymore. But hats off to you.
The sweet sound of a UH1..
+zzodr You got that right. My only ride on one. Fly safe.
The kid matched the plane @0:39 😂
Hahaha. That's awesome. 1.7 million views and you're the first to notice! Well done my friend. Fly safe.
Despite the 1989 potato video quality, pretty intense experience! Glad everyone was alright.
Thanks @RavenMobile. Fly safe.
I know this was a long time ago but it pays to have footage like this. Aviators like you show us how to keep a situation under control and one thing at a time. Great video and thanks for sharing!!!
Thanks charlieb303. The video is dated for sure (ha! my passenger was using a state of the art camera at the time). I have always been amazed at how the girls handled everything. Neither said a peep all the way down. They squealed after they climbed out on the ground, however! Fly safe.
Thanks charlieb303. Very kind of you. Fly safe my friend.
Alaska resident here, since 1975 and I have seen a lot of situations like this one turn out much different. You did a great job getting that plane down safely. Alaska is a fantastic place, incredibly beautiful but flying in the "bush" has a high degree of risk and takes many lives each year.
Nice job, finding a good landing spot in mountainous terrain is no easy task.
Thanks, Alan. We were really fortunate the engine failure happened when it did. A couple minutes later we would have been inside Mystic Pass, where there is just a rock gorge all the way to the floor. Fly safe!
@@mysticpass yes sir, never done any flying in Alaska, I've always wanted to but just never have had the opportunity, flew with a friend in British Columbia few yrs back, i live in North Carolina, mostly east coast flying, but once again, thank god you and your family made it out safe, and again great job sir stay safe. 👍
Very glad to see the landing was a good one, on fairly flat ground, and everyone got out, ok. Thanks for sharing this.
Thanks for the comment, ThomasGrillo. Yes, you are so right. If the engine failure had happened a few minutes later, we would have been in a narrow rock gorge (read no survivors). Fly safe.
I love happy endings. Glad you put her down gently.
Thanks Gary. We were fortunate to have a nice gravel bar within reach. A couple minutes later we would have been in a rock gorge - no survivors. Fly safe.
Thank you, sir. Just tonight I was with my daughter & her husband's four wonderful children. Hard to imagine what "could have been" if we had been farther into the pass in 1989. Safe flying to you.
Sir that was a textbook landing, you did everything right! Great job with the S turns to get you to the touchdown point you wanted. Thanks for sharing this video, it may help others that find themselves in this situation. So glad that no one was hurt.
Did something similar in a 140 but had no place other than trees, mountains and a very narrow logging road.
That mechanic must have been a heck of a guy to do that swap out there.
Thanks for the comment. Yes, he was an amazing guy. Mine was just one of dozens of bent airplanes he rescued from the bush. Not only that but he was a great friend. I miss him. Fly safe.
RIP to your buddy, who was obviously a badass, changing an engine in the field like that.
He was the best. Mine was one of several dozen he rescued from the bush. Fly safe Wanda.
I remember when my dad and another friend/coworker had to drive in a rental cube truck with a turboprop in the back and all the tools they could think of to upstate New York from Milwaukee to change an engine on a Beechcraft 100. They did it in the middle of winter, at an abandoned airport in an empty hanger. They had to go out and buy a torpedo heater cause it was like 10 below zero. My hats off to any aircraft mechanic that can do that kind of work in any conditions like that.
@@pontiacdriver999 We're so soft nowadays, aren't we? Where are my handwarmers?
@@pontiacdriver999 I always think of mechanics working on the eastern front in ww2. I cannot imagine...
Good airmanship. Did you talk with anyone before putting down?
My worst civilian landing began when a large crow flew through the propeller arc of a Mooney I was flying. The entire windscreen was covered with blood, bone, guts and feathers. The three bladed prop took all of it in stride, fortunately. I called the tower at my home base and told them what had had happened. They asked me if I wanted to declare an emergency and I told not them not at that time but I would let them know. I flew on instruments for about 20 minutes until I got close enough to contact approach, I reiterated what had happened and again they asked me if I wanted to declare an emergency, I declined but just asked for vectors to a straight in. I lined up using the ILS and when I got close enough to the field I slipped the aircraft in so I was actually looking through the side windscreen. Man did I catch some shit when I taxied into GA that day!
