AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 102
NEVERAGAIN
BY GEORGE READ
Hawaiian surprise
T
aking off from the island of Molokai for our return flight to the island of Oahu we climbed into a rare, 400foot overcast. I turned my Beechcraft Travel Air to the west and climbed steeply in solid IMC to cross the VOR in the West
Molokai Mountains. I passed over the VOR climbing through 2,400 feet. Molokai Tower handed me off to the approach controller who would work me on my flight to Honolulu International Airport. At about 3,000 feet msl, my wife commented that something sounded wrong with one of the engines. I was so busy flying in solid IMC with mild turbulence that I had not noticed that the right engine was down about 300 rpm from climb power. I pushed the power up a bit but that did not restore any rpm, and instead the rpm continued to drop. Then my wife exclaimed, “There’s oil all over the right engine.” Oil was streaming along the cowling. The oil pressure gauge was almost zero for the right engine. I pulled the right throttle back, feathered the propeller, and moved the mixture control to idle cutoff. I dialed in some left trim and was able to maintain altitude and heading on about 80-percent power from the left engine, so I relaxed a bit and considered my options. Molokai Airport was only about five miles behind us, but to land there I would have to fly an instrument approach to below minimums. If I could not find the airport I would have to execute a missed approach on one engine, with asymmetric thrust and flaps and gear down.
Honolulu was VFR, but going on would mean flying 50 miles over water with a single engine working at 80-percent power and in IMC. Even so, Honolulu seemed to be the more prudent plan. I reported to the en route controller that I had shut down an engine and he asked if I wanted to declare an emergency, which I declined. Then he asked for our souls on board (two) and fuel (about 100 gallons), and instructed me to descend into VMC for traffic avoidance.
Because we were below the 4,000-foot en route altitude he was not able to give me traffic advisories. I was reluctant to give away any of our precious altitude, which I mentioned to the controller, but he was insistent because he could not “see” us or the other traffic in the area. I reluctantly began a slow descent.
SARAH HANSON
Plus— Listen to an original Never Again story.
AOPA PILOT •
102 • JULY 2011
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011
Contents
President’s Position
Hangar Talk
AOPA Media
AOPA Action
Letters
Waypoints
Proficient Pilot
Safety Pilot
License to Learn
Pilot Counsel
Fly Well
Pilot Briefing
Rally GA: Walking the Walk
Crossover Classic Sweepstakes: The Ultimate Skylane
There’s No Place Like Home
Field of Dreams
Fleeting Beauty
Affair of the Heart
Timeshare for Aircraft Owners
Dogfight: Say It Right
Avionics: Reality Show
Pilot Products: Heavy Tugs, Cool Air
Never Again
Fly-Outs
Fly by wire
Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Cover2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - President’s Position
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 5
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Hangar Talk
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 7
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 8
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 9
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - AOPA Media
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 11
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - AOPA Action
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 13
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 14
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 15
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 16
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 17
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 18
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 19
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 20
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 21
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Letters
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 23
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 24
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 25
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Waypoints
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 27
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Proficient Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 29
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Safety Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 31
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - License to Learn
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 33
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Pilot Counsel
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 35
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Fly Well
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 37
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Pilot Briefing
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 39
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 40
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 41
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 42
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 43
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 44
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 45
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 46
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Rally GA: Walking the Walk
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 48
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 49
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Crossover Classic Sweepstakes: The Ultimate Skylane
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 51
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 52
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 53
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 54
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 55
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 56
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 57
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - There’s No Place Like Home
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 59
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 60
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 61
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 62
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 63
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 64
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Field of Dreams
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 66
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 67
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 68
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 69
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Fleeting Beauty
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 71
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 72
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 73
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 74
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 75
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 76
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 77
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 78
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 79
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 80
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Affair of the Heart
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 82
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 83
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 84
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 85
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 86
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Timeshare for Aircraft Owners
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 88
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 89
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 90
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 91
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Dogfight: Say It Right
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 93
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 94
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Avionics: Reality Show
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 96
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 97
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - I1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - I2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 98
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Pilot Products: Heavy Tugs, Cool Air
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 100
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 101
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Never Again
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 103
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 104
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 105
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Fly-Outs
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Fly by wire
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 108
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 109
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 110
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - 111
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Cover3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2011 - Cover4
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