By the way, video of meeting my Q2, and our first flight...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVU5jkLoAWY

What elevator trim setting are you using? Mine has elevator trim set close ot full nose-up, with friction almost locked. Most of the trimming is then done with the reflexor on the ailerons, usually set somewhere between neutral and nose-down. Hope that helps!

Sent via mobile.
On Jun 30, 2011 3:07 PM, "Sanjay Dhall" <sdhall@...> wrote:

Flight #4 - Tuesday June 28, 2011 10am
KYIP temp 77F winds 280@11 sunny
Did not fly yesterday at it was windy and gusty with significant

crosswind.

Today the forecast was for winds from 270-280 at 11knots, then turning

gusty

later.
This wind direction could work for slightly increased difficulty if using
runway 27.
Checked ATIS before getting started and winds were 280@12 .
My goal today was to do a couple of touch-n-go's at YIP and then depart

the

airport, and go atleast 10miles away from airport. Ann Arbor airport (ARB)
is 10nm West and could be a good second airport to do a touch-n-go and

then

head to a practice area to the North. I would use rwy 26 at ARB.
Taxied, and engine runup and cleared to rwy 27 and now tower announced

winds

300 @ 12 .
This was getting slightly iffy, but at 12 knots at 30 degree to the right,
this could be tough (but manageable?)
Decided to continue. Added right aileron to adjust for winds. Added full
power and within 5 seconds the nose dipped ( the wing had lifted). Added

aft

stick, but the plane was not ready to leave ground yet. This was unusual

and

different from earlier (low wind) conditions. So fearing a prop strike, I
added more aft stick and the plane lifted off, then drifted left and

wanted

to settle down again. This did not look good. I kept the aft stick

pressure

and it finally gained speed and began climbing out. Once away from ground,
it was similar to my earlier experience. Indicated speed about 120, climb
rate passed through 500-700-1000-1200. Alt now 1000 agl. So began leveling
off to settle into right pattern for a couple of touch-n-go's. Made wide
right pattern to get flying time. Tower now anounced winds 300 @14 gusts

18.

I made a very long and what looked to be a stable approach, right canard
low, crossed numbers, continued glide. Close to the ground became nervous

of

having a bounce, and added power a few seconds sooner than I should have.

No

contact with ground, and climbed out. Drifted left during early climbout.
Back for another attempt. Similar approach, continued glide, wheels

touched,

and I felt a bounce coming. Added power and climbed out before second
contact.
Ann Arbor visit was now not part of the plan, due to significant crosswind
(for rwy26, the only hard surface rwy). So I departed the pattern, and
headed north. This would give me a break from the stressful, and sweat
inducing, touch-n-go's just attempted, and would let me just fly and see

the

view and be away from the airport even for a short while. Today oil temp

was

higher at 200f, pressure was the usual 40. Settled rpm around 2200-2300.
Puttered around for a few minutes and wandered about 12nm away from field.
Then turned around and wanted to come back to airport for touch-n-go.

Winds

still 300 @14 with some gusts. Long stable approach and right canard low.
Close to the ground, made contact with right wheel first, I think, then

the

others, then a float and drifted with nose pointing sginificantly left of
centerline and plane heading for left edge of rwy. Added power in a hurry,
and climbed out. Went around for an action replay. This is getting

tiresome.

But as I analyze this, I conclude that for right crosswinds, a fwd slip

(rt

stick, left rudder) is OK in the air but on the ground right stick induces
tail to the right, nose to the left, as does left rudder. So I would need

to

reduce right stick and add right rudder quickly on contact. On the next go
around reduced right stick, reduced left rudder, and came in fairly level,
and managed to keep this position all the way to the ground, and finally
contact, NO BOUNCE. Now if the tail will settle down, which it did,

followed

by the pedal dance. Back on terra firma. What an experience. But I learned

a

lot.
Came back and thought about the entire flight a lot. On the takeoff, where
the nose tucked early (wing is flying, but canard is not ready) I am
thinking this has to do with the distance from ground. Wing is higher off
the ground, while canard is 10-18 inches off the ground. This means that
when windy, the air passing over the wings is free air at prevailing wind
speed (full lift), while the canard experience slower air closer to ground
(less lift). So for next flight I need to experiement with reflexor trim -

I

plan to add a few notches UP reflexor trim for takeoff in windy

conditions.

