How not to advance your USAF career

[Galvin]

There is no longer step you can take than one of only six feet to the ground... when it should be twenty feet.

The pictures say it all:

www.zianet.com/tedmorris/dg/bombers4.html

[Wagon1]

Ouch!! How do you remember the flaps and forget the gear?

I saw a British Harrier do it at an Airshow here about 15 years ago. Just set her down pretty as you please right in front of the crowd.

Great link, thanks

[JimCasey]

I saw a Marine Harrier do it in Kissimmee in '76. Immediately firewalled the throttle, popped up, extended the gear, and parked it. Of course, with a Harrier hovering to zero altitude, there's not all that nasty tell-tale abrasion on the bottom of the plane.

[50PlusAirYears]

A group of us watched an F105set down on the runway at Wheelus. Drogue chute came out, nose wheel touched the runway, and the gear retracted. Lots of dust and sparks. Plane was flying 7 days later, after inspection and replacement of some body panels and a defective switch. American planes are built to keep the pilot healthy.

[trimtab]

Harriers were known to melt asphalt when hovering.

Maybe New Piper Aircraft should get the automatic landing gear lowering system contract for this airplane similar to the one used on the Arrow.

[jetmex]

Ouch!! How do you remember the flaps and forget the gear?

Easy. I'm told all those warning horns going off in your ear can be extremely distracting........

Had a DC-9 here a few years back do the same thing. The drivers got into a procedural argument about something and did a perfect one point landing on runway 27, just adjacent to the fire station. I don't think they noticed until it took full power to taxi. Totaled the airplane, but that was ok, because it was an on-time arrival.

[trimtab]

Back in the 70's, a Northeast Airlines DC-9 "yellowbird" (now Delta) in a high sink rate skimmed the ocean on final approach to Nantucket. Pilot gave it full power and recovered, did a go-around and landed safely.

[BrianW517]

Why Fire Good Pilots? They wouldn't make that same mistake again?!? A "MAJOR" over reaction from the Top Brass?!?!?

[slobmaster]

I saw a phantom to that on a flat-top in the China Seas....lost hydraulics, and did a foam landing into a net.............coolest thing I ever witnessed. That was a smooth landing in 12foot seas at Full Speed Ahead! It was my first trip to the Nam....was doing SAR[search and rescue off Da Nang] Guided Missle Frigate #DLG 20 ;D Any landing that doesn't kill an airplane in the process...is a good landing!