Right Main Wouldn't Come Down, But Airplane Had To

The recently-completed restoration of a Korean War veteran F4U-5NL Corsair got a bump in the road Wednesday. The pilot, we're told, is fine; but the beautiful big warbird has suffered some damage. Flying out of restorer American Aero Services in New Smyrna (FL), the afternoon shakedown flight went wrong.

We came back from a late lunch Wednesday to the sad news. Ryan Keough, the National Coordinator of the Wings of Freedom Tour, had sent out a message, and an ANN News-Spy had relayed it to us:

"Well, I might as well be the bearer of bad news before you hear it from another source. Only two days after starting the flight test program, our F4U-5NL Corsair had to belly land today at New Smyrna Beach after the right main gear refused to come down. All attempts to get it down such as G-loading and blowing the gear down were tried, but nothing worked. Dale Snodgrass, who was test flying it, did a good job in getting it down with as minimal damage as possible, but regardless we are looking at least a new engine, prop, flaps, and various repairs in the wings and fuselage. Hopefully we will have it back for the 2004 season."

Ken at the Collings Foundation said, "When we heard from them, they were still cleaning it off the runway. This just happened an hour or so ago." We asked for details of the Florida crash. "The right gear just wouldn't come down," he explained. "They tried cycling it, tried different maneuvers... they finally decided to just put it down."

We talked with Bob Collings, the Foundation's head.

Bob Collings was philosophical when we talked. "I guess, when you fly historic airplanes, you're going to ding one up now and then. We just have a little more restoration to do on it, I guess." [The restoration began when the machine arrived, in March... of 1993 --ed.]

What happened? "They got the engine basically [turned] off, but the prop was still windmilling. All four blades are peeled back. Dale Snodgrass [pilot] really did a good job; he just 'mooshed' it in. The outboard flaps, the ailerons, the wings weren't damaged."

The flight, this machine's second since its second restoration at American Aero, should have been routine. "He took off, put the gear up, flew around... the engine was smooth, the prop was fine... this was the second flight, the first real 'test' flight. He had left the gear down on the first flight. We went to cycle it down; the left [main gear] and tailwheel came down, but the right gear didn't. He did a pass... the tire was out of the well, but it just wasn't enough. He went up to altitude, and did some 0-g, and some 5-g pullups, to try to wrench it down, but he just didn't want to fool with it any more. He pulled the other gear up -- you don't want to land with it unbalanced -- and put it down, just beautifully."

Oh, the irony!

Mr. Collings noted, "They picked it up with a crane, and... guess what? The gear came right down! We don't know what it was -- there a kind of 'pop' when it came down..." [Sounds like something was lodged in there --ed.]

This particular Corsair, when it was restored the first time, had a saltwater landing off New Smyrna Beach (FL) in 1997. This is its second restoration...

It wasn't the first bad landing a Corsair has ever had, as this November, 1951 shot aboard the USS Leyte (nee USS Crown Point, CV-32) attests. No; that's a different Corsair. [Photos courtesy American Aero Services]:

**   Report created 9/26/2003   Record 9   **
IDENTIFICATION
  Regis#: 45NL        Make/Model: F4U       Description: CORSAIR F4U
  Date: 09/24/2003     Time: 1800
  Event Type: Incident   Highest Injury: None     Mid Air: N    Missing: N
  Damage: Minor
LOCATION
  City: NEW SMYRNA BEACH            State: FL   Country: US
DESCRIPTION
  WHEN THE AIRCRAFT CAME IN TO LAND, THE RIGHT GEAR WOULD NOT COME DOWN. AFTER TRYING ALL POSSIBILITIES, THE PILOT RETRACTED THE LEFT GEAR AND LANDED GEAR UP, NEW SMYRNA, FL
INJURY DATA      Total Fatal:   0
                 # Crew:  1     Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   
                 # Pass:   0     Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   
                 # Grnd:         Fat:   0     Ser:   0     Min:   0     Unk:   
WEATHER: METAR KDAB 241753Z 07007KT 10SM SCT027 29/23 A3001                         
OTHER DATA
  Activity: Other      Phase: Landing      Operation: General Aviation
  Departed: (EVB) NEW SMYRNA, FL        Dep Date: 09/24/2003   Dep. Time: 1800
  Destination: (EVB) NEW SMYRNA, FL     Flt Plan: UNK          Wx Briefing: U
  Last Radio Cont: DAB APCH
  Last Clearance: UNK
  FAA FSDO: ORLANDO, FL  (SO15)                   Entry date: 09/25/2003 #

FMI: www.collingsfoundation.org