Total cumulative hobbs time 3.0 hrs 4 flights.
Flight #5 - Wednesday June 29, 2011 8pm
KYIP temp 78F winds 300@4 clear evening
Today I wanted to overcome my renewed fear of the Q, experiment with
Reflexor settings, go away from airport a little, and teach myself to land
again!
Tookoff from rwy23L, with 2 notches of up reflexor. It did not hurt any,

and

reduced the nose tuck tendency slightly. Made big left pattern, calm
conditions, checked view, and generally tried to become friends with the Q
again. Added a little down reflexor trim in small increments. Nothing
adverse happened - good. Back to a slight up reflexor on final. Long
approach and being afraid of a bounce, barely touched the ground and added
power and climbed out. Next landing, long approach, 110 on final turn,
slight up reflexor, and just concentrated on meeting the ground level and
gracefully, leveled close to ground then waited patiently for contact. No
bounce. Added power, and climbed out again. And then did another

touch-n-go

with similar outcome. I was feeling better now. So requested departing

north

for a few minutes. Flew 12-13 miles north, then saw Mettetal airport

(EAA113

chapter homebase) to the southeast, and decided to fly over. Some friends
below shouted hello on the radio, remarked on the flying Q. Circled and
headed back to YIP for more touch-n-gos. Did 2 more landings on 23R, all
without bounce, and then the final one on 23L, and no bounce again. Taxied
back for fuel and back to hangar. What a pleasant experience this had

been.

Total cumulative hobbs time 4.0 hrs 5 flights.
Returned home in an upbeat state of mind, not realizing that tragic news
awaited ... of a close friend's death in a plane crash nearby, who's
airplane, on a routine biannual flight review, slammed into the side of a
house near short final, cause yet unknown. (sorry guys!)
thanks
Sanjay

Trying to get my TRIQ200 flying. Got to 75kts but it wouldn't get airbourne. I think the angle of attack of the canard isn't enough i.e. tail too high or nose too low. What height is the prop boss from the ground on other owners' aircraft? How high is the tail from the ground? Anyone any solution e.g. extending the nose leg?
Mick Davies
G-BWIZ

The other day I was approaching my TriQ200 on the ramp and noticed the main gear legs were bowed out farther than usual, bringing the fuselage (and especially the tail) several inches lower than normal. Getting in, the tail actually came to rest on the ground. The local maintenance shop's fiberglas guy (a Long-EZ builder) suspects it may be resin softening due to heat from excessive braking as he's seen in early EZ's. I doubt that, as I simply have not used it enough to account for that. We are in Arizona, but he doesn't think the heat here would be enough for what we are seeing. Perhaps I unknowingly ride the brakes every time? Even so, this seems excessive, and I've not read anything about this issue. Hoping I don't have to replace the entire thing, as I would rather spend that money on a new CS prop. Thanks in advance for letting me pick your collective brains.

