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RV-7A Accident, N627DP, 6/20/2023, near La Paz, Baja California Sur

RV8JD

RV8JD

Well Known Member
RV-7A accident, N627DP, 6/20/2023, near La Paz, Baja California Sur.

From the Aviation Safety Network: https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/315531

"An experimental Van's RV-7A, kit built by Don L. Pfeiffer, crashed under unknown circumstances on a beach at El Sergento, near La Paz, Baja California Sur, and flipped upside down.

The pilot sustained minor injuries and the aircraft received substantial damage."​



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rockwoodrv9 said:
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Looks like it had engine trouble late last year in Mexico. https://vanguardia.com.mx/noticias/nacional/avioneta-aterriza-de-emergencia-en-carretera-YY1188540

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According to that news report, they only had trouble in one of their engines, so not sure why they had to put it down. :D

RV7 Mexico One Engine Failure.png

Really happy to read that the guys got out of the crash where it flipped on the beach. Looks scary. I was flying over the beaches of NL yesterday, very low altitude due to airspace restrictions, and obviously what to do after an engine failure was on my mind.
 
Eject Eject Eject!

DanH said:
Like most emergency procedures, you'll want to decide well in advance...but I'd choose to jettison a tip up if I was going into the water.
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It would be interesting to know how well the canopy departs company with the fuselage in ANY RV. I have not heard of many cases where it was necessary or done. It would be a bold move to jettison a canopy. I think it would be a last-minute decision as ones hope is that everything is going to work out OK. End result would be with a minimum of airflow over the aircraft which may not be enough to get it gone. And also missing the passengers. :confused: Any data on that?

When bad things are happening, it is difficult enough to remember to click through the emergency check list. FUEL: OFF; MASTER: OFF; MAGS: OFF ELT: ACTIVATE Jettison canopy is not on my list. Living at an airport, I have seen my share of mishaps and, as I run up to the airplane (often upside down) the belly beacon is going, the mags are still on, the master is still on and the fuel is still on. And they are reaching for the seat belt to release it DON'T DO THAT!!!

Just another reason I wear a helmet and my canopy breaking tool is 8 inches from my left hand. There is also one in the back seat. :eek::eek:
 
DanH said:
Like most emergency procedures, you'll want to decide well in advance...but I'd choose to jettison a tip up if I was going into the water.
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Just curious, what would you do in a tip-over like the RV-4 or a lot of RV-8 fastbacks?

I think I'd leave it closed for the protection, and hope that I can bang my way out with some of the tools I keep in my flight suit, and strapped to my harness.
 
DanH said:
Like most emergency procedures, you'll want to decide well in advance...but I'd choose to jettison a tip up if I was going into the water.
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Which could remove the tail feathers which could then put you nose down with a lot of energy.... Tough choice to make.

-Marc
 
DanH said:
Like most emergency procedures, you'll want to decide well in advance...but I'd choose to jettison a tip up if I was going into the water.
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I am new to the game and have a jettison, but it seems like the jettison is unproven in flight. I'd be afraid it would smack me in the head and incapacitate me or destroy my vert stabilizer/tail and lead to loss of control.
 
SwimmingDragonfly96 said:
I am new to the game and have a jettison, but it seems like the jettison is unproven in flight. I'd be afraid it would smack me in the head and incapacitate me or destroy my vert stabilizer/tail and lead to loss of control.
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There have been more than a few RV-3 and RV-4 inadvertent canopy departures in the past, and to my knowledge, none of them has damaged the tail in a way that altered the flight characteristics….in fact, I can’t remember any where the owner described any tail damage at all……
 
Canopy

I had the side hinged canopy on a Cassutt open at about 100 mph on takeoff. I was able to stabilize the canopy close the throttle and land straight ahead. No adverse airflow over the tail.
Two place Sukhoi, I was in the front, pilot flying in the back. Canopy came off at moderate speed, hit the back seater in the cheek, cutting him pretty bad. I took control and landed. He went to the hospital for some stitches. Canopy missed the tail.
I was told that there were 2.5 canopy losses for every Pitts S2B built. Never heard of one hitting the tail. Likely many occurred on the ground.
Another Sukhoi lost the canopy in flight, it floated down intact with just a few scratches. It was reinstalled on the airplane.
The really expensive ones are the two seat Extras. Around 20K the last I heard which was several years.
 
