Telltale Flicker

It was a beautiful fall morning, with clear skies. My five-year-old son and I wanted to get back in the air after annualing my Bellanca Super Viking a few weeks prior. We were feeling good about the airplane. Our adventure that morning: a simple sightseeing flight. As we established a positive climb rate, I cleaned up the airplane and adjusted power. But when I slid the gear lever to the "up" position, nothing happened.

Key Takeaways:

• A pilot experienced a partial landing gear failure, with the nose gear failing to extend and lock, shortly after takeoff in his Bellanca Super Viking.
• He successfully performed an emergency landing with his five-year-old son onboard, managing to avoid serious injury despite propeller and belly damage to the aircraft.
• The incident highlighted the critical importance of investigating even minor electrical system warnings, as a previously disregarded flickering alternator light was later linked to the gear motor's failure.

Key takeaways sponsored by Aviator Pro | Start Your Training ->

See a mistake? Contact us.