+Steve Hammond Yikes. Crow yuk on the windshield doesn't sound good. Good for you for getting it down. I had to land on lakes (skis) a few times that way when my windshield iced up -- but lakes offer a lot more margin for error! When the engine quit I was 120 miles from the nearest flight service station and below the peaks of the Alaska range so I didn't bother with the radio. My priority was shutting off electrical so we didn't catch fire. I had a poor old Escort 110 radio (replaced afterward) at the time. While we were on the ground I tried "mayday" calls using a handheld radio when four airplanes flew high over us. Each time I called on standard FSS frequencies, along with 121.5 (where my ELT was blasting) but no one responded. I was especially surprised a C-130 military airplane didn't hear our distress calls. Alaska is so vast that most VFR pilots don't even monitor radios when they're out of range of a FSS. I was guilty of that, too.
+Barry Arnold You're a very lucky man.
+Steve Hammond--You are one of the few that practice Forward Slips in USA lately..Many USA pilots could have wrecked the Mooney due they cant Forward Slip well..They cant do Forward Slips well and could have landed on a ditch next to the big runway..Too many Clods with Pilot Licenses is the root of USA GA LOC problem..
+MJDarbyUSA You are right. I figure every day I have to live after that Mystic Pass landing is an "extra day" -- and I'm very grateful. Fly safe.
Man, you turned an absolute dire emergency situation to fun and safe adventure lesson for your kids. For this I salute you!
Not only have you trained yourself for a situation like this, you had the wisdom and discipline to train your family/passengers also. Kudos!
Hardly know anything unplanned occurred at all. Great nerves, great kids!
Thanks @maxasaurus3008. I practiced engine-out proceedures countless times when I was flying alone, so I knew well what the airplane would do gliding. No surprises. The only difference, as you say, was the others on board. The girls were awesome! Not a peep all the way to the ground. Both girls married and now have 7 great kids between them.
And there ya go.... the computer didn’t do it, the phone didn’t do it, but experience did!
Plus some
Talent on loan from God!!!
Great job!
Thanks, Markie. As the bush pilot friend who flew in a replacement engine said, "I'd say you made a nice emergency landing but you are not that good. You had Help! I have no doubt he was right!" Fly safe.
Amazing calmness, interesting video, thank you, glad it turned out okay.
Thanks for the comment Muso. We were very fortunate! Fly safe.
@@mysticpassHi, thanks for the kind words,ld say good decision making too on your part, my friend, that counts for a lot, may all of your landings be happy ones. BTW how did you get the C170 out of there in the end?
@@musoseven8218 Yes, we changed engines in the wilderness and flew the airplane out about a week later.
Hi Barry, great work! I love C170s and C180s.
An aero-engine change in the wilds? In the UK some would struggle to do that in a heated hanger Lol! Well done my friend, well done!
I watched a documentary with a downed PC12 and it got airlifted off of the ice, if I recall, by a Kaman K-Max? At $7million they were keen to get it back before the weather got to it.
Love your humor! I'm probably as surprised as anyone that a relatively low time pilot (900 hours at the time) could land a dead engine airplane and walk away. Very thankful every time I look at one of my delightful grandchildren! Best wishes to you and safe flying.
Thanks, John. I was fortunate to have some very good instruction early-on. One old instructor in particular drilled into me the importance of constantly thinking through, and practicing, emergency scenarios during flight.When the engine quit I thought, "Okay, this is the real thing. I have only one chance to do it right." It wasn't heroic in any way, just doing what I'd practiced many, many times. Safe flying to you!
Now that’s an adventure. Well done.
Thanks, DZL. I couldn't have had better passengers for the "adventure!" Fly safe.
I found myself thinking about this incident again today... Wow! What a dead-stick pilot you are! It’s tempting to believe that lots of factors “lined up” for you but I think on balance you yourself lined up those you were presented with as best you could. The Sully joke was that he had wanted all his career to say “we’re going in the Hudson”. I trust you didn’t hope to be able one day to use your engine-out practice!
