First landing and wierd U of MD project
04-14-2003, 07:41 PM
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First landing and wierd U of MD project
Just wanted to share:
Had my first landing yesterday! Hangar 9 Alpha in a blustery shifting wind. Landed on the runway with three small bounces. Almost landed the previous circuit but I had been practicing approaches with my excellent instructor Steve Baker (PGRC) and I decided unilaterally that I would try landing because the approach was going so well. The routine had been that I would approach and hold a good glide path for a while and Steve would say "Full throttle" and I would go around. This time, I got to about 3 feet off the ground and he said "Full throttle". In my mind, I said "I can't this time Steve, I think I would like to actually take this excellent opportunity to have my first ever RC landing and to pause and smell the sweet smell of the grass, feel the sunshine on my face and know that all is pretty much right with my part of the world...".
What actually came out of my mouth was "...I c-c-can't..." and he took control and firewalled it. WOuld have been a good landing too.
Now for the weird UMD project. When I got to the field yesterday, there was a bizarre airplane being assembled in the pits. THe fuselage was a rectangular solid shape roughly the size of a cinder block. THe nose was a cone with a BIG electric motor and a Zinger 20x18 laminated prop. The tail was perched on an upswept boom and all the flying surfaces were fiberglassed blue foam. I looked at it and at the teenagers messing with it and I asked "Science project right? UMD?
Yep, they are preparing for a competition where, among other things, they have to fly a timed course and Carry and drop a five pound rectangular payload. The plane drew much attention and they were there messing with it and sending people back to get forgotten items for most of the day. Nice kids. The stabilator had so much motion that I thought there was no way he could control it. Looked like about four inches total travel and it was a big surface. The pilot assured me he needed it. THey had flown it three times before and had "incidents" each time.
They finally had it ready to go and, needless to say, they had the field to themselves. They set it at the end of the runway and futzed with t for a few minutes then, full throttle. THe big, $400 motor yanked that thing from stop to great guns in just a few feed and in thirty feet the 19lb plane took off, wobbling and barely in control. Suddenly it pitched up and climbed to about 30 ft and stalled. It nosed over and spiraled in. It took all five of them to carry it back to the pit. THe prop was badly dinged but not broken. The former motor was bent and crammed full of dirt and grass and the UMD contest entry was headed back to the drawing board. THey have two more in the construction process and have a few weeks to sort things out.
Go UMD!
Jeff
Had my first landing yesterday! Hangar 9 Alpha in a blustery shifting wind. Landed on the runway with three small bounces. Almost landed the previous circuit but I had been practicing approaches with my excellent instructor Steve Baker (PGRC) and I decided unilaterally that I would try landing because the approach was going so well. The routine had been that I would approach and hold a good glide path for a while and Steve would say "Full throttle" and I would go around. This time, I got to about 3 feet off the ground and he said "Full throttle". In my mind, I said "I can't this time Steve, I think I would like to actually take this excellent opportunity to have my first ever RC landing and to pause and smell the sweet smell of the grass, feel the sunshine on my face and know that all is pretty much right with my part of the world...".
What actually came out of my mouth was "...I c-c-can't..." and he took control and firewalled it. WOuld have been a good landing too.
Now for the weird UMD project. When I got to the field yesterday, there was a bizarre airplane being assembled in the pits. THe fuselage was a rectangular solid shape roughly the size of a cinder block. THe nose was a cone with a BIG electric motor and a Zinger 20x18 laminated prop. The tail was perched on an upswept boom and all the flying surfaces were fiberglassed blue foam. I looked at it and at the teenagers messing with it and I asked "Science project right? UMD?
Yep, they are preparing for a competition where, among other things, they have to fly a timed course and Carry and drop a five pound rectangular payload. The plane drew much attention and they were there messing with it and sending people back to get forgotten items for most of the day. Nice kids. The stabilator had so much motion that I thought there was no way he could control it. Looked like about four inches total travel and it was a big surface. The pilot assured me he needed it. THey had flown it three times before and had "incidents" each time.
They finally had it ready to go and, needless to say, they had the field to themselves. They set it at the end of the runway and futzed with t for a few minutes then, full throttle. THe big, $400 motor yanked that thing from stop to great guns in just a few feed and in thirty feet the 19lb plane took off, wobbling and barely in control. Suddenly it pitched up and climbed to about 30 ft and stalled. It nosed over and spiraled in. It took all five of them to carry it back to the pit. THe prop was badly dinged but not broken. The former motor was bent and crammed full of dirt and grass and the UMD contest entry was headed back to the drawing board. THey have two more in the construction process and have a few weeks to sort things out.
Go UMD!
Jeff
04-14-2003, 08:31 PM
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First landing and wierd U of MD project
Are they prepping for the same type of contest that was written about in Model aviation several months ago? This story was written by an R/C pilot, I believe in the Cincinnati area, where a group of aerodynamic engineering students from the local U recruited the help of his flying club. From what I remember the object of the contest was the same and many students from all over the US had disastrous results trying to re-invent the wheel or wing.
I couldn’t understand why a group of grad students studying the field can’t do what many guys with no engineering degrees have? Design a build an R/C airplane that fly’s.
I couldn’t understand why a group of grad students studying the field can’t do what many guys with no engineering degrees have? Design a build an R/C airplane that fly’s.
04-14-2003, 09:37 PM
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Contest
Sounds the same. One of these guys looked older but I think the rest were under grads. I had the same thought. Doesn't seem that deep to me but I don't know all the constraints.
Wish I'd had a camera.
Wish I'd had a camera.
04-15-2003, 12:55 AM
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First landing and wierd U of MD project
No link Tall Paul, try again. i don't know what the UMD guys were building for, but the contest that I read about was for a load bearing plane. The idea was to add as much weight as possible and still get your plane airborn. I imagine that is a much more difficult task than just building a plane to fly. So maybe those grad students should be cut some slack.
