Multiple Cessna 172RGs made me a better pilot

Experience makes you a better and safer pilot. Hopefully you can acquire that experience without injury or damage. This is my early experience path to improvement as a pilot and it has made me safer and more confident.

In 1998, I joined a venerable flying club, Stick and Rudder Flying Club of Waukegan National Airport (KUGN). I learned to fly as part of the Club earning my Private, Instrument, and Commercial in their training program.  I also learned a few valuable lessons along the way which were to think, be calm (never panic), read the book (before, and maybe during) and let your training take over. All four of these lessons worked in three separate incidents, quite successfully.

June, 2001—lunch flight in the first 172RG

I had maybe 300 hours PIC and had just moved up to a complex, retractable gear aircraft; in this case, a Cessna 172RG. It was well maintained but well used and aging.

My wife, Diane, is a very reluctant flyer. If we’re flying commercial to Paris, she’s OK, but not particularly happy. We were out for a beautiful evening flight in perfect weather. On this occasion, she actually agreed to fly up to Oshkosh, Wisconsin (KOSH) for lunch on a beautiful summer day. It was smooth, comfortable, and beautiful until I began our descent into the pattern at KOSH and extended the gear. No gear light appeared on the control panel indicating a gear problem. I had Diane look out her window and the right main gear was there. I turned toward my side and saw that the the left main was hanging but not locked in the forward position. Uh Oh!

I immediate called the Tower and explained my situation and they sent us out over toward Lake Winnebago to manually pump the gear down. A C-172RG gear should pump down and lock in 35 strokes (just like in the movies). I had Diane take the control column and told her to fly in a circle and then commenced pumping. About pump 100, I knew this was not going to work. It was a hydraulic system failure.

At this point, the Tower called and inquired if we were ok because we were descending at an alarming rate. It turned out that Diane couldn’t remember if pulling or pushing would result in a climb, so she held firm. To the relief of the Tower, I took control and climbed a bit before letting them know this was a dangerous situation. Then, likely to their relief, I told them we would be returning to KUGN (their paperwork avoided), and requested flight following. I was very familiar with the fire department at Waukegan and wanted those guys on hand when we landed. Plus, it was home base and our car was parked there; however, we did miss lunch.

We received flight following and excellent coverage, and were cleared direct. Something about declaring an emergency just cuts through any ATC issues. About halfway to our destination, with the airplane trimmed out nicely for cruise, I had Diane again at the controls, but with a bit more instruction. It was then that I pulled out the POH and read the Emergency Procedures section carefully. This elicited a “What, you’re reading the book now?” response. I explained that having the steps fresh in my mind was a very good idea. And, it was!

About 15 miles out, I made my initial distress call to the UGN Tower, who, of course, knew we were coming. They cleared us into the Delta airspace and immediately another voice came on. A CFI/mechanic from Chicago Executive (PWK) was flying a 172 nearby and heard our call. He volunteered to inspect from below in the air. The UGN Tower closed their airspace and the two of us circled above the field. I cycled the gear several times, and the mechanic suggested we do a series of 3G pull-up maneuvers to try and swing the gear forward, where it might mechanically lock—a great idea and worth a try.

I explained the procedure to Diane who nodded, and proceeded to perform the high-G maneuver. The gear did everything except lock. But there was an extremely loud noise in the cabin, like the wing was tearing off. It turned out it was Diane in full scream mode. She had turned the intercom off before my 3G explanation, and had no idea what I was going to do. I turned the intercom back on, explained the next two, and, despite her promises not to scream, cautiously turned the intercom off, again. Good thing. She screamed through the next two at full volume. This was definintely not curing her reluctance to fly.

No dice. We then did a knife-edge spin, and a number of other gyrations which were all highly entertaining, but unsuccessful. Our club manager was in the Tower and suggested a Hammerhead turn, but I figured that might be a bit too much for Diane.

I requested permission to land, and received a clearance to land “any runway, any direction, any time.”  There was no one else on the taxiways or in the airspace. I chose  runway 14 (the UGN crosswind runway) and the crash and resuce vehicles moved onto the adjacent taxiway. To add to all of this, the Club had a Private Pilot class in session and they had moved outside with radios to watch all of this. It became “emergency procedures evening”.

As we lined up and slowed with the gear up (well, two out of three), I added full flaps, pulled the engine mixture, and turned off the ignition key. I could look down and see our airport fire truck pull out under us and follow. I turned to Diane and told her to open her door which elicited a “No problem, I’m dead and so are you!” And she was not kidding.

We slowed, tapped the tail first, and the nose came down solidly, causing the now open passenger door to come off in Diane’s hand.  By the time we rocked back from our very short “roll-out”, a fireman was at each door ready to assist.  Nicely, there was no fire, no fuel leak, and minimal damage, just lots of dust in the cabin. At 110 lbs. Diane exited and her rescuer told her she really didn’t need to rip the door off. She responded by ripping his mask off and giving him a big kiss. Then she kissed the Airport Manager, the State Police who had arrived, and all the firemen. But, she didn’t kiss me? I never understood that.