Thanks, Hal, for the very thoughtful comment. I am grateful for my old WWII era "stick n' rudder" instructor. No heads up displays (no radios) in his old Taylorcraft and Aeronca. Just get to know your airplane. We were fortunate in so many ways. If the failure had happened even a couple minutes later we would have been in a steep rock gorge. No survivors there. As my A&P friend who swapped engines on the gravel bar said, "Barry, you're not this good a pilot. You had Help." I agree. Fly safe my friend.
It's a very well-performed dead-stick landing. It requires nerves of steel and not everybody can do it. It's especially difficult in tail-draggers
Adit Morey Thank you, Mr. Morey. I had a great old-time stick 'n rudder instructor and I learned in old T-crafts and Aeronicas. Nothing like getting the fundamentals down! Safe flying to you.
Barry Arnold that's true Mr Arnold. In flying airplanes , fundamentals are essential.
I fly a dhc-2 , but only in FlightGear flight simulator. I do know some tips in flying planes, but I can't exactly and properly implement them due to physical constraints as a result of a health condition. I try as much as I can to land it properly , but find a Cessna much easier.
+Barry Arnold--too bad they are so many Mild Maneuvering CFI's now in USA..They have created a crop of Mild Maneuvering Pilots doing LOC all over houses, cars, trees, and over flat fields where most trained before the 1980's could have land easily..
Yes, I considered myself fortunate to have a outstanding 80-year-old stick 'n rudder instructor who believed that things like spin recovery and emergency procedures were essential elements of flight training.
Although I never actually had to use short landing techniques or emergency land, my instructor was a total nut on short landings. Every landing during his instruction had to be the shortest possible. I really became quite irritated with it. I like long, smooth finals, easy, soft landings. He was always insisting, even with mile long runways, land as short as you can. Practice it. Because one day, you might really need it. It's funny how such flamboyant instructors influence your flying style. I quit my silly long approaches and soon caught a little of his "Air Craft Carrier Deck Fever"- within reason- I never liked too much low and slow. Seemed a good way to drill real estate. But, I can see here how it actually could pay off some day. I retired from flying in 1998.
It's because of faithful people like you who are willing to do the "boring stuff" at CAP that guys like me get rescued, so thank you! Safe flying to you.
Thank you. That was my first (and only) rotary wing ride. Seeing it settle next to my airplane was a mighty pretty sight. Safe flying my friend.
I first saw this video when it was posted 15 years ago and I STILL find myself watching this today. I hope everybody is doing well. I'm not sure if I ever asked in previous comments over the years but how did you get your airplane out of there, was it fixed and does she still fly today? Greetings from Maine!
Thanks for the comment, Matt. I just flew over "the spot" only it was in an Alaska Airlines 737! No engine failure for them. Fly safe.
Cool cat ...Ice...
You got you and yer girls down safe, and you all got outta there in one piece. My hats off to you sir.
Thank you, Tom. Merry Christmas! Fly safe.
@@mysticpass I'm just an avid aviation buff, I can't fly yet. My four life goals so far have been become a Marine, become a cop, earn my pilot's license, and move to Alaska. So far I got two down, hopefully in about 18 months or so I can start my lessons, then it'll be off to Alaska.
In any case, merry christmas to you as well!
@@nonyabeeznuss304 Your goals all sound great, Tom. When you get pilot training, find an old "stick 'n rudder" instructor who will take you up in a tail dragger and teach you spins and engine-out procedures until you dream of them. There's a lot of fantastic tail-dragger (and ski) flying in Alaska's back country. Thanks for serving our country! Fly safe!
@@mysticpass The local instructor down here is a crop duster during farming season who offers lessons in his old J-3 cub in the off season. I see him in his Pawnee doing acrobatics that would make a WW2 fighter pilot envious when he's out dusting, I reckon if he can fly that good he can probably teach a thing or two about stalls and deadstick landings.
@@nonyabeeznuss304 Perfect! Excellent choice! Even if you never use the emergency situation skills you learn, just knowing you have them in your pocket will make flying that much more fun.