Flight #4 - Tuesday June 28, 2011 10am
KYIP temp 77F winds 280@11 sunny
Did not fly yesterday at it was windy and gusty with significant crosswind.
Today the forecast was for winds from 270-280 at 11knots, then turning gusty
later.
This wind direction could work for slightly increased difficulty if using
runway 27.
Checked ATIS before getting started and winds were 280@12 .
My goal today was to do a couple of touch-n-go's at YIP and then depart the
airport, and go atleast 10miles away from airport. Ann Arbor airport (ARB)
is 10nm West and could be a good second airport to do a touch-n-go and then
head to a practice area to the North. I would use rwy 26 at ARB.
Taxied, and engine runup and cleared to rwy 27 and now tower announced winds
300 @ 12 .
This was getting slightly iffy, but at 12 knots at 30 degree to the right,
this could be tough (but manageable?)
Decided to continue. Added right aileron to adjust for winds. Added full
power and within 5 seconds the nose dipped ( the wing had lifted). Added aft
stick, but the plane was not ready to leave ground yet. This was unusual and
different from earlier (low wind) conditions. So fearing a prop strike, I
added more aft stick and the plane lifted off, then drifted left and wanted
to settle down again. This did not look good. I kept the aft stick pressure
and it finally gained speed and began climbing out. Once away from ground,
it was similar to my earlier experience. Indicated speed about 120, climb
rate passed through 500-700-1000-1200. Alt now 1000 agl. So began leveling
off to settle into right pattern for a couple of touch-n-go's. Made wide
right pattern to get flying time. Tower now anounced winds 300 @14 gusts 18.
I made a very long and what looked to be a stable approach, right canard
low, crossed numbers, continued glide. Close to the ground became nervous of
having a bounce, and added power a few seconds sooner than I should have. No
contact with ground, and climbed out. Drifted left during early climbout.
Back for another attempt. Similar approach, continued glide, wheels touched,
and I felt a bounce coming. Added power and climbed out before second
contact.
Ann Arbor visit was now not part of the plan, due to significant crosswind
(for rwy26, the only hard surface rwy). So I departed the pattern, and
headed north. This would give me a break from the stressful, and sweat
inducing, touch-n-go's just attempted, and would let me just fly and see the
view and be away from the airport even for a short while. Today oil temp was
higher at 200f, pressure was the usual 40. Settled rpm around 2200-2300.
Puttered around for a few minutes and wandered about 12nm away from field.
Then turned around and wanted to come back to airport for touch-n-go. Winds
still 300 @14 with some gusts. Long stable approach and right canard low.
Close to the ground, made contact with right wheel first, I think, then the
others, then a float and drifted with nose pointing sginificantly left of
centerline and plane heading for left edge of rwy. Added power in a hurry,
and climbed out. Went around for an action replay. This is getting tiresome.
But as I analyze this, I conclude that for right crosswinds, a fwd slip (rt
stick, left rudder) is OK in the air but on the ground right stick induces
tail to the right, nose to the left, as does left rudder. So I would need to
reduce right stick and add right rudder quickly on contact. On the next go
around reduced right stick, reduced left rudder, and came in fairly level,
and managed to keep this position all the way to the ground, and finally
contact, NO BOUNCE. Now if the tail will settle down, which it did, followed
by the pedal dance. Back on terra firma. What an experience. But I learned a
lot.
Came back and thought about the entire flight a lot. On the takeoff, where
the nose tucked early (wing is flying, but canard is not ready) I am
thinking this has to do with the distance from ground. Wing is higher off
the ground, while canard is 10-18 inches off the ground. This means that
when windy, the air passing over the wings is free air at prevailing wind
speed (full lift), while the canard experience slower air closer to ground
(less lift). So for next flight I need to experiement with reflexor trim - I
plan to add a few notches UP reflexor trim for takeoff in windy conditions.
Total cumulative hobbs time 3.0 hrs 4 flights.
Flight #5 - Wednesday June 29, 2011 8pm
KYIP temp 78F winds 300@4 clear evening
Today I wanted to overcome my renewed fear of the Q, experiment with
Reflexor settings, go away from airport a little, and teach myself to land
again!
Tookoff from rwy23L, with 2 notches of up reflexor. It did not hurt any, and
reduced the nose tuck tendency slightly. Made big left pattern, calm
conditions, checked view, and generally tried to become friends with the Q
again. Added a little down reflexor trim in small increments. Nothing
adverse happened - good. Back to a slight up reflexor on final. Long
approach and being afraid of a bounce, barely touched the ground and added
power and climbed out. Next landing, long approach, 110 on final turn,
slight up reflexor, and just concentrated on meeting the ground level and
gracefully, leveled close to ground then waited patiently for contact. No
bounce. Added power, and climbed out again. And then did another touch-n-go
with similar outcome. I was feeling better now. So requested departing north
for a few minutes. Flew 12-13 miles north, then saw Mettetal airport (EAA113
chapter homebase) to the southeast, and decided to fly over. Some friends
below shouted hello on the radio, remarked on the flying Q. Circled and
headed back to YIP for more touch-n-gos. Did 2 more landings on 23R, all
without bounce, and then the final one on 23L, and no bounce again. Taxied
back for fuel and back to hangar. What a pleasant experience this had been.
Total cumulative hobbs time 4.0 hrs 5 flights.
Returned home in an upbeat state of mind, not realizing that tragic news
awaited ... of a close friend's death in a plane crash nearby, who's
airplane, on a routine biannual flight review, slammed into the side of a
house near short final, cause yet unknown. (sorry guys!)
thanks
Sanjay

Hey Alan,
I updated the link on the QBA Events Page as well!

