Gimli Glider Retires
Photo byWayne Glowacki / Winnipeg Free Press
Two Guys, a 767 and a Calculator
One of the most famous aircraft that ever took to the skies (next to The Memphis Belle, The Enola Gay and The Spirit of St. Louis) was The Gimli Glider. Because on July 23, 1983 - a very memorable day for the racing enthusiast who gathered in Gimli, Manitoba, just north of Winnipeg veteran pilots – Bob Pearson and Maurice Quintal, in the cockpit of Air Canada Flight 143, made one of the greatest “dead stick” landings in history. Thus began the legend of The Gimli Glider.
The aircraft was a new Boeing 767 and because of a mistake in fuel calculation (Canada had yet to convert all measurements to metric) the big jet was under-fueled. When the fuel ran out Pearson glided the 767 at 220 knots with Copilot Quintal began making glide-slope calculations to see if they’d make Winnipeg but he calculated that Winnipeg was going to be too far. He advised Pearson to turn north to Gimli, the site of an abandoned Royal Canadian Air Force Base around 12 miles away.
Drag Strip Runway
Quintal was familiar with Gimli because he’d been stationed there during his time in the Canadian Air Force. However, unknown to him and the air traffic controllers in Winnipeg, the 6800 foot runway he chose was now being used for auto racing and a steel guard rail had been installed down most of the southeastern portion dividing it into a two lane dragstrip.
This just happened to be “Family Day” for the Winnipeg Sports Car Club with go-cart racing for kids. Parked around the sides were dozens of cars, campers, kids, and families.
Front Wheels Don’t Lock Down
The Ram Air Turbine, a propeller driven hydraulic pump tucked under the belly of the 767 are supposed to supply hydraulic pressure to move the control surfaces and enable a dead-stick landing. So down came came the landing gear – almost. there was not enough pressure so a manual override was attempted right out of the manual. The main gear came down but not the nose gear. As it landed two tires blew with explosive force as Pearson jumped on the brakes. Then the unlocked nose gear gave away and the giant aircraft sprayed a shower of sparks as the nose skidded on the tarmac. Luckily everyone cleared away and no one on the 767 was injured.
A commander of one of the space shuttle flights said later, “It was one of the greatest dead-stick landings in history.”
In a few days Air Canada Aircraft #604 was repaired enough to be flown out of Gimli. After approximately $1,000,000 in repairs #604 started back on its schedule and flew without incident until its forced retirement on January 24, 2008.
The Boeing 767 – Canadian air registration C-GAUN – is now parked in the desert.
Auto racing is the name of my game. I like to watch auto racing and i’m a muscle car fanatic.,’;
Leave a comment!