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Woooaaaa there. Ya think ya can get away with JUST
that?
Ha ha; nope, I absolutely did not. I had to leave the
airfield in a hurry due to a duck hunt, I had forgotten all about, so I had no
time to mess around with photos, videos and so forth. I did, however, have one
minute to annoy everyone with the kind of post we all hate the
most!
So, and the first part might be good advice to
many:
The flight permit was handed over on friday sept. 5th. by
my EAA flight advisor. The permit became effective on tuesday sept. 9th., so
first flight was scheduled for tuesday. Any day but monday is good,
because monday is flying club day. I have not had the opportunity to get some
Lancair stick time prior to first flight, but it has only been 9 or 10 years
since I spent a full hour in a Piper 28 RT, learning about C/S props and
retractable gear, so, understandably, I felt proficient.
I wanted an empty airfield with noone present but the
people essential for the flight. Then the chase plane pilot called another
guy, who had better cameras and the snowball rolled from there. They both
decided they needed more cameras, no reason to ask what I thought, and, whilst I
was getting the aircraft and my mind ready, the local TV channel called, just to
make sure they were going to the right airfield. I made it clear to
them, that this was not the airfield they were going to, and after telling
the same to no less than three newspaper journalists, I turned the cell phone
off. #¤%& !!!
Fortunately, when I finally started the engine, the
alternator output showed 17 volts, so I could send everybody and their friends,
mums and dogs home.
Lesson: Do not tell anything to anyone. They will
instantly hijack the event and make you an actor in their movie. They can
and will not understand that no acting is involved, that you might not be
interested in having a draggy camera on one wing tip on your first flight,
that you might have stuff on your mind that is more important then their
movie, that danger is involved and that failure IS an option.
I got the alternator fixed and told nobody about it.
Yesterday morning I called the airfield owner, whispering "Are you ready?". He
was and immediately took control of the fire extinguishers, the handheld radio
and the axe. No chase plane! Lancair 320 owner Per Kristensen called at
some point in the morning; he was, of course, invited. I have talked to him
numerous times during the last weeks and he is responsible for convincing me to
just go fly the thing. My wife showed up too and got noisy when I asked her
to leave, so I decided she could stay.....
Aircraft out of the workshop. Runway in use 10, wind 060
12 kts. Runway length 3500 ft. I have visualized the departure 100 times
and I have done a few high speed runs, so I know the plane feels right. CG is in
the front 1/3. Hands are sweaty, but we´re good to go. Backtrack to far end of
airfield, that is ok, oil temp must come up anyway. Hands are dry again; this is
just another flight. You won´t die. Probably. Turn 180 deg., we´re lined
up. The runway looks familiar, but I sit lower than usual and I can barely see
over the nose. Run up check, everything good. Temps are good. I am good. Apply
throttle slowly. Full right rudder. One tap on right brake necessary. Governor
catches the engine. Full throttle is applied. This is good fun. Past 65 kts.
Give it another 5. Rotate at 70 and we´re airborne. First obvious clue is
silence from the undercarriage. Slight PIO, don´t over react here! Accelerate to
95, initiate climb. Watch airspeed; flap speed is 100. Reduce power to 25", then
prop to 2500. Trim to steady climb. Oh crap, were already at 1200 ft., switch to
Skrydstrup Approach for higher than 1500 ft. Flaps to 0 deg. accelerate to 100
kts. Request box up to 5000 ft. over airfield. Start turning right, you
want to stay near the airfield. Just 15 deg. bank. Uh ooh; this thing is touchy!
This is great! Climb to 4000 ft. and reduce power. Gear is till out. Decelerate.
Feels good, but controls get significantly lighter. Oh what the hell, let´s see
what happens. Decelerate. More. A little more. Uh ooh, controls are really mushy
now, no doubt this is not how the thing likes to fly. Decelerate more.
58 kts. Wings still level, nose above the horizon but VSI says -500 ft/min.
Ok, close enough, no reason to explore any deeper here on first flight;
nothing unpredictable will happen at landing speeds. Accelerate to 110 kts. look
out the window, you idiot! This is your first flight! In your own aircraft! That
you built yourself! Enjoy the trip! How about a left turn. At 40 deg. bank. Yes,
feels perfect. Let go of the controls. Yes, it flies perfectly level hands off,
with pilot only and 3 gallons more in the right wing. No need to tweak the
flaps. Great! Decelerate to 85, flaps out again. Trim to 85 kts. at steady
descent. Hit the pattern, establish long final. Hmmm, don´t think we´d make the
runway in case of an engine failure from here, but a perfectly trimmed approach
seems like the way to go to avoid PIO. Let´s see if we can stay on
centreline at 3 feet @ 80 kts. Yes, no problem; things feel good.
Overshoot, climb out at 95, hit the pattern and come back for landing.
Trimmed approach again, uh ooh; them last 30 feet are fast! FLARE - but not too
fast. Nice. Descent arrested at 3 ft. Power back, peep - peep, tires on the
ground. Right rudder needed, nose must look as if pointed slightly to the right
if you want to go straight ahead. Memorize this picture. Flaps up. Vacate
runway and head back for glory.