Amazing! And to see the kids just makin the best of it! Nice job! 👍👍
Thank for the comment free roamer. The girls were fantastic. Once we were on the ground it turned into a camping adventure for them. Safe flying to you.
I've watched this video many times and I am very glad this had a happy ending. I went down in a 152 10 years ago and like you, walked away and didn't even scratch the airplane. I would LOVE to experience flying in Alaska. Here in Maine, the mountains are merely hills compared to AK. A VERY nice job you did!
Thanks Matthew. You and I are in a small club - not one anyone asks to be in, that's for sure. I'm glad you found a suitable place to put down. You probably didn't have the added benefit of a passenger videoing the whole thing either! I'm living in Oregon now but heading up to my Alaska cabin for three weeks soon. It is incredible country. Maine isn't bad either though -- particularly in the fall! Safe flying my friend.
Thank you. It only takes one engine failure to make you very grateful for all the simulated engine-out exercises! Safe flying to you.
Did anyone else notice the lack of screaming 10 year old kids?!? I realize the footage has been edited but even so, all occupants were cool as a cucumber. Great S.A and landing. Thanks for the upload. 🙏
Thanks for the comment, Kentucky Bluegrass. We woke the girls to tighten their seat belts and have them hold pillows in front of their faces. Neither of them said a peep all the way to the ground. Fly safe.
@@mysticpass That in itself is amazing. In '89 I would've been 12y/o myself. I can tell you with absolute certainty that I would've belted out a scream or two😂 Glad you guys were able to make a safe landing and fly another day.
God Bless 🙏
Another big find for the Civil Air Patrol. That was some awesome piloting tho, so easy to loose your head and stall/spin.
GVad The Pilot Couldn't agree more on the value of the CAP. The CAP pilot who found us was Ken Eggleston, of Bethel, AK. I wrote him a thank you note and his wife framed it -- of all the searches he'd done, I was the only one to thank him. Kind of sad! Fly safe.
GVad The Pilot Was in CAP as a cadet for 5 years, really is a great organization!
+Barry Arnold I am so happy your video had a happy ending that had to be very stressful with your two young daughters on board nice flying or more of a nice landing your landing gear mist be very sturdy were you just very lucky you had a decent landing place or was it more like the weather that helped you land like that I'm not a pilot but I've had a few lessons and I realize that minimal power is needed to land that wouldn't have been the case if the wind shear was up or wouldn't it have mattered?I'm really happy all your family were rescued so soon God bless :-)
+bigbadlove A 15 knot tailwind definitely helped us get to our landing spot -- and it reduced our ground speed for landing.
+bigbadlove Very pleased for you. Jjust goes to show when we fly we should be prepared for eventualities ELT and flares and a couple of blankets as a minimum
Awesome video, shows what happens when you obey the 6 Ps. Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance. Loved the way it turned into an impromptu camping trip with the girls running around enjoying themselves.
All I know is I'm a BIG fan of CAP. I appreciate the countless hours spent to make flying safer and to assure resources are readily available when search and rescue is necessary, as it was for me.
Great work Barry. Your judgement was perfect on the forced landing. Weird about the ELB not being accurate on your position but at least you were carrying one unlike so many dummies that are flying around without one.
Thanks, Peter. I learned that the old ELT's fairly frequently miscalculated position by several miles. There just weren't enough satellites but it was much better than nothing. The FAA told me that the old system was a joint Russian-American venture and it was a Russian satellite that first picked up our signal. When the chopper came in to pick us up the pilot said he was relieved. Where they were searching 5 miles away in a high glaciered area they expected to find wreckage and bodies. Fly safe.
@@mysticpass Cheers Barry. I guess the latest ELT's and the number of Satellites up there now would give the location down to within 10 metres.
Lived in central AK for four years. Bush piloting in mountainous terrain is unforgiving. I’m just glad I didn’t have to read that those two little girls were casualties. 🙏🙏🙏
Thanks, Nick. You are right. We were fortunate to have a great place to put down. My "little girl" is now 41 years old with four kids of her own! Fly safe my friend.
Way to keep those kiddos safe, Dad.
