My new Student Jay

[WJCJR1]

Good Job ATIS with the schooling CHECKSIX is learning Quickly.

CHECKSIX as a new member to HorizonRcFlyers welcome to the forum and the world of R/C Aircraft!

Wayne

[ATIS]

I am very happy to report that Checksix solo'd tonight in 15mph!! From take off to landing with loops, rolls, and a long inverted pass 3/4 around the field in between. He is official an rc pilot!

So now I get to video his P51 maiden this weekend!!

[liquid1]

Cool it want be long he'll have a video up from the T28..Sounds like he's a natural..

[checksix]

Well SOLO flight yesterday went well .... a bit windy again but I was eager to get the solo in and ATIS had just picked up his PZ wildcat and was dying to fly her. Take offs into the wind are effortless and the change in location was different but got used to the light poles and knowing where they were. Had a decent flight but gusts almost made me loose the nose while i was going around the field inverted. Told ATIS thats all for me and lets get the wildcat maiden in. floated around one last time at half throttle and coasted in hard on the nose gear and she bounded like a baby deer ! not pretty at all but was afraid of flaring too much into that wind and stalling her on the tail. much more practice needed ! After that i gave the camera a try and attempted to catch ATIS in the air , much harder than it looks guys ! lol

[checksix]

ATIS gave me a shout and we were off again this evening to get a flight in. As i had promised him a better video of the wildcat. Had to redeem myself after the last one (sorry) We were back at our usual location and i decided i would go up first , i was very eager to show off for my instructor ! had an exuberance of confidence today with a slighty calmer wind (should have been the first clue in my mind) Took off at 3/4 trottle to get a nice rolling lift off . I like the look of a scale take off ! At the end of the field at WOT I stepped on the elevator and banked her to the left on the tip ! beautiful ! I was smiling ear to ear (second clue) After a couple of rolls and split S's and low passes i caught ATIS looking at his watch ! WHAT ! was i boring my instructor ! NO way ! my mind was thinking "show him something" (third clue) I gained some airspeed and went for a big loop directly over us that i was planning on rolling twice out of going straight ahead , As i was coming out on the backside I must have not got her level and the wind pushed me out right over our heads , I stayed committed to rolling out of it and lost orientation over my right shoulder and pulled hard up on the elevator when i caught a glimpse of the wings . . . . . . . . . she was inverted ! That must have been the loudest noise I have ever heard foam make ! It looked like a little cloud of snowflakes ! ATIS and I stared at each other for a moment and started walking over to her 50 yrds away , seemed like it took me an hour to get there. She nosed completely square on the nose. It took both of us and all four arms and hands to pick it all up. Brought her home and started assessing the damage. To my surprise it looked worse than it is. (really) lol. Fuselage is toast ! Broke completely in half at the battery mount, impact pushed the motor through two spars on the motor mount and the cowling is tweaked and scratched but is salvagable with some paint. Thats it ! propeller, motor electrics, wings, canopy , all survived without even scratches ! (oh and the right landing gear popped off but i think i had knocked that loose yesterday with that pogo landing) It did knock everything off the fuse except the decals though ! Got a fuselage and motor mount and cowling coming friday for the rebuild ! LESSON : Never fly beyond your skill level ! As soon as you feel yourself getting cocky , throttle back , and re-assess your skill level. I got way ahead of myself too soon trying to impress the teach. ATIS even warned me about flying a little too much behind us, keep the plane in front of you ! Side note : we did find a aeiloron clevice off the horn post crash that might explain why she just kept rolling but the impact could have done that as well. If i had the parts I would be up tommorow but it does hurt the ego a bit , she never did me wrong learning on her. Ill keep you guys posted on the rebuild and maybe we can video her on Sunday.

[ATIS]

I still swear she is repairable except the motor mount. It did look cool going in so I have to give you bonus points on a quality crash. Its a learning experience and no matter how much you fly your going to have those moments where the plane gets 3 steps ahead of your brain and you end up donking her. Look at me with the Wildcat tonight...donked her.

[ATIS]

I will let Check Six explain the video...

[checksix]

Well while waiting for T-28 fuse to get here we had a good two days of perfect weather and I couldnt just sit back and video ATIS fly his wildcat around. I had to get back up in the air, actually i needed to , so i could quit replaying the T-28 "event" . I was saving the P-51 for that special occasion but ATIS convinced me I was ready. Mind you there was a bit of wind , we werent at our usual location , this was the maiden for this beautiful plane , it was my first hand launch ever , AND i was coming off a crash. Needless to say i was shaking again. The PZ P-51 flies great ! Hand launch was easy at 3/4 stick just make sure you throw the wings level ! In the air she was definately quicker than the T-28 I learned on . Very quick response on the surfaces and didnt tail shake into the wind. Again the flight was short without any special manuvers but then again this time all i was thinking in my head was "you are still a rookie" "you are still a rookie" Hopefully weather cooperates and I can let her loose a little next time up. She is a great second plane with spirited handling but yet docile enough to fly around at half stick. I havent added the rudder but I didnt notice the need for it on the maiden. Time will tell if I add it on or leave it stock.

[liquid1]

The P51 is a good looking War Bird..Good to know the rudder is not noticed Looks like it would make a great bush plane.

[checksix]

Well folks the learning continues ! Last event before the site upgrade Was about 2 weeks ago where ATIS and I flew my PZ P-51 ( first hand launch ever ). As to keeping my promise on my training log. I believe i have 8 flights on the P-51 since that first video. She is a very stable platform to fly even when a bit windy. Has plenty of power and ATIS recently "juiced" my settings to where she is rolling and flying the way a warbird was intended to fly ! I have even flown with CRASH27 and his P-51 trying to chase his tail around the field TIP: as hard as you want to watch the other plane , ALWAYS watch yours ! especially when it's thw same style of bird ! No incidents to report thankfully , and we did actually got a 0 wind day one afternoon last week ! ATIS and I couldnt resist and we took off with mustang and wildcat in tow ! WOW what had i been missing ! I now know that i was spoiled that day ! The planes were so smooth and precise ! I wont want to go back to flying in the wind after that day lol. I havent flown the other PZ warbirds yet , but as far as the P-51 goes she is great. My second plane and is tame enough for me and still has the lines and power to keep me happy for some time to come, would highly recommend her as a second or third plane. And i still havent noticed not having a rudder but then again I'm still learning, future upgrade ?