PPC Crash, Engine Failed, Emergency Landing, Wife In Back Seat, Air-frame Damaged, I Quit Flying

[@sandorrendeczky8549]

Hey Gerald, you had a bad day. You're obviously upset about it. Mechanical issues and engine outs happen. Don't give up this wonderous thing we get to do just because of something that happens to many pilots. You did everything right. You stayed calm. You found an LZ (and by your flight path it looked like you always kept yourself within range of plenty of outs, which is exactly what we're supposed to do). You landed safely. No one was injured. I have friends that have crashed and needed major surgery, facing possible death or paralysis, and they are back to flying today, because they refused to give up. It would be a real shame for you to give up something this awesome, just because you had a bad day...that actually really wasn't that bad compared to many others. Keep livin' the dream, dude.

[@GERALD_POST]

Your to kind, thanks for the reply. :-)

[@BJCulpepper]

Your wife is a star. We need more humans with personalities like that.

[@painlesstom]

When your rod bearing failed, one or more rollers got sucked into the cylinder and that is why the piston got hammered to destruction. Remember two stroke, intake charge goes through crankcase as it is sucked into the ports going to the combustion chamber.

[@GERALD_POST]

Pretty amazing, I see what happened but I don't understand why anything failed. Thanks for the comment. :-)

[@painlesstom]

Probably corrosion on the crank, 582's have known rod issues too.

[@Les__Mack]

Just a normal day for a paramotor pilot. The internal components of your engine should not be rusty. Hope that was post-autopsy. Sometimes crap just happens. However, with a hole in the crankcase no doubt your engine went very lean and got way hot. Your piston was likely going to melt due to the lean condition and overheating. Yes, I see signs of overheat. Can't say I'm right, but a cascade failure starting with the connecting rod bearing failure is likely, in my partially educated opinion. I burned up my PPG motor when the exhaust cracked and the engine became very lean and burned up. Also, a 20 mph ground level wind sounds like far more than I would want to fly in.

[@conorcregan3579]

It's a 2 stroke. The fuel/oil mix goes from the carburetor into the crankcase to lubricate the bottom(reason you put oil in your fuel) then through the rotary valve and then into the cylinder to be ignited. The needle bearings from the bad rod bearing went into the cylinder with the fuel and bounced around in the cylinder causing all the damage to the piston. The reason the crankcase is cracked is from the bearings falling out there in more play in bearing and on the power stroke the rod was forced down and the play from no bearings allowed it to contact the bottom of the crankcase. Im glad you and your wife are safe. You handled the situation well.

[@GERALD_POST]

I agree with every thing you said but one point. I have an oil ejected engine, I was not adding 2 stroke oil to the gas. :-)

[@wms7795]

This is why I like flying in the evening more then the morning... I experienced this in Arizona when ai was gonna fly over the painted desert... It got so bad, I was being pushed to 53 mph according to my GPS going back to the truck... It can be unsettling for sure...

[@Dogsrule777]

Well it was a beautiful day for it and you both handled it like a champ and kept your cool. Awesome vid! 😌✊🏽

[@edmckinley1333]

Great landing, I have a 582 with 586 hours on it, did the same thing as yours, quit due to crankshaft rod bearings failed and put me down just like you did. Very frustrating as I had to buy another engine nothing to save, and my piston looked identical to yours, the rod bearings fragments were scattered though out the engine. You flew the PPC like you should, very nicely done

[@robertbeltowski2819]

Hi Gerald, thanks for sharing the video. Looks like you did a great job. Sorry you are so disappointed with the engine. I have to agree with Michael Clarke. This is something that happens all the time whether 2 stroke engines and even 4 stroke. I have had several of both engines. Even my Lycoming in my R22 Robinson had problems and so did my Hirth engines. So it can be a certified or non-certified engine...but you were trained to do the correct maneuvers....GOOD FOR YOU and your Wife!!!!!!!! Keep flying..........we need good pilots like you.

