The pilot was moving his float-equipped airplane from his pier to the other side of the lake in order to dock his airplane at his friends pier temporarily. He decided to fly it to the other side of the lake instead of performing a water taxi. He departed into the wind. During climbout, he encountered heavy rain showers which obscured his forward visibility out the windshield. He executed a downwind landing to the lake by looking out the side window. He reported that during the landing, he could not slow the airplane down enough to avoid hitting a pier. The airplane sustained structural damage to the fuselage.
July 17, 2009, Fox Lake, Ill., Cessna 182
The pilot was moving his float-equipped airplane from his pier to the other side of the lake in order to dock his airplane at his friends pier temporarily. He decided to fly it to the other side of the lake instead of performing a water taxi. He departed into the wind. During climbout, he encountered heavy rain showers which obscured his forward visibility out the windshield. He executed a downwind landing to the lake by looking out the side window.
Key Takeaways:
- A pilot moving a float plane a short distance across a lake chose to fly, but encountered heavy rain during climbout which obscured forward visibility.
- He executed an improvised downwind landing on the lake by looking out the side window.
- Unable to slow the aircraft sufficiently, it struck a pier and sustained structural damage to its fuselage.
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