You planned to fly from where to where in what?

[vaskidmark]

I know my math is not that good, but just how do you begin to think you can pull this off?

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/video-parachute-saves-cirrus-sr22-pilot-as-he-ditches-off-408340/

Another Cirrus SR22 pilot looks to have been saved by the aircraft’s parachute when he ran out of fuel 220nm (400km) from Hawaii.
....
The pilot, who had left California for Lahaina on the island of Maui on 25 January, contacted the authorities at 12:30 local time to say he had 3h of fuel remaining and would be forced to ditch in the sea.

It's approximately 2546 miles fron San Diego to Maui.  A Cirrus SR22 has an approximate cruising range of 800 miles.  http://cirrusaircraft.com/sr22/   Also from the Cirrus site:

Cabin payload with 3 hr trip fuel and 45 min reserve 974 lbs (442 kg)

2546 divided by 800 is three point something hops.

And according to the specs at the Cirrus site, when he radioed that he had only 3 hours fuel remaining he was at roughly full capacity.

But let's back this up a bit.  He ran out of fuel 220 nm from Hawaii.  800 nm cruise range.  Did he start +/- 1000 nm from Hawaii?  That would be an uncharted tropic isle, no?  <insert obligatory Gilligan's Island snarky comment here>

WHERE did this guy stop to refuel?  At least twice!!  This is not that word problem about how many stages, and where, someone has to stash 10 gallons of gas in order to cross the desert if he gets 12.75 mpg.

stay safe.

[Scout26]

Perhaps he did the Lindburgh/ KDNR5H thng and turn it into a flying gas can by adding tanks where people would normally sit/put their luggage?

[vaskidmark]

More digging got me this: http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Tracy-Pilot-Runs-Out-of-Fuel-En-Route-to-Maui-Parachutes-Into-Pacific-Rescued-By-Cruise-Ship-289829261.html

1) they claim the SR22 has a 1000 nm range, not 800.  Or is that pushing the extra 45 minutes reserve?

2) The plane was fitted with ferry tanks that gave it a range of 3000 nm

3) he had fuel but could not pump it from the tank to the engine.

I still prefer my original version.

stay safe.

[French G.]

That's a big dangerous puddle. I flew across it once and was pretty happy to see Midway island where our C-40 got gas. Can't imagine getting there in the Pan-Am clipper days. It was pretty sketchy for our F-18s too they played tanker frogger all the way out. 3 aux tanks but even for airplanes that do it all the time you can run into fuel transfer problems and there are not a lot of divert fields On the San Diego-Hawaii-Guam route. I do know that once we had 2 working droptanks and pylons on the wings that the stayed there for the month of the exercise, pulled the centerline to save weight. An odd configuration for an F-18 but handy since the job was dissimilar air and it gave them an odd profile and extra loiter time to plan bad guy stuff.

If I can ever afford a plane I hope it is a Cirrus or something that stalls out at 25mph.

[MechAg94]

I was just about to come over here and post this after seeing it on another site.

Watching the video, it looked like he was opening the cockpit and starting to get ready to get out before he landed.  After seeing how quickly the plane sank,  I realize he did have a lot of time. 

[erictank]

That's a big dangerous puddle. I flew across it once and was pretty happy to see Midway island where our C-40 got gas. Can't imagine getting there in the Pan-Am clipper days. It was pretty sketchy for our F-18s too they played tanker frogger all the way out. 3 aux tanks but even for airplanes that do it all the time you can run into fuel transfer problems and there are not a lot of divert fields On the San Diego-Hawaii-Guam route. I do know that once we had 2 working droptanks and pylons on the wings that the stayed there for the month of the exercise, pulled the centerline to save weight. An odd configuration for an F-18 but handy since the job was dissimilar air and it gave them an odd profile and extra loiter time to plan bad guy stuff.

If I can ever afford a plane I hope it is a Cirrus or something that stalls out at 25mph.

Slepcev (sp?) Storch, or similar kitplane - take off and land in ~50 FEET, as I recall from the days I was considering building a plane. Hey, they still make it! From the website (www.slepcevstorch.com), it is a 3/4 scale version of the (German) Fieseler Storch, and has the following capabilities:

"By keeping the weight down to a minimum, yet keeping the aircraft structurally still very strong, (+6 -3), the Slepcev Storch is very original in both appearance and performance. The aircraft will fly at 22mph at full flap and 30% of power. Take off run into a 16mph wind is vertical with no forward roll."

Nominal takeoff and landing distances are 50-100 feet. Cruise speed is a mere 70kts, listed endurance is 4 hours with an optional 100L belly tank giving another 3 for a total of 7 hrs (so about 490nm range with extra tank). So, it shines in short-field operations, without a ton of range, but I've got to admit, if I could fit into and had a license to fly one, I think it'd be pretty awesome.

Wouldn't try to fly it to Hawaii, though. I'm pretty sure the plane couldn't physically carry enough fuel to make that flight, even without the pilot.

[Scout26]

I want one of their Stukas....

[AJ Dual]

Yes, he had additional ferry tanks, and the transfer valve failed somehow. Mechanical failure, air-lock/bubble lock, or perhaps FOD or debris.

I guess it was cheaper than unbolting the wings and putting it on a cargo ship? Well, "cheaper before it landed in the ocean" anyway. 

