Roll Inverted said: "What if the gear handle wouldn`t come down? It`s been so long since I`ve been in a 76 cockpit, I can`t remember anything."


I don't believe the gear handle is required to be in the down position to get the gear to free fall down. With a center hydraulic system failure, the alternate gear extension procedure is started with the gear handle in the OFF position to alleviate any center system trapped pressure; however, when the ALTN GEAR EXTEND switch is pressed, the gear free falls into position regardless of gear handle position. The gear lever is then moved to the down position to eliminate gear disagree indications. I'm not certain, but I think Jughead is correct, the gear handle lock over ride switch only unlocks the gear handle so it may be moved to the up position if a ground sensor (squat switch) fails in flight. Although I suppose it could jam somehow, I don't believe there are any locks preventing the gear handle from being moved to the down position.