SR22
Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Commercial; Flight Crew Flight Instructor
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 120; Flight Crew Total 1575; Flight Crew Type 130
Training / Qualification; Distraction
Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Inflight Event / Encounter Object
Aircraft Aircraft Damaged; Flight Crew Returned To Departure Airport; Flight Crew Landed As Precaution; General Maintenance Action
Human Factors
The event was a propeller strike as a result of the aircraft towbar not being removed before takeoff.  The morning of the incident; I arrived at the airport where the aircraft was being stored in a hangar different from its normal location.  Due to the distance from the parking lot; I drove my car to the hangar location; intending to park inside while I was gone in the plane.  I preformed the normal preflight with the aircraft still inside the hangar; and then proceeded to open the door and pull the aircraft out by hand; utilizing the towbar.  Upon positioning the aircraft outside the hangar; I went back to my car to unload my luggage and placed it in the rear compartment of the aircraft before parking inside the hangar and closing the door.  I got in the airplane; and began to taxi toward the runway. It had been fueled the night before and was topped off to capacity.  After the normal run up and pre-takeoff checks; I taxied into position and began the roll for takeoff.  Just after rotation prior to liftoff; I felt a slight jolt and immediately realized what had happened.  I don't remember if the propeller had made contact at this point; however as I continued a climb up to 500 feet on crosswind; keeping airspeed low; I felt a more significant jolt; which I suspect to have been when the prop hit the bar.  I could see that the prop tips were making a light colored circle as they rotated; making me certain that there was damage.  The props were composite; so it basically shredded the last inch or so and began to de-laminate further down.  The winds were calm and I was the only aircraft at the airport so I elected to make a turn back and land in the opposite direction I took off rather that continue around the pattern.  The landing was relatively uneventful; I held the nose off as long as I could and felt the bar release from the nose wheel after ground contact.  I was able to taxi clear of the runway and back to the maintenance hangar without further incident. Aside from my own forgetfulness; there are a few things that I can identify as contributing factors to this event.  My preflight inspection taking place in the hangar put me in a position to neglect making a final walk around prior to getting in the aircraft since I assumed that I had checked all relevant items.  I do not normally park my car in the aircraft hangar; and my decision to do so distracted my attention from the aircraft.  Also; I had positioned the aircraft so that the tail was facing the hangar as well as my car; meaning that from the time I pulled the aircraft out of the hangar and brought it to a stop; I was never again in a position to view it from the front.  Additionally; having the aircraft fueled the night before removed the opportunity for me to exit the aircraft prior to departure; during which time I would have certainly noticed the towbar being attached since fueling requires approaching the aircraft from the front.  This incident underlines the importance of performing one last 'dummy check' after the preflight to ensure that no items have been overlooked; especially when engaged in any non-aircraft related activities between preflight and departure.
A SR-22 pilot departed with the towbar attached and returned to land after first hearing the propellers strike the towbar; then seeing the rotating propeller tips delaminated after towbar contact.