kram

My Feedback: (7)

Shown is my three-pilot team that nearly completed a complex 15-mile cross-country (field-to-field) with a modified Aerostar 60.

We had much less than ideal weather conditions: 56 deg, southeast wind 30 mph gusting to 45 mph. We really did a good job till the last 200 yards! A headwind gust (combined wind+truck speed=80-90 mph) blew my shades off. During the 1-2 seconds that I was blinded by wind and bright, the plane rolled right and dived.

The shades were found on the center line, unscratched.

mt

kram

My Feedback: (7)

Where'd the picture go?! The wind must have blown it off course.

mt

brownknows

How do you know there is no frequency interference along the path you will take?

What type of modifications did you make to the plane in order to make this flight?

Thanks!

smokingcrater

I can't speak for kram, but I've witnessed a couple of cross country flights here in ND. as far as interference, not a problem, the population is spread out that it isn't even a concern. flying fields are seperated by relatively HUGE distances.

as far as modifications, all you need is a comfortable chair in the back of a pickup. 15 miles isn't much for a plane, 30 minutes at 30 mph, most trainers fly faster then that.

kram-RCU

The fuselage was remodeled to fit a 32 oz tank, which keeps the O.S. 70 FS going full throttle for 41 minutes.

I hooked up a 2,000 mA receiver battery to make sure we had enough juice for the flight.

I drove the route with plane in truck and receiver 'on' to check for interference, and I had both frequency boards covered.

I agree with the above statement that cross-country isn't that hard. Trees, gravel roads, but especially the 6 miles of >30 mph headwind and crosswind made this one challenging.

mt

FHHuber

IF you can... its best to have the pilot's chair (and seats for anyone else riding back there...) be a seat from some passenger car... and to bolt in mounting rails and a seatbelt. This is for safety of the guy(s) sitting back there in case of an accident.

The Subaru "Brat" was good for cross country flights... it came with 2 seats in the small pickup bed that had seatbelts. Convertibles and soft-top Jeeps work well.

In many states... its illegal to be in the bed of the pick-up truck if you don't have an appropriate seat and seatbelt.

You already found out about the need for something to hold the pilot's safety glasses on. (you do need safety glasses or shatter resistant sunglasses to keep the random insect from whacking him you the eye.)

scottrc

Did the plane have an autopilot? Of coarse, in a 30 mph wind, may have been useless. I have one on my Eagle for "backroad" flying and training, it seems to make the plane harder to handle in high winds. But just curious. Might have kept the plane level enough to give you time to recover. I know when flying x-country, there are many times you have to take your eye off the plane. If I can, I fly with a co-pilot on a buddy cord just in case one of us gets a bug splat, loses balance, or gets distracted. Good ideas for redundant backups for your next flight.

Scott

kram-RCU

No, we did not.

Good suggestions.

The plane required constant input in that wind. As far as I know, the sunglasses incident was the first millisecond that the pilot(s) had not been in constant visual contact with the plane. My co-pilots had: a) very little time to figure it out and take over, and b) no ability to communicate with me in the howl of 80-90 mph wind.

mt

Geistware

My Feedback: (16)

Good job on your almost successful flight.
When is your next attempt?

kram

My Feedback: (7)

Well, I've bought a new 32 oz fuel tank and dug the dirt out of the engine, but that's all so far. I'm still recovering from the inevitable post-crash blues, and the weather here still sucks (or should I say blows?).

mt

iowanspctr

Was this the cross-country into E Paul Johnson field by Grimes last week-end? I almost came out but didn't think you'd try it on such a day! Anyway, congratulations on a near success on a really challenging day-

kram-RCU

We flew out of the Modelaires' Elkhart field into CIA's Cambridge field. Mostly north on S14, west on 290th (Strautman Tree farm road), then south on Cambridge blacktop. That route avoids all populated areas. 14.8 miles. We were gonna fly it the other direction, but reversed it that morning because of the wind. I crashed 200 yds north of our field just south of the Skunk River bridge.

mt

iowanspctr

Yeah, I mis-spoke, E Paul Johnson is the field by Elkhart-the other club field is by Grimes-

IowaSilvia

My Feedback: (97)

Not to be really rude. But use some common sense. I live in iowa and that day was so windy, you're lucky to keep a vehicle going in a straight line, let alone getting an airplane to go 15 miles. I hope to go flying tomorrow. suppose to be mid 40's and south wind. If it's over 10-15 mph i don't even bother flying.. just isn't any fun..........just my 2 cents.........

kram-RCU

Not rude at all!

