Damned if you do:
An early fall evening, after tying down the airplane I sat down at the picnic table for a little hangar flying with a couple other pilots. Beautiful, cool, calm evening; you know what I mean.
A piper started up for a little night work and touch and goes. By this time, sun was down and it was legitimately a night flight.
While jaw-jacking around the picnic table, we suddenly hear: Scccccrrrrreeeetch, buurrrrriiiinggg. We all looked to the runway and all shouted at the same time: GEAR UP GEAR UP!. Sparks everywhere and it was just enough light and sparks that we could tell that the belly of the airplane never touched; just the boarding step and the prop. The pilot then poured on the coals… and got airborne again!
I grabbed the portable radio out of my flight bag. One guy got on the phone and called 9-11.
I got on the radio: “Pilot in the pattern, we’ve contacted 9-11 are you OK? Do you need anything?
Pilot: “Uhhhhh, no. I’m fine, it’s a beautiful night, coming back around to land”.
I shut up and let the pilot fly his airplane. The pilot called downwind, base and final. We were impressed with how calm he was. Nerves of steel this guy.
The guy lands and quickly taxis right by us, we wave and all thumbs up. “Looks like he’s making a Bee-Line to the hangar, don’t blame him, he wants no more of this lime-light”.We call 9-11 back and tell them to disregard, aircraft safely on deck.
Seconds later, we hear the piper powering up again. “What’s he doing? Checking the prop? Engine?”
Nope. HE IS TAKING OFF AGAIN!
Pilot takes off. I grab my radio:
Me:“Piot in the pattern, you’ve had a gear up landing! And a prop strike! Do you need any help? I think you might want to land!”
Pilot: “Uhhhh, whuuut? That last landing was sweet! Picked up Rubber!”
Me: Yeah, last landing was good, it was the landing BEFORE that! You took off again, after the gear-up-prop-strike!”
Pilot: “Whuut? Whachatalkingbout wheelsup-propinthedirt?
The pilot calls downwind, base and final. Still calm as a cucumber. Guy lands and starts to taxi towards us.
Did this guy have a stroke (seriously here)? Did his brain go to mush after the gear up? We didn’t know how this guy could have missed the gear up and the prop strike, so we were thinking some sort of medical issue.
So, as he taxied closer, we waved our arms, jumped up and down, shouted, yelled, shined flashlights at him. He pulls the plane up and we wave to shut down the engine. He shuts down and climbs out.
Prop is flower peddled and sure enough, the boarding step is ground razor sharp and thin. He had no clue.
So, here’s the thing: After witnessing this, what would you do? Leave your comments and I’ll tell you the rest of the story.