Printable View
I know the Yak trainers are always parked with the props horizontal because the planes do not have squat switches and the gear is air operated off of the starter system.
If the prop is horizontal it does no damage and if the air system is charged it will stand back up under its own power.
He lost money in a poker game the night before and he misunderstood the air traffic controller in the tower when he told him to "cheer up."
Pretty much all our aircraft have weight on wheels switches, the Russians, not so sure about.
He might have also bounced just a little, letting the wheels fold and then dropped back down.
There's just no excuse for retracting your landing gear before you're airborne and established in a positive climb. In civil aviation you're taught to always leave your gear down and locked until it's assured that you'll clear the pattern so that in the event of engine failure your gear is already down and locked and that's one less thing to deal with in an emergency situation.
I was just commenting on HOW he managed to retract it, not the sanity in doing so.
My guess is this pilot may have been "heads down" dealing with some sort of system issue, when he lost situational awareness. In so doing, he allowed "the pilot" to become the worst kind of aircraft system malfunction.
It would be interesting to know the true story behind this pilot-induced destruction of an otherwise airworthy jet fighter.
NOTE: Previous comments regarding the "Squat Switch" are correct. It has become standard practice, during ground testing of Air Data, Weight on Wheels, and other Aircraft Systems, to "defeat" the Squat Switch through the simple implementation of (are ready for it?) Popsicle Sticks. And yes, on occasion, such Field Expedient Devices may be "remained in place," courtesy of hasty mechanics, resulting in an aircraft being "Returned To Service" with latent failure modes awaiting. Hitting certain V-speeds with a Squat Switch still reporting "True" could cause one or more system computers to flag an error, thereby causing aircraft systems to act erratic, likewise confusing the pilot/crew in command.