Edward Frye

Successful Turnback

Tracy, California / KTCY / Elevation 194 ft MSL / Runway 12/30 (4,001 ft) and Runway 8/26 (3,438 ft) / Winds Calm / 16 deg C.

On November 24th, 2021, after performing a thorough preflight, Edward Frye took off from runway 30 in his STOL-equipped Cessna T210L.  The engine was recently overhauled and he wanted to break it in by flying the pattern.  But 35 seconds after takeoff, at an altitude of almost 400 feet, the engine abruptly quit. The decisions he made from there, and the manner he flew the plane to a successful landing is a case study in what to do after loss of power on takeoff.

His YouTube videos can be found here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FdRQiHyWQs  and

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3G1Y50Olls

We reached out to him and asked if we could analyze his flight recording and interview him, to better understand what takes place during a real-world loss of power event. 

Below is the analysis of his flight, identifying the success factors that allowed Edward to return safely to the airport.

Send any comments you have to RickM@InflightMetrics.com.