Celebrate with a cup of coffee. NO DECAF; let
things get a little crazy now.....
Check engine compartment for leaks. Bone dry; everything
looks good. Ooh look; a small dot on the sky to the east. Could that
be..... YES!
It is Per! And so we have the first Lancair meeting, just
15 minutes after my first flight. Does it get any better? More coffee and a
breadroll. Lots of talk. But hey; I am not done flying just yet. I need to get
that gear up and try for some speed. I also need to get some footage, because I
forgot to turn on the cameras until half way through first flight. Per decides
to stay on the apron until I am gone. I´ll let him check my overcenter
links..... Back on runway 10, add power, more power, airborne, 20 ft., hit gear
switch, gear is half way up at apron and, of course, works flawlessly. Hands are
absolutely dry this time; now let´s see what this piece of plastic can do. Must
have fuel anyway, so why not head for Vamdrup. No flutter tests done yet, so
easy on the speed. Prop at 2400, MP at 23", trim and the thing flies hands off
at 175 kts. When done calling base turn, it is way too late.... Must think
further ahead....
Nice landing, head for the engine shop, brag, go to fuel
station, brag, drink more coffee, brag and go out again. Extend the flight back;
why not go for a joy ride, the weather is GREAT! Make turns, make steeper turns,
do a little flutter testing, accelerate to 200 kts., make a low pass at 190 kts.
and come back for landing.
Get aircraft inside, remove cowling and watch the
problems all stacked stack up in front of you. I am actually going to have to
turn the carb heat muff 1/4"; it has been in contact with the cowling.
That is it. Nothing. No leaks. All is good. Aircraft flies straight, speeds as
advertised, controlability no problem, everything precisely as envisioned. In
the good dreams! I have had other dreams too......
Then off to the forgotten duck hunt. Have to; promised to
come 2 months ago. Remember to drink beer. Don´t shoot. Just get the dog wet.
And drink beer.....
WHAT A PERFECT DAY !!!
And now for the Q&A:
Do you love your aircraft more than your
wife?
Yes. Who wouldn´t? Aircraft are loud too, but in a
pleasant way. - And they don´t come with a mother.
Got any photos?
Yes, some of them posted right here. I also have some
footage from a canopy mounted GoPro camera. I bought and installed a sacrificial
el cheapo camera at the RH flap hinge; it actually produces fair footage. I
will try to make a youtube video out of it, perhaps tonight. I will post a link
in case I succeed.
Is first flight really better than your first
child?
Yes. And so are many
hemorrhoids.
Where did you fly it out of?
I flew out of EKHV, Haderslev Airfield, Denmark. Doug
Baleshta routinely flies out of EKHV too :-)
How long? What was tested on the first flight?
First flight was some 20 mins. It was all about getting
airborne, getting to altitude for some shallow turns, some slow flight and a
couple of "landings" at altitude. Of course it was also about getting a
feel for the controls and generally "befriend" the aircraft. I felt instant
love; it behaved exactly as I thought it would, perhaps even better, so there
was no reason to hang around forever, I thought it better to get back down and
make a visual check before the second flight, that would include gear
retraction and SPEED.
How do you feel right now?
Really, really great! It was the best day of my sorry
life; no question about it!
I have a lot of people to thank, especially within this
group. Most people won´t put names on people, probably because they are afraid
to forget somebody. I am not. First of all, I would like to thank the LML´ers in
general. Not only the guys who responded to my questions, but also the guys who
asked the questions I didn´t know I had to ask. THANK YOU !!!
I would like to pay special thanks to
Don Gordon, for showing me his beatiful 320 in Florida
many, many years ago.
Jens Peter Jensen, for answering countless questions and
even giving me a ride in his 320i, also many, many years ago.
Villi Seemann, for countless meals, answers and for
letting me kick his 360 project tires.
Bill & Sue, for many good answers to equally many
stupid questions, for the invaluable motivation, for sharing the Europe trip
description, for sending me that radio and much more.
Weldon Kissler, for letting me have stuff shipped to him
so I could bring it back in my luggage and, of course, for showing me his
beatiful IV.
Chris Skelt, for offering me the same
service!
Per Kristensen, for showing up on the very
day!
Greyhawk, for many, many good answers and, especially, for
great entertainmaint.
Doug Baleshta, for actually showing up in Denmark, for
great motivation and for beer shared.
Christian Meier, for some serious tire kicking in Austria
and for the beautiful videos on youtube.
Randy Snarr, for the extremely motivating videos on
youtube. Nuthin like watching mountain flying in Utah on a dull
day.
Finally a very, very special thank you to Chris
Zavatson, for the countless answers found on your web site, for taking the time
to produce and send me your great cowling, air filter box and plenum
system, the hinge pins and reamer, the tungsten rod and the list goes
on.......
I am sure I have forgotten quite a few. You know who you
are and you will have to bear with me. I did have quite a few beers
yesterday........
Tim Jorgensen
Lancair pilot
360MKIIOB, 100%. Yes, 100%
- eerh.... Do we post tach time from here?
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