[@mikepritchard8353]

Sorry about your bad day of flying. You did a fantastic job of landing that machine in a convenient field. Coming down in the woods, power lines or the water gets pretty scary. I have had one engine out and one gearbox failure with my powered parachutes. I have built all 7 of my machines. all use the Rotax 582 and the 503. Since I have learned how to take care of these engines I haven't had one issue and have hundreds of hours on them. The very first thing I noticed on your engine was the rust on your connecting rod. Two stroke engines rust very very quickly. I mean in just days of non-use. Its the main issue in failed engines. I have built fogging lines that are installed into the air cleaners. These are 1/8 inch fuel primer tubes. Every time I'm done flying I spay fogging oil into these lines until I see smoke coming out the muffler. It takes about 1 minute for each carb. Fogging oil will prevent any rust forming any where inside your engine and especially in the bearings. I have oil injection on one of my machines. I have taken the injection systems off all my other ones and mix my fuel. That way if the engine is running its getting the right amount of oil. On the machine that I have the injection system still functioning I put in 8 ounces of oil in the 10 gallon tank of gas. I run Klotz synthetic oil all the time. Doing these few things have really kept my machines trouble free. If you need to store your machine for the winter you must really fog the engine. I use a complete can of fogging oil and continue to spray it in each carb until the engine stops. Anyway, this is what works for me. I also build Kitfox aircraft and use the Rotax 912 ULS engines. Don't be fooled, they break down as well. I've had two of those $21,000.00 4 stroke engines fail. One was a gearbox with 237 hours on it and the other was the rings on the pistons all lining up and had no compression in flight at 225 hours on a new engine Well, good luck and i hope you can enjoy flying again.

[@GERALD_POST]

Wow, thanks for the great details. I was fogging every winter. Hearing how you took care of your engines that might of help me doing the same. Thanks for the comments.

[@mikepritchard8353]

@@GERALD_POST I hope it works for you. 2 strokes are good engines. They just need some babysitting. Good luck.

[@richarddegen6184]

I noticed rust on on one of the rods also...the piston top on the bad was beat to hell from metal fragments getting into the combustion chamber after the rod brearings disintegrated

[@TheGyroJoe]

Your wife is a gem!

[@thomasnappo6309]

Thank God you guys made it...

[@hu112bu]

Not sure what 2 stroke oil was being run, but I have seen bearing failures like this in engines run with Amsoil. I'm not sure why as it's advertised as a premium product, but after seeing at least three catastrophic bearing failures and finding out that none of their products are aviation certified, I refuse to use it or any of their products. Great video btw of how to manage an engine out, and why training for this is so important!

[@GERALD_POST]

Amsoil, the guy I bought it from was an American Airlines pilot and a certified aircraft mechanic. He used Amsoil and nothing but. Interesting you mentioned it. And so goes another engine, lost to Amsoil.

[@TimothyBiggs-hw8bc]

It did not look so much like a crash to me. It looked like the pilot and passenger remained calmed, and a controlled emergency landing was made. In fact, it looked like a really great job done by both pilot and passenger to me. No panic. Just put it down where you had to do so! Grace under pressure...

[@daviddixon9598]

I see some pretty bad rust on the cylinder skirts inside and out. You may have developed rust on the crank, bearings, connecting rods and needle bearings. Looks like you live in a humid area.

[@BJCulpepper]

You seem really competent about flying. Sad that you are quitting....

[@candidoalcantara6718]

thans for your video

[@michaelclarke4629]

One cylinder was running lean, starving for gas and oil which cause the bearings to fail

[@L2FlyMN]

I wouldn’t call an unscheduled landing in a field with a dead engine a crash. I’ve had a hard landing, blown front tire & buckled front forks resulting in rapid deceleration, then flipped upside down when the wing went over & I didn’t consider that a crash, just a hard landing.

[@GERALD_POST]

I would say it's a matter on opinion. To me it sounds like you have had an accident. You might even call it a crash.

[@L2FlyMN]

@@GERALD_POST Like you said, a matter of opinion. Had the front tire not failed, all should have been fine.

[@chancer74]

Happens in PPG all the time. Roller bearing goes for whatever reason, and your motor pays the price...right before you do! $$$ One friend had it happen twice in a year on a new motor.

[@doubled6595]

Yeah but what oil was he using? :)

[@GixxerKris]

That engine sounded a bit lean to me the whole flight.

[@mrfid72]

Thank you for sharing this video. I am guessing the corresponding head also had damage.

[@GERALD_POST]

I looked at it after you asked and observed some pitting. It must be harder than the piston head because the damage is no where near being that bad. :-)

[@ferrybaqdiono4088]

Look like bearing failure because lack of lubrication or bearing lifetime is finish, but please check oil mixture and quality, nice landing safely...

[@GERALD_POST]

Thanks for the tips!