The 172RG was flying a few weeks later. There was only minor damage when the hanging left gear had closed as we landed, and some paint and antennas scraped off the bottom of the fuselage, but all minor. A few months later an airworthiness directive was issued requiring major changes to all 172RG main gear systems.

Lessons learned—this incident improved my confidence as a pilot and taught me the importance of following the training and the POH procedures. Think, read the POH, don’t panic, and follow your training.  Also of note, until I turned to Diane on short final and told her to cover up, my heart rate had not increased noticeably. Reality hit and it did with that warning.

On a positive note, as a problem-solving engineer, I loved the experience, but I was the only one on board who felt that way!

2002—Angel flight in the second Club 172RG

This was a non-incident simply because everything worked like it was supposed to.

I’m an Angel Flight pilot and was bringing in a family of three from Des Moines for an appointment at the City of Hope Hospital in Zion, Illinois. There was no issue on the flight. The passengers were friendly and positive passengers, and we had only mild IFR conditions. As I came in on the ILS23 approach and crossed the descent point, I extended one notch of flaps and put the gear down. Once again, no light. Without any hesitation, I went through the emergency gear extension procedure (which had been seared into my memory) and had it down and locked in 35 pumps while remaining on the glide slope.

I did not declare an emergency or even advise the Tower at this point, but landed very carefully. In retrospect, I probably should have declared an emergency. As we taxied in, the husband in the right seat calmly inquired about pumping being standard procedure.  I explained the situation and all was good.

Experience was an excellent teacher and turned a potentially harrowing situation for passengers and pilot into a non-event. My back seat passengers never even realized the situation. They probably thought pumping was normal.

September, 2023—Young Eagles Flight in the third Club 172RG

The last 172RG issue was different, but, again, training took over, and the outcome was successful.

At our annual Air Show at Waukegan, we used to fly Young Eagles for a few hours before the show started. This airspace was a bit congested due to incoming visitors, show planes, military, etc.  We no longer do this before the Air Show for safety considerations.

In 2003, however, we did and I was flying our third 172RG with three enthusiastic 12-year-old future pilots on board for a 20 minute Young Eagles flight. It was a fun flight and the kids were great—noisy, enthusiastic, and laughing. Perfect Young Eagles. We fly a wide box pattern, getting outside the Delta airspace and by mid-flight, are slightly off-shore over Lake Michigan.

As I turned up the shoreline, my radio, lights and all electronics all went dark. It was complete electrical failure, and with three Young Eagles on board in very busy airspace and no radios.  Think, follow the training, be calm, and don’t panic.  But I did not read the book as there was no need in this case.

I had a handheld radio in my flight bag in the baggage area (due to a previous loss of radio experience), and explained the situation to the kids as I circled over the lake. I asked one of the passenger to fetch the radio from the back. The kids thought this situation was absolutely fantastic. Their first flight on a  perfect day, the Air Show, and an emergency besides! What could be better!

I took a few minutes to get the handheld up and running, during which time the Tower was beginning to panic (no radar at that point) because they knew my schedule, and I was well behind it, out over the lake with kids. Once I checked in, their relief was obvious.

I was cleared to land, but no electrical power means hand pumping the landing gear down, again. I managed to get the gear down in 35 pumps, and this time requested a visual check by the Tower so we flew an extra lap in the pattern.

I told my Young Eagles to please not tell their parents about their mis-adventure, but I’m sure they did, immediately. Again, past experience was a great instructor. Of note, as soon as the weight was back on the main gear, the electrical disconnect reconnected and the power came on.

The Club no longer has any 172RGs, and that’s probably a very safe and good change. It’s all fixed gear 172s in their inventory, and all are easy to fly.

Post 172RG Flying—The Mooney Era

I still belong to the Club and still fly Young Eagles, but in a fixed-gear 172. It feels the same, but without the drama. My personal aircraft is a 2000 Mooney Eagle, M20S, and it gets lots of use, including many Angel Flights. I now have well over 160 missions completed.

The only emergency in 15 years of Mooney flying was a deteriorating mechanical fuel pump and dealing with it proved to be a non-problem. That experience in the 172RGs had improved my ability to handle emergencies. Be calm, think, follow the training, don’t panic.

Experience counts and is extremely valuable. My mishaps in the 172RGs were incredibly valuable and made me a much better, safer, and more confident pilot. And the Mooney made me a lot faster too. I’m gratfule that there were no injuries or violations (or serious damage) getting that experience. Life is good, and my time in the air has made it even better.

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Bob Hamilton

Bob Hamilton is a 2,000 hour Mooney Pilot and an Instrument-Rated Commercial Pilot. He has flown for AFCentral since 2003 and has over 160 missions completed. In addition, he has over 535 EAA Young Eagles flown. Giving back and serving is his life mission.
Bob serves as the Treasurer for the Waukegan Post District, which governs Waukegan National airport, where he is based.
He is a Civil Engineer, retiring as Chairman of Gewalt Hamilton Associates, Inc.
Now married 53 years, he has 4 children and 8 grandchildren, 2 of whom are headed for an aviation career.

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