AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 102

RUDDER & WRENCH
After doing some turns around a silo to
refresh my skills, I headed back to my home
airport. The wind had picked up and was
about 10 miles per hour from the north.
All was normal in the pattern and the
runway was clear; there were no other aircraft
around. When I turned final, I made
my approach at 70 miles an hour instead of
the normal 60 because of the strong wind. I
established a stabilized approach after my
turn to final.
I was about 10 seconds from touchdown
when I heard a large thump on the
side of the aircraft. To my astonishment I
saw a Canada goose frantically flapping its
wings. This was followed by many more
thumps. It was almost like being hit by a
machine gun.
After a few seconds, the aircraft felt
102
like it had flown into a brick wall. The left
wing dropped, and I was headed straight
down in a classic stall/spin attitude. At this
point I realized that I was just a passenger,
and the aircraft was going where it wanted.
The aircraft nose was pointed straight
down and speed was rapidly increasing. I
remember thinking, This is going to hurt.
Before the aircraft could strike the
ground, the left wing hit a tree, which dissipated
almost all the downward motion
and pulled the aircraft level before allowing
it to fall 20 or 30 feet to the ground. I
remember thinking, well, that was not too
bad, as the airplane dropped from the tree.
The airplane fell flat into a small
grass area behind a retail store facing the
approach path where I had been a few
seconds before. I felt a pain in my back
as everything settled but otherwise felt
OK. After a few seconds, I realized that
the engine was not running so I reached
up and switched off the ignition. I then
switched off the master switch.
By then, there was a woman outside
the aircraft asking if I needed help getting
out. I looked up at the canopy, which
was almost clear of plexiglass. Pulling the
empty canopy frame open, with her help,
I exited the aircraft, realizing that it was
important to get clear in case of fire.
By now, there were firefighters, police
officers, and EMTs everywhere. The
woman who had assisted me was an EMT
who worked in the retail store and saw
the whole thing.
I had flown from and into this airport
for 30 years and never had an issue with
birds. I had done the normal visual observations
on approach but had not spotted
the birds approaching from my left.
The approach was over trees with a
water tower to the left and other visual
obstructions. I had seen nothing until I
heard the thump.
My suggestions are to look for birds
on your approach and if in doubt, take
whatever action necessary to avoid them.
I know that I was extremely lucky to
survive this accident. This was written
not to scare or cause concern but to once
again point out to be aware of your surroundings
and things that could impact
your flight. Rodney Whipple is a private
pilot with more than 2,000 hours based in
Angier, North Carolina.
UNLIKE
ANYTHING
ELSE
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022

Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - Intro
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - Cover1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - Cover2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 4
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 5
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 6
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 7
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 8
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 9
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 10
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 11
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 12
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 13
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 14
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 15
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 16
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 17
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 18
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 19
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 20
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 21
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 22
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 26
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 27
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 28
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 29
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 30
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 31
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 33
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 35
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 36
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 37
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 40
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 49
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 50
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 53
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 54
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 55
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 56
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 57
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 61
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 62
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 63
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 65
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 70
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 71
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 72
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 73
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 78
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - Cover3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - Cover4
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