Canopy

Another that may be of interest; Midget Mustang II. final report. Canopy and vertical tail departed aircraft. It does NOT state the canopy hit the tail. Cause; operation in excess of Vne. (by 20-25 mph)
 
jrs14855 said:
Another that may be of interest; Midget Mustang II. final report. Canopy and vertical tail departed aircraft. It does NOT state the canopy hit the tail. Cause; operation in excess of Vne. (by 20-25 mph)
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Sounds like they needed a different VS. /s
 
Ironflight said:
There have been more than a few RV-3 and RV-4 inadvertent canopy departures in the past, and to my knowledge, none of them has damaged the tail in a way that altered the flight characteristics….in fact, I can’t remember any where the owner described any tail damage at all……
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I haven’t either but I do know of one RV-4 canopy loss where the pilot was pretty badly injured by the canopy as it departed.
 
rvbuilder2002 said:
I haven’t either but I do know of one RV-4 canopy loss where the pilot was pretty badly injured by the canopy as it departed.
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I certainly believe that! I saw the results of a Cassutt losing its canopy on the pilot’s head - he landed OK, but cuts from the canopy, glasses and headset departing made him look like a flak victim. I was just addressing the “tail is going to come off” concern some folks have.

The thought of what the sudden blast in the face would be like when you lose your windshield at speed is sobering…. Especially for those of us with tip-overs!
 
Ironflight said:
I certainly believe that! I saw the results of a Cassutt losing its canopy on the pilot’s head - he landed OK, but cuts from the canopy, glasses and headset departing made him look like a flak victim. I was just addressing the “tail is going to come off” concern some folks have.

The thought of what the sudden blast in the face would be like when you lose your windshield at speed is sobering…. Especially for those of us with tip-overs!
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Something else to consider for those of us with gas "trunk struts" on our RV4 canopies,,
Will that strut change the way the canopy separates from the airframe?

And,, what that strut can/will do to the rear seat passenger

If I recall, the original plans called for a simple rope to secure the canopy but I think I can count on one-hand, how many airframes I have seen over the years that utilize a rope/chain.

I have seen some with an aluminum "scissors/hinge" configuration, but most use some sort of strut, including mine
 
rv8ch said:
Just curious, what would you do in a tip-over like the RV-4 or a lot of RV-8 fastbacks?
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I have a side-opening fastback -8. Having already considered the matter (a recent trip included a lot of time over-water), I would jettison.

There's no golden ticket here, no sure thing. The canopy would offer some protection, but also some risk.

Popping the canopy by choice is somewhat different from an accidental deployment...an opportunity to duck before pulling the handle.

The canopy assembly is quite large and has a lot of lift (aided by the gas strut), based on experimenting while doing a runup. I think it would get pretty far open before the piano hinge rips away, then I'd expect it to go outboard and up. The gas strut attachment is the wild card.

I see two kinds of ditching, shallow water and deep water. Shallow means the canopy will likely be against the bottom, thus impossible to open. I'd have to break it, while upside down with my head underwater. If flooded, it would be difficult to generate enough swing to break a canopy. If not flooded, it will be as soon as it breaks, and that will probably be long before I can make a hole big enough to escape. I do not think I could right myself in the confines of the RV-8 cockpit, as I'm just too tall.

I'm not sure about some aspects of a deep water ditching. I see the airplane floating momentarily until the wings flood, inverted, nose down, tail in the air. With leading edge or tip damage, flotation wouldn't last long. The cabin would be flooding, but I don't know how quickly. The canopy may be difficult to open until flooding complete.
 

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Years ago Sean Tucker was practicing for Sun 'n Fun 2006 when he had an elevator disconnect. He was able to fly with elevator trim and climb to an altitude that allowed a bailout.

He said that even though he had time to think through what he was going to do, when he released the canopy, it hit his helmet even though he ducked and leaned as far forward as he could. He said that the hit was hard enough that he thinks that it may have rendered him unconscious had he not had the helmet. His airplane had a full canopy though (somewhat similar to the RV tip-overs, but unlike the standard RV-8 that has a fixed windscreen that may help the pilot avoid a hard canopy hit (but not the passenger). He mentions this in this video at about 3:55 (although the whole story is quite good).

Although not pertinent to this thread, starting at about 5:15 he mentions that when he left the airplane the stab and bracing wires were there and he gently pushed away from them with one hand.

 
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