ORIGINAL: Campgems
ORIGINAL: bruce88123
I tell my students to stay closer and lower than you were flying so they can tell what is going on better. A guy shooting landings with a warbird doesn't need you to be flying in the next county or in the stratosphere. Sure give him some room but you have rights too. It would also make it easier to find your plane in this case. If he can't tolerate you being at a reasonable place in the sky then he can stay on the ground if you were there first.
Sorry you lost your plane. It can also be a cracked crystal or intermittant RX problem caused by the previous crash.
I was definatly to far out to get a good look at what was going on. I just get a little tense when there is another plane in the air near me, and I give them all the room I can. Maybe to much in this case.
Laying in bed last night going over what happened and what may have lead up to the crash, two incidents came to mind that may have been pre-cursors to the crash. I fly on Monday, Wed and Fri, so the first would have been last Friday when the plane went dead throttle on a landing approach and ended up in the weeds next to the runway. I couldn't get it to throttle up, but the prop was still turning when it touched down. I attributed it to a low end mix problem and made an adjustment and the engine was running really well after. I had one other incident, again on landing and this one I chalked up to dumb thumbs and a stall at about two feet up. Both could have been the receiver stuttering I guess.
I sat down last night and built up a shopping list for what I lost. I about choaked on the final price at Towers list prices. I included every screw, collar, glue, covering, etc in the list and this little plane had $807.14 worth of parts at list prices. Those 5 and 10 dollar trips to the hobby shop sure add up quick don't they.
Yep, when the plane ignores you it's time to find out why. It gave you fair warning and you missed it unfortunately. For some reason you lost radio contact on BOTH occasions and the second time it cost you your plane.[
] A trip to the radio Dr. for the radio system would have been a lot cheaper than what you are going through now. Ain't hindsight great?
Assuming you do find the plane, I recommend you send EVERYTHING in the radio system to a shop for a check-up. RX, batteries, switches, anything that flew. Sent the TX too if you suspect it in ANY way or if you have changed the crystal yourself. ANY damaged switches on the TX? I broke my trainer switch on mine and lost a plane because it dropped into "instructor mode" in mid-flight and I couldn't regain control of my plane.