Thank you, Jordan. Fly safe!
Wow, talk about everything going right in a bad situation - handy gravel bar, clearly good dead stick landing, the right equipment for a short/soft - and a tent and sleeping bags. You couldn't ask for a better resolution. Excellent work.
Hats off to the Civil Air Patrol. Well done on a great landing. Seeing everyone around the campfire and laying around is a testament to not panicking. Well done.
DAD: Plane is broken, we're going in for a rough landing. KIDS: Hey, let's go camping!
You're not far off! The girls had a great time pretending they were Julia Child as they heated MRE survival rations over the fire. Great sports! Fly safe.
This video is a perfect example of why to do proper maintence and pre-flight AND post-flight inspections of your aircraft when your a pilot. Glad everything worked out.
Right on. Thanks for the comment. Fly safe.
You’re
Yeah, I figured it was a while ago when you mentioned the ELT being five mi off. Today it would be within a few yards! Well done..
Wow, what a story to tell your grand kids! Great landing, and kudos to the A&P who came out there and swapped an engine right there!!
Thanks Andrew. Yes, the grand kids have all seen the video and heard the story -- probably more times than they want! Ken Hughes, Sr, the A&P was quite a pilot/mentor -- and mechanic. I miss talking to him (died a couple years ago). Fly safe my friend.
Outstanding, Barry... I am glad you had such a great instructor.
Good outcome, good video
Thanks Wayne. Fly safe!
Well done...congratulation...ti save you and the family...good luck for next flights...
Thank you for the comment. Fly safe my friend.
WOW! Great landing! First engine failure? Looks like you done this before (you made it look easy).How did you recover the plane? Thanks for the video
Thanks Bobby. I was flying a lot, knew the airplane well, and had practiced engine out procedures countless times. Still, trust me, my heart was beating hard! A friend, who is a pilot and mechanic flew in another engine and swapped engines right there on the gravel bar. Fly safe!
It's nice to learn from someone's success for a change. Thanks for posting this great story. You guys made it look like pulling over to change a tire. Great job.
@@bendeleted9155 It's Alaska. That was pulling over to change a tire.
Thanks, Jefferson. You're right on the surprises. I guess that must be part of what attracts us to it. Yes, I've told the story a few times. The most powerful thing to me is looking at the four grandchildren from my daughter and her husband and realizing that if the1989 engine failure would have happened even a couple minutes later, none of us would be alive. We would have been in the steep rock gorge to the right. I'm grateful to be alive. Safe flying to you.
Luck comes to those who are prepared. Stick and rudder - you can't be wrong with this one!
Wow. It made it 1,000 times more suspenseful and nerve racking when you panned down and showed your two children sleeping. This one scared the heck out of me and I'm sure it rattled you also. Glad y'all made it out with out a scratch. Great flying buddy. God Bless
+skyym3 It was even more verve racking to my wife, who had long since come to terms with the fact that I could get hurt or die in Alaska's wilderness. Until we were overdue on our flight plan she had never even thought about possibly losing both her daughter and her husband.. All the way down I kept telling myself I had only one chance to do it right. Speaking of "God bless," I would not be surprised if I had some Help from above. Thanks for your comment. Fly safe.
A very good pilot . This video is 5 years old. I hope you have updated your electronics.
Thanks for the comment John. The video is 5 years old and the event took place nearly 32 years ago! Yes, the airplane got a new ELT and Nav/Com after the emergency landing! Fly safe.
Hi Barry, if possible can you describe the procedure of how you landed after the engine failed, like the speed you maintained, flap setting, how you chose the landing field, anything you feel is important.