[@anthonyburke5656]

For my money, the best fighter pilot of WW1 lost his life as a passenger, to an engine out on take off!

[@microfarmers]

I enjoyed your video! Sucks to break down though. That piston was running too lean, I would say it was most likely an intake leak, remember two strokes rely on crank case pressure to feed air/fuel into the transfer ports. Is that engine equipped with reed valves?

[@richarddegen6184]

with a hole in the block of course it would run LEAN

[@RwP223]

Were you trimmed for speed? Does PPC have good flare authority? Were you also downwind? Seemed like a really hard landing.

[@normdickson2438]

The rust on the crank should tell you all you need to no moisture got into that motor

[@normdickson2438]

I could hear that the motor was not happy the second you took off there was a metal ring noise going on

[@jimbob9050]

It appears form the video that you only warmed up the engine on the filed (after the chute was laid out) for 10 seconds? So maybe a cold seizure? Nice dead-stick landing and glad you and your wife are OK!!!

[@GERALD_POST]

What your seeing Jim is not the full story. I had a trailer that I would bump the front tire up against and run the PPC engine up just after taking it out of the trailer. I would then immediately taxi it out to the runway and lay out the chute. In the video you don't see any of that only me helping my wife Linda prepare for flight. Thanks for the comment though. I believe the Lord seen both of us through this safely. The left axle was bent, there was some air frame damage and the motor was replaced. Be safe and be blessed. :-)

[@Les__Mack]

Also, even if he had not warmed up properly, by the time the engine out happened the engine was certainly fully warmed. From my understanding a cold seizure will happen when the piston expands and the cylinder is cold. Once the cylinder is warm, cold seizure can't happen. Damage could have occurred to the the cylinder with a partial cold seizure, but that's unlikely cause failure of the connecting rod bearing. I'm no expert but this is my educated opinion.

[@robertwood9628]

@@GERALD_POST Your landing would not indicate any airframe damage. As a BFI with over 5k hours and an A&E licensed mechanic i'm a bit confused about how it was damaged.

[@dushorefire8135]

First, well done handling an inflight issue and landing safely. Several questions. What were the temps of the EGTs prior to engine stop? What was the normal spread or difference of your EGTs when you were flying the previous 114hrs? How many times had your previously landed with the engine off? It was hard to tell in the video, did you flare for the touchdown? Thanks. John Yonkin

[@GERALD_POST]

Hey there, I want to say thanks for the questions. I also want to say I'm new to KZbin. I know I read this question and I thought I answered it but I must of been dreaming. So here goes: Engine temps, no idea, don't remember even looking at them. As far as I remember the exhaust gas temps were all within SOP and I always kept my eye on them. The shorter answer is I do not remember. I never landed with the engine off. My CFI would have be simulate engine off landings. I flared but then in the last seconds I pushed hard left to avoid hitting those trees. If I would not of pushed hard left I'm sure there would of been injuries and a lot more damage. By the way, someone contacted me recently about doing a podcast on the incident and I consented. The podcast was me explaining all the details regarding most of your questions. To date 12-21-20 I have not posted the podcast. Do you think I should? Don't want to beat a dead horse if you know what I mean. I'll look for your reply. Thank for the questions and comment, be safe and be blessed. :-)

[@roykygar4960]

You handled it well Gerald, too bad you gave up. This sport isn't for everyone. Once in a while we have to tell our students to take up bowling. BTW the stats are 7 times more safe than riding a motorcycle. This sport is as safe as you make it. I feel it is more safe than ultra lights. (fixed wing) With our sport you can land very slow and safe if you have a little altitude. With ultra light aircraft you typically have to land a lot faster and the consequences are much more tragic. This is a sport only the passionate should participate in. I have friends that have had a lot worse happen and when I say a lot worse, I mean broken bones worse and they still didn't give up the sport. ( I resemble that remark! Haa! haa!) I hope you have found a sport you can enjoy the rest of your life. Cheers. 🙂

[@truthkeeperfilms]

Rotax used to make very solid engines. Not so much now

[@MaddMatt187]

Looks a lot like what happened to my mz313! One of the little "ears" or "tabs" on the snap ring that holds the wrist pin in place broke off and gouged it's way past the rings to the top of the piston, then bounced around a bit before lodging into the face.