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

That's a heck of a sales video for that chute system though. I need to win the lotto


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Boomhauer]

Slepcev (sp?) Storch, or similar kitplane - take off and land in ~50 FEET, as I recall from the days I was considering building a plane. Hey, they still make it! From the website (www.slepcevstorch.com), it is a 3/4 scale version of the (German) Fieseler Storch, and has the following capabilities:

"By keeping the weight down to a minimum, yet keeping the aircraft structurally still very strong, (+6 -3), the Slepcev Storch is very original in both appearance and performance. The aircraft will fly at 22mph at full flap and 30% of power. Take off run into a 16mph wind is vertical with no forward roll."

Nominal takeoff and landing distances are 50-100 feet. Cruise speed is a mere 70kts, listed endurance is 4 hours with an optional 100L belly tank giving another 3 for a total of 7 hrs (so about 490nm range with extra tank). So, it shines in short-field operations, without a ton of range, but I've got to admit, if I could fit into and had a license to fly one, I think it'd be pretty awesome.

Wouldn't try to fly it to Hawaii, though. I'm pretty sure the plane couldn't physically carry enough fuel to make that flight, even without the pilot.

I'd rather have a Helio Courier or a Pilatius Porter.

[Northwoods]

Cirruth owners are about pleasant to be around as Priuth owners.

[K Frame]

Sounds vaguely like the plot to a James Thurber short story...

This guy wasn't named Jack Smurch by chance, was he?

[Jamisjockey]

Bzzzt.  Fail.

The plane was equipped with FERRY TANKS.  Because they were FERRYING it to the islands.  It should have had the range with its FERRY TANKS.
But the transfer switch failed. 
You'd be shocked to learn how often small aircraft are FERRIED long distance with this method.  They don't load them up on a ship to sell them overseas,  Alaska, Hawaii, etc.

If you're going to post crumudgenly posts bitching about someone's fail, at least have your facts right skid.

[vaskidmark]

Bzzzt.  Fail.
....
If you're going to post crumudgenly posts bitching about someone's fail, at least have your facts right skid.

You mean like I did in my second post?  The one I made after having spent quite some time searching for something that provided that information?  The information which, I see, has moved up several pages in at least the two search engines I looked at before making my first post.

If you're going to post whiney posts bitching about people going off half-cocked, at least read through the whole thread to see if they a) found where/why they might have been half-cocked and b) if they posted to correct their error(s).

stay safe.

[Jamisjockey]

You mean like I did in my second post?  The one I made after having spent quite some time searching for something that provided that information?  The information which, I see, has moved up several pages in at least the two search engines I looked at before making my first post.

If you're going to post whiney posts bitching about people going off half-cocked, at least read through the whole thread to see if they a) found where/why they might have been half-cocked and b) if they posted to correct their error(s).

stay safe.

If you're going to post whiney posts bitching about people posting whiney posts about people going off half-cocked....

[vaskidmark]

If you're going to post whiney posts bitching about people posting whiney posts about people going off half-cocked....

Not me, brother.  Not any more,  Now I piss & moan, but do not whine - was asked for cheese and crackers too often when I used to do that.

stay safe.

[Doggy Daddy]

I read these last few replies.  Then I called my son.  I threatened him with severe repercussions, should he ever consider putting me in some old-age home where curmudgeonly curmudgeons sit around and chew on each other all day.   

[K Frame]

Bzzzt.  Fail.

The plane was equipped with FERRY TANKS.  Because they were FERRYING it to the islands.  It should have had the range with its FERRY TANKS.
But the transfer switch failed. 
You'd be shocked to learn how often small aircraft are FERRIED long distance with this method.  They don't load them up on a ship to sell them overseas,  Alaska, Hawaii, etc.

If you're going to post crumudgenly posts bitching about someone's fail, at least have your facts right skid.

You're saying fairy quite a bit....

Telling us something?

[Scout26]

Given an approx. flight distance of ~2500 nm and a cruise speed of 210 nm/h, you are looking at least 11.9 hours flying time.  That's a long time in the air in a flying gas can, where you can't get up, walk around and stretch their legs.

[KD5NRH]

But the transfer switch failed.

Am I the only one who would look at a setup that has the potential to leave me in a glider over middle of the Pacific, and absolutely insist that everything have some sort of manual backup that I can get to from inside?  I mean, the guy apparently knew of the problem for three hours before the actual engine failure, and there wasn't any way he could reroute a line from an empty tank, siphon from the full tank to a working one, or *something*?

[lupinus]

I mean, the guy apparently knew of the problem for three hours before the actual engine failure, and there wasn't any way he could reroute a line from an empty tank, siphon from the full tank to a working one, or *something*?

It would appear not.

[Scout26]

Am I the only one who would look at a setup that has the potential to leave me in a glider over middle of the Pacific, and absolutely insist that everything have some sort of manual backup that I can get to from inside?  I mean, the guy apparently knew of the problem for three hours before the actual engine failure, and there wasn't any way he could reroute a line from an empty tank, siphon from the full tank to a working one, or *something*?

Not and fly the plane also... 

[Boomhauer]

Not and fly the plane also... 

The cirrus likely has an autopilot but even then there is only so much one can do in a tight cockpit, especially if the fuel lines are not accessible to the pilot.

Anybody who has been in a GA aircraft can readily attest to the lack of room.

[Fitz]

You aint kiddin. SPecially at my size


Those ballistic parachutes are neat-o


COME ON MEGAMILLIONS

[KD5NRH]

Not and fly the plane also...

Trimmed out properly, it really isn't likely to veer off into the sky-median and crash into a sky-tree if you let go of the yoke for a while.