- Joined
- Jan 7, 2018
- Messages
- 199
- Reaction score
- 91
About 5 years ago I had an unpleasant experience in my PA-28-180. Closed the door, locked it, took off and experienced the loudest knocking noise one could imagine. Loud enough to make it difficult to hear the radio or to think that airframe failure was imminent. Only thing that I could think of was that a piece of the airplane or engine was coming apart. Sounded like a cylinder had broken, but the airplane experienced no aerodynamic or power change. With much anxiety, I circled and landed. Turned out to be the strap on the passenger seatbelt had gotten caught in the lower door and was flapping outside in the breeze and banging (big time) against the fuselage. If you have never experienced that in an aluminum aircraft, it can be quite disconcerting, especially because the sound is not localized and you have no dea where it's coming from. Lesson learned. I now make sure the belt is stowed on the floor or buckled in the seat when flying by myself.
Fast forward several years to yesterday. Take off from a class C airport and I hear and feel the loudest racket ever. WTF?!! I know that sound though, and I look to see my pax seat belt is buckled. WTF?!! Okay, the airplane is still flying, but what a racket! Even with headsets, what a distraction! I had difficulty hearing Departure Control over the noise. Returned to the airport. Come to find out, I place my backpack in the footwell of the passenger seat for access to maps, food, material, etc. Sure enough, a portion of the adjustable strap that had a molded plastic end had gotten caught and was hanging outside. I couldn't see it because the backpack was tall enough to hide it. Good grief!!
So, lesson again learned and I share it with others to learn from me. You can easily close and lock the door and have something sticking out the bottom of the door. It will make a very loud frightening racket (especially if metal or plastic is involved...not so much if it's just webbing). Just fly the plane and return to the airport. Don't know that if had I noticed it, if I could have pulled it inside. Reaching over to do so may have been a disorienting action. One could open the door, but closing the door in flight is not as easy as the operating manual states, especially if only you as the pilot. So just fly the airplane and deal with the effects. Luckily, the damaged marks were superficial and I was able to buff the scuff marks out of the paint. Y'all fly safe out there.
Fast forward several years to yesterday. Take off from a class C airport and I hear and feel the loudest racket ever. WTF?!! I know that sound though, and I look to see my pax seat belt is buckled. WTF?!! Okay, the airplane is still flying, but what a racket! Even with headsets, what a distraction! I had difficulty hearing Departure Control over the noise. Returned to the airport. Come to find out, I place my backpack in the footwell of the passenger seat for access to maps, food, material, etc. Sure enough, a portion of the adjustable strap that had a molded plastic end had gotten caught and was hanging outside. I couldn't see it because the backpack was tall enough to hide it. Good grief!!
So, lesson again learned and I share it with others to learn from me. You can easily close and lock the door and have something sticking out the bottom of the door. It will make a very loud frightening racket (especially if metal or plastic is involved...not so much if it's just webbing). Just fly the plane and return to the airport. Don't know that if had I noticed it, if I could have pulled it inside. Reaching over to do so may have been a disorienting action. One could open the door, but closing the door in flight is not as easy as the operating manual states, especially if only you as the pilot. So just fly the airplane and deal with the effects. Luckily, the damaged marks were superficial and I was able to buff the scuff marks out of the paint. Y'all fly safe out there.