Thanks in advance
My first concern was fire because when the engine overheated, smoke was coming into the cabin. I shut off the electrical master switch and the engine fuel supply while I looked for a spot to put down if we caught fire. The spot I chose was directly below us. It was a tiny island in the river and I'm not sure any of us would have survived putting down there but if you're on fire you have to get out of the air. After the engine quit and it was clear we were not on fire I trimmed the airplane to glide at 60 MPH. It was like I could hear my old flight instructor saying, "Fly the airplane first!!" One thing that helped was I constantly practiced engine-out procedures when I was flying alone. From altitude, I'd pull the throttle to idle, pick out a potential landing spot and then see if I could get there without touching the throttle (until just above the trees). When the engine quit my first thought was "this is the real thing. I've got only one shot." I looked for a better spot to land since we weren't on fire. About a half mile away was a bigger stretch of beach so I headed there. We might have survived if we had landed there but that spot would have destroyed the airplane. When I got there I still had 1200 feet of altitude. I looked south and saw the nice big bar where we ended up landing. I thought if we could get there, not only would we all survive but I might even be able to save the airplane. I set up an approach for that third landing spot. When I made the final turn to the gravel bar we were actually still too high (we had a nice tailwind). That's why in the video you see me doing a big "S-turn" on final approach. I wanted to lose altitude but I didn't want to pull on flaps until I knew I could make the landing spot. On short final I pulled on full flaps and put the airplane in a "slip" (opposite aileron and rudder controls) to lose altitude quickly. I wanted to land as slowly as possible and stop very fast because about 400 feet down the gravel bar I could see a ditch I had not seen earlier. If we hit that ditch we would have nosed over. You can see the ditch on the video. We stopped about 100 feet short of it. The airplane had a HORTON STOL (short take off and landing) kit installed. That not only made it a very gentle glider but it let us touch down at just 40-45 MPH instead of 55 or 60 MPH. I always carried lots of survival gear, including sleeping bags, an ax, a bear gun, and plenty of C-ration food. In the winter I also carried snowshoes. I hope these details help -- and I hope you never have to choose an emergency landing spot! Fly safe Aditya Negi!
cool to see these "home videos"
Thanks for the comment, Lunch. Fly safe.
The video description brings a smile to my face about how the engine was flown in and swapped out in the wilderness then plane got to fly out!
Mechanic's name was Kenny Hughes. A really good man -- RIP. Fly safe Hugocraft. Thanks for the comment.
A great example of a clear head under pressure. I'm sure you leveraged all of your STOL practice! I'm glad everyone is OK and it was a happy ending. Very inspirational. Thank you for posting.
+Wayne Lacey Thank you, Wayne. You are absolutely right on practice. I practiced engine-out procedures a lot when I was flying alone. I'd pull the throttle and see if I could make it to a chosen spot before adding throttle. It was a great way to relieve boredom on long flights across Alaska. I got good at estimating how far my 170 could "glide." Little did I know how important that practice would be one day! Speaking of STOL -- this airplane had a Horton STOL kit on it that made it very gentle at low airspeeds. Fly safe!
Hey man
Great skills and experience !
Thank you for the comment, Kishan. Fly safe!
@@mysticpass Take care , sir !
SEE an airplane without an engine is a glider...well done pilot..didn't panic and remembered his training.
Thanks, Mr,Buttery. The 170 is a very gentle and responsive glider. I practiced "engine out" procedures all the time when I was flying alone so the airplane wasn't hard to fly when the real emergency happened. Still, I'd rather not do it again. Fly safe!
@@mysticpass Almost all my 1500+ hours has been in gliders and I can tell you it's a lot easier to land a sailplane (even off-airport) than to deadstick a light aeroplane like that beautiful 170B. Nicely done! it looks like you also made sure you had reserve altitude in hand before the engine started acting up and were aware of the terrain around you and where there would be the best chance for a successful off-airport landing which in my opinion shows great airmanship.
Was it discovered why or how the piston ring failed? Had the engine been rebuilt?
Great question, Antiochia and Taurum. The engine had about 1100 hours since the last rebuild. It had been running great. We never did learn why the ring broke. Fly safe.
I've watched this video many times since it was uploaded and it's a great "watch". Those young ladies handled it just as well as the pilot. When I went down in 2005 with my 16 year old niece onboard, she too didn't say a word and we made a safe landing to a 700' road and like you, your passengers and the airplane, not even a scratch. I dream of one day making the trek from Maine to Alaska so I can get in a plane with one of you guys out there so I can see the turf and see up close how to fly the bush.