RC flyers in Iowa seem divided into 2 basic groups: those who fly in wind and those who don't.

I belong to the former group who revels in the thrills and skills (and, yes, sometimes kills) of windy days.

Sometimes I'll go out on really windy days just to see if I can. If nothing else, it adds to the available days for flying in this sometimes tempestuous region. "Earl", one of the pioneers of RC in this area was fond of saying: If you don't fly on windy days in Iowa, You ain't gonna be flyin' much!"

mt

claikens

I would like to add a few comments here. Yes, we were definitely crazy for attempting this flight on such a windy day. But on the plus side, since the sky was very overcast, there was no need to worry about where the sun was. I flew through the sun a couple of times without any trouble. The suggestion of using a buddy cord is a good one and probably would have saved the plane. However, I don't believe that an autopilot would have saved it since we were only about 20 feet (at most) off the ground when MT's sunglasses blew off.

I will say that trying this was definitely a blast. Flying the plane while you are moving definitely takes a bit of getting used to, especially with a 30+ mph tailwind I look forward to trying this again.

Skribnod

Since your from iowa I would have thought you may have gone with a SIG rascal......110". I own a big rascal and they have a 9lb payload capacity. Thats 1 extra gallon of fuel. With a First Place 1.3 engine and a 23oz tank it flies for app. 23 minutes. With the extra 1 gallon capacity wieght load........fly for hours. Non stop flight would probably be 2 1/2 hours added on. I use 2300 mah batteries in reciever and transmitter, this gives me 4 1/2 hour radio tiem before recharge and 4 hours reciever time. Hmmmmmmm maybe I should fly down some time and visit you .LOL

kram

My Feedback: (7)

Now THAT would be cross-country...toolin' down I-35!!

Our experience with strong tailwind is that 70-90 mph, even with a trainer, is NO PROBLEM.

Of course, state troopers and AMA rules...now that would be a problem.

How does the Rascal handle in strong wind? A couple of guys in our club have them, but I've never seen them fly in wind. Of course, they may handle quite differently (better?) with a gallon of fuel on board. You know, I think a gallon of fuel only weighs about six pounds, so if you've really got a 9 pound payload capacity, you could really go a long way. Would it get off the ground with an O.S. 70 FS?? That engine burns a quart of fuel every 45 minutes at full throttle, giving you a theoretical 4-1/2 hours at @70 mph=300+ miles....Get out in a deserted part of Kansas or N. Dakota with a few pilots and a driver and go till you drop!

Oh, sure, there are some minor technical details, like: How do you fit 6 quarts of fuel in that skinny little fuselage? But it's fun to dream.

mt

Skribnod

The smaller rascal is so light the wind likes to blow it around. As for the big rascal it handles better in the wind , probably because of the weight diff. I have a Super Tigre 2300 in it right now but that is sucha a gas hog so im thinking of swicthing engines in the next few weeks. The first place engine is a good gas engine and the airplane was bassically designed around it from what the sig guys say. As far as the 70 size engine I dont think it would pull it off the ground . The big rascal weights in at around 12-13 lbs depending on engine used. People fly them with the saito 150-180 amd seem to love this combo too. All I know is if the thing has a flame out and you can still see the airplane......you can still make it to the runway. LOL The rascal has a glidepath so long it should have flaps(and a anchor to throw out the window). The fuse is skinny but very long (75"). I actually have a full size pilot in my cockpit with a servo under his chair so he can "look" both directions. My buddy's get a kick out of that one!