Episode 84: Missing Prop

Episode 84: Missing Prop

Author: AOPA Air Safety Institute June 17, 2025 Duration: 37:00
Mel Rushton recounts a harrowing nighttime IFR flight when the propeller of his Piper Comanche separated mid-flight over Florida.

Imagine pulling up a chair in a virtual hangar, surrounded by pilots swapping their most gripping stories. That’s the feeling at the heart of "There I was..." An Aviation Podcast. Produced by the AOPA Air Safety Institute, each episode is a direct flight into real-world cockpit experiences, where seasoned aviators recount moments when weather, mechanics, or sheer chance threw them a curveball. You’ll hear the subtle tension in their voices as they describe navigating a sudden system failure or an unforecast storm, followed by the clear-headed decisions that led to a safe landing. This isn’t about sensationalism; it’s about the nuanced application of skill and training under pressure. The entire podcast is built on aviation’s rich tradition of “hangar flying”-that invaluable, informal passing of wisdom from one pilot to another. By listening, you gain access to a collective library of hard-won lessons, a resource that deepens your understanding of what it truly means to fly safely. Whether you’re a student pilot, a seasoned captain, or simply fascinated by the realities of flight, these narratives offer a profound and practical education, one compelling story at a time.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 94

"There I was..." An Aviation Podcast
Podcast Episodes
Episode 82: Icing in a Baron [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 34:20
Scott Wright shares the story of a flight he made as a corporate pilot in a B58 Baron with five passengers, during which he had an encounter with icing.
Episode 81: Hard Landing [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:41
Erick Mahle tells the story of a night flight in his flying club’s Bonanza with his family on board that included a memorable landing and some lessons learned.
Episode 80: A Clever Workaround [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 26:59
While flying in his 1966 Cessna 150F over Arizona, Chris Smith and his father must resort to some creative thinking to breathe life into a sputtering engine.
Episode 79: Lost Comms [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:29
As a newly minted private pilot, Sara Gagné takes her mother on a sunset flight around the Hawaiian island of Oahu. Not expecting any adverse issues during her very first flight with a passenger, Sara finds herself unabl…
Episode 78: "What's That Sound?" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 51:07
Peter Danzig hears a disturbing banging sound while flying his Bonanza A36 near Paso Robles, CA, and decides to make a precautionary landing at a small private airport. After landing, he must contend with less than ideal…
Episode 77: Cow Pasture Landing [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 51:53
While flying in his Piper Saratoga over the Mark Twain National Forest en route to Northeast Arkansas, Brent Reddick notices a subtle but disturbing drop in RPM, followed by a complete engine failure.
Episode 76: Eerie Encounter [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:33
GA pilot Claudia Gibson recalls a flight on a late October night in Indiana, during her student pilot days. While on an extensive night training flight with multiple stops, Claudia and her instructor have an eerie encoun…
Episode 75: Landing Gear Failure [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:21
While shooting an IFR practice approach in his Twin Comanche, retired Air Canada pilot Marc Arsenault loses electrical power to his landing gear system. After realizing that a manual gear extension will not work, Marc mu…
Episode 74: Losing Altitude [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 41:04
On the final leg of a cross-country flight from Mississippi to California, flight test engineer Joey Brown finds himself unable to maintain altitude in his 1967 Cessna 150G.
Episode 73: Icing in an RV [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:19
Climbing through 6,000 feet after departing Burke Lakefront Airport in Cleveland, pilot and aircraft builder Steve Gross encounters severe icing in his RV-9. With his indicated airspeed falling to 60 knots and his climb…