[@GERALD_POST]

I'm not a mechanic however I think you nailed it. :-)

[@MaddMatt187]

@@GERALD_POST Yeah those snap rings are a bad design. As they wear the metal gets thin nearest to the tabs (the part you grab with the snap ring pliers). If the ring rotates to the right orientation and then gets thrown back and forth violently (as it does during normal operation) it must be enough to break off. At least that's what I assumed happened in my case. I have a picture of my piston that looks very similar to yours, but with less pitting. I'm guessing because you had a second cylinder you were able to run a lot longer before failure.

[@aaronklugherz1895]

It's a shame you quit flying! But I get it. If I had to guess, part of a rod bearing got above the piston and just beat it to hell. Forced landings are no fun, but they do tend to happen to everyone that flies long enough.

[@jneub60]

If I quit flying every time I had an engine out would have quit flying at least 10 times. That's part of the fun. I can't believe you quit flying.

[@GERALD_POST]

Thanks for the comment Aaron. :-)

[@skyryderI]

First of all, great job of power out landing! There is a old saying, you may have heard it during training "Your going to have an engine failure, not if, but when" Things do go wrong, stuff does break, even new stuff. Sorry to hear your not going to fly again, but it is your choice and can respect that, , ,

[@GERALD_POST]

Thank you. :-)

[@soiboughtabus9563]

Egt temp, head temp prior to failure?

[@frankiefaircloth1876]

Did you edit out the engine warm you? Didn't see one Looks like Cold fracture on the pistons

[@GERALD_POST]

Yes, every time I did an engine warmup.

[@ps2hacker]

Did this engine have 2 carbs? I see one black piston, and one white. If there are 2 carbs, one clogged up and no fuel means no oil on that side.

[@GERALD_POST]

Two carbs

[@MrHanowski]

What brand 2-stroke oil were you using? Your "good" piston had excessive carbon on the dome and rings.

[@wiley0714]

Looked like a heavy ratio and AVGas mix. I think he said he bought it from a previous pilot, Plus AVgas would probably be more available.

[@GERALD_POST]

Amsoil, the aircraft mechanic/pilot/previous owner told me to continue using the same oil all the time and not switch oils. Thanks for the question. Be safe and be blessed. :-)

[@MrHanowski]

@@GERALD_POST Which Amsoil oil were you using? Dominator? Interceptor? Saber? Other?

[@thomasche]

Not to be the idiot here but I don't even understand how you can dare "fly" this thing... It all looks so frail. Then of course that you take a loved one with you is beyond me.... Glad you are OK thou.

[@GERALD_POST]

It was an unbelievable rush to fly low and slow at 30mph. I always wanted to be a pilot and this was the only way I could afford to own my own vehicle. Thanks for the comment.

[@anthonyburke5656]

I would have liked to have been told the engine it’s hours, the trike, the canopy, time of day, weather forecast, month

[@GERALD_POST]

115 hours, Early June

[@GERALD_POST]

Powrachute Pegasus, early afternoon

[@wiley0714]

Watch this : especially at the (1) hour mark. You said “ The mechanic must’ve disregarded these in the bottom of the case”. I don’t Know if you mean when you got the case back? I took two screenshots from your connecting rods. One of them looks like it’s been honed down. But the other one that hit the crank case and broke it does not look like it was machined down? Maybe it’s just my vision or the wear and tear on the crank rod.... Has that been the “newer rod” even with the roller pins demolished the connecting rod should have never made contact with the case to crack it? Your opinion is welcomed. kzbin.info/www/bejne/iomYg6mMeb-VidE

[@GERALD_POST]

Sorry, I should of clarified, I meant to say that when I received the parts back I didn't see any roller bearings in the box of parts I received. As far as the connecting rods, I cannot reply. I don't know if what you say is true. I'm almost 100% positive that the engine was never opened up for the replacement or modification of any parts before the engine failure. The 100 hour inspection was done by the aircraft mechanic shop and they never opened up the engine. Thanks for the comment, be safe and be blessed. :-)

[@12vibaba]

well... the complete destruction is by your own doing. You should have stopped the engine by the first signs of power loss. The bearing failed because of rust. these engines should be fogged before storage. Rotax is known for that. This is just a case of poor engine maintenance. Has nothing to do with 2-stroke.

[@GERALD_POST]

You said, "You should have stopped the engine by the first signs of power loss". LOL, stop the engine in mid-flight several hundred feet off the ground. Did you watch the video?