Cheers,
Dan Yager
QBA Editor
www.quickheads.com

All Tandem-Wingers!

As the 10th Anniversary Livermore Fly-in is drawing ever closer, Sam and i wantto let you know that the official event website is now posted, chalk-full ofgreat information you'll need in making plans to attend!? You'll findinformation about our very special guest speaker, Marc Zeitlin, as well asspecial rates we have negotiated for hotel accommodations.? If you havenever flown your plane in to Livermorein the past, you'll also find? handy arrival information, and picturesfrom past events.
Please do check out the newly-posted Fly-in website at:

www.trinitylyricopera.org/livermore.flyin

Once again this year, the Extended Stay hotel is offering a special discount rate formembers of our group, so when you call to make your reservations, pleasemention the "Fly-in Discount" to lock in your rate of $64.99 pernight.?? For less money, you can check Hotwire dot com for the Studio Inn Motel, on Portola Avenue. You might also do better at another hotel with a littledetective work on the internet, but many of you have stayed at the Extended Stay inthe past, and the location can't be any closer to the airport facilities.

As he did last year, our airport Manager has also extended free overnighttie-down use of the transient parking area, but you will need to register yourtail number upon arrival with the kind folks at the desk in the TerminalBuilding, otherwise you very well might receive a nice little bill in the maillater!


Don't forget the dates:? August 26 - 28, 2011.


Once again, we welcome the biggest crowd ever for this year's 10th Anniversaryevent, and? look forward to meeting many newcomers as well!? Keepchecking our website for any changes or additions to information alreadyposted.?

See you all soon in Livermore, KLVK!

Alan Thayer and Sam Kittle,? Livermore Fly-in Co-hosts

Congratulations, Simon. What a privilege!

Very nice description, too.

Sam Hoskins
Murphysboro, IL

On Tue, Jun 28, 2011 at 6:30 PM, Simon Wilson <quickieq2uk@...>wrote:

**


Hi guys,

I know this isn't directly Quickie related but I had a first flight today
that I thought I should share with you all. Although not a Quickie the the
aircraft is just as interesting none the less.

Today I flew a Fairey Swordfish MkII biplane for the first time. It was an
absolutely amazing experience. For those of you that have never heard of it,
it is a Second World War Torpedo Bomber that saw action with the Royal Navy
at the Battle of Taranto and helped sink the Bismarck during the Battle of
the Atlantic. It was also involved in many other actions during the Second
World War. The example I flew today actually took part in the Battle of the
Atlantic in 1943. It is unique in that it is currently the only airworthy
Swordfish in the world and it is still owned and operated by the Royal Navy
and flown on the military register to military regulations, more details can
be found at http://www.royalnavyhistoricflight.org.uk there is also some
info on wiki about the Swordfish.

The Swordfish is a rather large aircraft when you get up close to it and is
only marginally smaller than an Antonov AN-2 biplane. It has a single set of
controls in the pilot's cockpit as the rear cockpits were for an Observer
and a Telgraphist Air Gunner. The three cockpits are open to the elements
and it gets rather windy and noisy particularly the rear cockpits. The
conversion to type is fairly unique in that your first sortie involves
standing in the rear cockpit looking over the shoulder of a pilot
experienced on type. He demonstrates a take off, a few general handling
manoeuvres and a landing. He then taxis in and keeping the engine running we
swap cockpits, then I fly the same profile he has just shown me with him
looking over my shoulder although I should do a few more circuits when we
return to the field.

The Swordfish has a 750hp Bristol Pegasus radial engine on the front and
weighs around 7600lb. It is a fairly draggy beast and burns about 40
imperial gallons of AVGAS per hour at 90kt. (I'll never complain about fuel
burn again in anything else I fly!)

She is pretty docile for such a big tail dragger and leaps off the runway
at about 60kt. Climb is a rather sedate 70kt doing around 500fpm. Despite
being so big the controls are pretty light but does require fairly large
bootfuls of rudder to maintain balance in turns. She is very manoeuvrable
and will turn on a sixpence, the roll rate is surprisingly spritely for such
a large aircraft. As you fly along you can see the valve gear and springs
tapping away on the cylinder heads in front of you, a sight to behold
especially if you love mechanical things.