Thanks for the kind words, Matt. Wow, what happened with your airplane in 2005 that you went down? Sure glad everyone came through fine. Alaska is incredible "flying country." Your cross-continent trip would be so much fun! Fly safe my friend.
Camshaft failure. High time and highly abused 1979 Cessna 152 flight school rental, the same one I got my ticket in back in 1992 but it was still a fun airplane to fly and the cheapest to rent. It was all up to date on maintenance, etc and it was on its second engine. Engine began running rough and losing power and I tried to nurse to the airport that was 8 miles away but it conked out and at 1100' there was not much time to find a place to set down so my road of choice was close enough to make and it was free of traffic so I went for it without hesitation.Talk about adrenalin. I was prepared to do whatever I had to do to save my niece even if it meant killing ME and or destroying the airplane but with a little luck and emergency procedures bashed into my head, I got it down on 700' with 250' to spare and turned off in a guy's driveway. Still makes me chuckle when I think back to that day because the guy was watching March Madness and he said he got up to go to the fridge to get a beer and there was a plane in his driveway. He said the first thing he did was look at his beer as if to think he had too many of them and he was seeing things. When that engine stops, like I think you proved in your video, you're still a pilot and you have a job to do and to do it under those conditions requires you to stay calm and keep flying the airplane. Hopefully, that never happens again to either of us !
Good for you, Matt. I know exactly the feeling you had when your engine let you down and you knew you had to save your niece. I remember thinking I've only got one shot at this and I have to do it right. All the times I had rehearsed emergency scenarios (both in my mind in in the airplane) no one else was with me. It never occurred to me my daughter's life could be on the line, too. It was tough for my wife knowing we were missing in the mountains. She had long since come to terms with me dying in an airplane but not her daughter. Anyway, we're all alive. Thank God.
Amen to that, sir !
You picked a beautiful spot for a forced landing! ;) Great outcome, and those girls didn't seem too worried about waiting it out. Changing an engine on a gravel bar? Priceless! Great video, cool story!
Thanks, CW Guy. Yes, it was quite the scenic spot to go down. The girls did great (I didn't show them the fresh grizzly tracks). Fly safe.
Who do you think you are Bob Hoover??? Well done
Hahaha. Great comment! Fly safe my friend.
Clearly an example of an excellent pilot...........
Thanks for the comment, Rod. I'm grateful to have gotten my early flight instruction from an old "seat of your pants" WWII pilot, who emphasized keeping your head in emergency situations and practice, practice practice! We were fortunate to walk away. Fly safe!
Great job Dad , We got home safe ❤❤❤
Thanks, Rich. An incident like that certainly puts everything in perspective. Fly safe!
Thanks, Roger. We were very fortunate. I have had a lot of Alaska pilot friends who weren't so fortunate. Safe flying to you.
albeit it was an emergency, and a potentially serious situation, the overall outcame was rather surprisingly pleasant to watch. It ended up being a nice day in the country with the family. Well done, thanks for the upload.
Thanks. For us in the airplane the danger was over (except for the grizzlies) once we were down. The girls had fun playing Julia Childs with the C-Ration survival food. For the moms waiting for calls from search and rescue it was a bit more intense! Safe flying to you.
Good jobs, pilot. God bless You!
We salute You from Brazil.
I'm a pilot, too. Private pilot
Thanks for the comment from Brazil. Thanks for your blessing. God was very gracious to us Aug 4, 1989. Fly safe my friend!
@@mysticpass Thanks, man!
@@mysticpass Thanks, man!
The best thing about high wing Cessnas is that you can pretty much plunk them down in most any back yard without dying in the process. Most times even without ruining the airplane.
Yes, and I had a Horton STOL kit installed that let me touch down with full flaps at just over 40 MPH. Not much stopping distance required as you say. Interesting so many people are afraid to fly in single engine airplanes when the survival rate (over twins) in emergency landings/crashes is not even close. Fly safe!
Welcome to the Glider Rating by fire club!
I love that you continue to be engaged in this post, answering questions and keeping it current. You should be commended for your piloting skills and your youtube skills:)
Thank you. I'm not sure about the hero part but I was glad to be on the ground with no one hurt. Safe flying, Frank.