Twister

For what it's worth, I gleaned all the accident reports for the year-to-date from this site:

http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/dblist.php?Country=N


http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=148131


http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=147613


http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=147496


http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=147273


http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=146862


http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=146862


http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=146568


http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=146541


http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=145510


http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=144639


http://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=141985

They're not all that informative, but have some info in some cases; one has video of the event. Both survived.

Av8r, what wings do your Mark 4's have on them? Have you described them anywhere? Do you have stock gear or wide gear? When you use flaps (flaperons?), are there any special cautions to follow when slipping with 20°? I've heard stories, but don't know the level of competence of the authors. If you lost an engine or power on approach, what procedures would you follow?

Thanks again!

Waal, I can't even spel electrishun, so I sympathize with him. Luckily, I have y'all and an 82-year-old buddy who is an A&P to be my guardian angels.

Thanks Av8r, I've got a lot to learn, and if I ever get off the ground again, this kind of information will be a big help in getting me trained up.

Thanks, Ed. I've been flying since '62, but not that many hours and have been on the ground for close to fifteen years now. I flew quite a variety of aircraft, from champs to T-34's, but I liked the Citabria the best. The fact that you've survived all those years says a lot about the value of your ideas and advice. I'm 74, and with the exception of a few ailments and broken pieces, just as eager to fly as I was in '62. I will have to fly sport rules if I manage to get a good bird cheap enough, and my wife thinks I'm crazy (she's usually right), but if I can clear those obstacles, I may yet get into the air again, largely thanks to you and your amis on this great site!

I'm just a newbie cheechako from the extreme SW of the 48, but I just want to wish y'all the best and say that being a bush pilot in Alaska was my boyhood dream that I never realized. I have the greatest respect for you, and am sorry this happened to you. I wish I was capable of helping you.

Accident reports?

Stimulated by the recent report of three losses of LSA pilots in departure accidents, I started trying to find accident reports by aircraft name. No luck yet? Any ideas?

I also looked on this site for an accident category, but didn't find one. Did I miss it or is there none?

Oops! I may have jumped the gun in my earlier responses to this post--newbie ignorance again? If this wing causes excessive floating, could that mess up short-field landings in the absence of something to kill lift at the right moment? This reminds me of yet another question--slipping. With a plane that glides like a rock anyway, if one wanted to clear some obstacles on approach and "hit" the threshold on or before "the numbers," does one use flaperons, slip, or both without taking out the gear or something even more precious? Really, I'm that ignorant of how these aircraft are operated . . .

MOST interesting! Makes me wonder if this mod might be for me--not so much that I care about the speed, but I am interested in the lower end of the operating envelope. Might I still get reasonable short field performance out of the Riblett airfoil? Would I need to lengthen the fuselage to hang the 912 on one? Is the Riblett wing interchangeable with the speedwing; if not, what changes need to be made? I'm thinking of buying a Mark 4 with a speedwing, and was thinking of changing it out for the STOL wing, but now I'm not so sure . . .

Please note: I did NOT intentionally place that "emoticon" at the end of my comment, I put three question marks and the software added the emoticon. I NEVER use emoticons!

I must say that I am very sorry you lost three friends.

Did the accidents have anything in particular in common except being STOL aircraft? That is, what is causing the accidents? Does it have to do with the aircraft being too light (lacking sufficient mass to maintain forward momentum, as one respondent mentioned), the steep angle of descent, an inability to gain enough airspeed by diving to execute a flare and/or losing too much altitude in that process, or failure to quickly enough get the nose down and execute said maneuver, climbing out at a best angle of climb speed that is too close to stall speed, or what? Are these aircraft capable of quickly trading altitude for sufficient flying speed before the loss of the available altitude if one gets the stick forward fast enough and far enough?

I'm only a newbie speculating, but here arises another question: If these very light aircraft are designed to make tight turns safely, would spiraling upward at a lower angle of attack (best rate of climb or faster--fast enough to be safely fast enough in a tight turn to avoid a stall with a sufficient margin of safety?) rather than climbing more steeply (best angle of climb speed?) be an option? I'm thinking that such a procedure might keep the speed up and the aircraft closer to the field of departure until enough altitude was gained. How much altitude would be needed for recovery in each of those cases? This gets me to wondering which engines and operating procedures were involved, and whether some engines are more prone to failure (especially on takeoff) than others.

This is all making me wonder whether or not to go for the STOL light sports and be content with a performance envelope and design that would not be so prone to departure stalls (or even straight-ahead stalls with aircraft that require more altitude to recover than is available).

What do ya'll think of a Mark 4 with speed wing and a Jaibru engine?

My mission is primarily operating off back-country roads (IF I can realistically trailer it and fold/unfold the wings in minutes rather than hours--also a gimpy one-man operation, with a little assistance from my wife sometimes), but I would like to fly it in and out of airports if necessary, and do some x-country in a pinch.

I'm also wondering just how much STOL performance I would be suffering with the Rotax 912 and a ground-adjustable prop?

Thanks much!

Thanks a BUNCH to everybody!

Here's what I think I may want after reading y'all's comments: Avid or Kitfox (I'm a little worried about the round cowl reducing visibility while taxiing) with the Bluehead 2-stroke, with wider gear and lengthened wings and fuselage. I say "Bluehead" because I've heard bad things about the "Grayhead," but straighten me out if that's horsepucky. I don't know enough about 2-strokes except that they sound awful and the two-strokes I've used on other things seem to like to quit with any power adjustments. Maybe with the lighter 2-stroke I wouldn't need the longer fuselage, but I'm thinking that it might improve directional stability. Yes, no? Not worth it? Also, I'm still a little confused about the tail wheel problem--I've flown a Citabria with a Maule tailwheel, and thought it was better than the stock one--that's why I wanted to know why it was "crappy."

I wonder about trim. Can they be trimmed out for hands-off cruise? Does one have to stand on the rudder all the time?

I'm 5'11" and 200 with ten pounds of clothes on and 36" Levis are a little tight. I've seen a Kitfox on the ground, and they look cramped for two people, but I've never sat in one. My wife is smaller, but I doubt I could get her in it once, and no doubt never again after a steep descent. I've flown a Tri-Pacer and I thought it glided like a rock, but it had too little power and too much drag to be a decent STOL--it's been a while, but I remember the climb rate as pretty anemic. The comment about losing three friends to takeoff power failures is, well, unimpressive. No, spooky! But thanks for the frankness.

I've already used the plane parachute idea on my wife, so if I have a heart attack she can just float herself and my carcass to the ground, but I suspect that would not be an option close to the rocks.

Seriously, does the longer wing improve glide ratio much, and are there any other downsides to that mod?

THANKS agin, y'all!

Can you be a bit more specific about the "crappy" Maule tailwheel? Are you referring to all Maule tailwheels or just the one you had?

Can anybody update me on this? I'm looking for an Avid or Kitfox in flying condition, but if re-covering is all that is needed, this one might bear looking at. I've been having a lot of trouble getting advertisers to respond or when they do, stay in touch long enough to close a deal. One on barnstormers turned out to have a broken fuselage member, but when I inquired further about the details, the guy mysteriously shut down on me and didn't return calls or emails. Nice guy too. I hope he's ok.

Here's my email for anyone who wants to contact me directly: landrest@cox.net