It was one of those days. It was hot and we had just landed in Miami, Florida. I had encountered a strong wind shear on final and had to go around and be vectored back into the traffic pattern.
I was really sweating. My back was soaked and sweat was running down the side of my face. After a brief stop, we were taxiing for takeoff to runway 9. Runway 9 is simply the compass heading 090. When you depart off runway 9 you fly out over the city of Miami, the beach as well as the Atlantic Ocean. As I stood the throttles up, I was a little apprehensive about something else going wrong besides the wind shear.
The three Garrett engines roared to life as eleven thousand pounds of thrust propelled us down the runway at ever increasing speed. Suddenly, just as the co-pilot stated “V” “R” which was our rotation speed and I began to raise the nose, an ominous bell began to ring and the red “Master Caution” light illuminated. We had a fire on the number 3 engine.
I shoved all three engines to the stops and the DEEC (digital electronic engine control) made sure I was getting all the power I could ask for. It was the worst time for such a thing to happen. It was not only hot, but we were loaded to the max with some 6 tons of fuel. My co-pilot declared an emergency and at one thousand feet I leveled off, pulled the power back on the burning engine, and executed the procedures to extinguish the fire.
As I was turning back toward the airport thirteen hundred feet above the ground and my copilot was accomplishing the rest of the checklist, the red “Master Caution” light illuminated again. It was the number 2 engine. I was later told that evidently a fan blade from the number 3 engine had sliced through some hydraulic lines and the thrust reverser had now deployed in flight. Things could not get much worse.
I called for another emergency check-list and knew with only one engine now running it would take all my experience, training and skill to get us on the ground safely. As the controller cleared me to land on “any runway”, I chose to land with a slight tailwind on runway 27. With all that was stacked against us, two engines out, a thrust reverser that would not stow and half of our hydraulics gone, not to mention we were down to one generator out of three, it was the safest thing to do.
As I touched down and completed my check ride, I was thankful that I was able to experience all this in a simulator. It was so real.
That evening as I reflected back on all the study and preparation I go through to be a safe pilot, I could not help but think of what kind of study and preparation I need to do to grow daily as a Christian.
I remember it simply by these four letters, B.A.P.M.
* Bible Study
* Association with other Christians,
* Prayer ( which is simply talking with God)
* Meditation upon God’s Word and principles
These four things, if you do them everyday, will not only strengthen you daily as a Christian but will also help prepare you and sustain you in your walk with God. Put them in your checklist for life because you cannot simulate a true relationship with God..