Unfortunately I had to cut the sortie short due to the oil pressure being
abnormally low as we levelled off and I elected to return to the field,
discretion being the better part of valour and all that! It turned out to be
an air bubble in the capillary to the oil gauge thankfully.

I rejoined the field and set up for my first landing. A fairly daunting
prospect when you are flying the only currently airworthy example of type in
the world (it's not your common as muck Mustang or Spitfire you know)!

The landing was fairly straight forward and I had a 12kt crosswind 50
degrees off the runway. I set it up for a tail down wheeler and managed
grease her onto the runway first time. The landing was a none event,
although you do have to get used being sat with your eyeline about 10ft off
the runway.

Taxying is the most difficult aspect about operating a Swordfish especially
when there is a bit of wind to contend with. She has a large side area and
likes to weather cock when taxying crosswind. The tailwheel is free
castoring and the brakes are pneumatic. The pneumatic brakes inflate a
bladder that the brake pads are attached to, this then expands against the
brake drum giving you braking action. The brake lever is on the spade grip
of the control column and is differential when you move the rudder bar in
the appropriate direction. The problem with pneumatic brakes are that they
expend air faster than it is replenished by the engine driven compressor,
especially when taxying at low RPM so you run out of brake pressure very
quickly in windy conditions. You also have to anticipate the brakes as there
is lag in the system as the pressure builds and dissipates after you operate
the brake lever.

Overall it has been a privilege as a serving Naval Aviator to fly such an
historic and iconic aircraft, particularly one with genuine WW2 combat
provenance. It was an awe inspiring experience and I look forward to
displaying the Swordfish to the British public at airshows around the UK
this summer. As I write this and reflect on my first sortie I can't believe
how lucky I am to fly this wonderful machine.

On the Quickie front I hope to have my Q2 flying in August again and that
is another unique taildragger I can't wait to fly!

All the best.

Simon Wilson
Quickie Q2
United Kingdom

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

very cool report Simon, thank you.

John
Cuzco
Peru

Hi Simon, what an awe inspiring experience! Where will you be displaying
this year? If you fancy throwing a few hundred pounds (sterling) worth of
fuel into it, you could call into Enstone for a coffee! Or maybe you'd
rather wait to do the same in the Quickie for tenth the price?

Cheers

Chris (G-CUIK)



From: Q-LIST@... [mailto:Q-LIST@...] On Behalf Of
Simon Wilson
Sent: 29 June 2011 00:31
To: Q-LIST@...
Subject: [Q-LIST] First flight but not a Quickie





Hi guys,

I know this isn't directly Quickie related but I had a first flight today
that I thought I should share with you all. Although not a Quickie the the
aircraft is just as interesting none the less.

Today I flew a Fairey Swordfish MkII biplane for the first time. It was an
absolutely amazing experience. For those of you that have never heard of it,
it is a Second World War Torpedo Bomber that saw action with the Royal Navy
at the Battle of Taranto and helped sink the Bismarck during the Battle of
the Atlantic. It was also involved in many other actions during the Second
World War. The example I flew today actually took part in the Battle of the
Atlantic in 1943. It is unique in that it is currently the only airworthy
Swordfish in the world and it is still owned and operated by the Royal Navy
and flown on the military register to military regulations, more details can
be found at http://www.royalnavyhistoricflight.org.uk there is also some
info on wiki about the Swordfish.

The Swordfish is a rather large aircraft when you get up close to it and is
only marginally smaller than an Antonov AN-2 biplane. It has a single set of
controls in the pilot's cockpit as the rear cockpits were for an Observer
and a Telgraphist Air Gunner. The three cockpits are open to the elements
and it gets rather windy and noisy particularly the rear cockpits. The
conversion to type is fairly unique in that your first sortie involves
standing in the rear cockpit looking over the shoulder of a pilot
experienced on type. He demonstrates a take off, a few general handling
manoeuvres and a landing. He then taxis in and keeping the engine running we
swap cockpits, then I fly the same profile he has just shown me with him
looking over my shoulder although I should do a few more circuits when we
return to the field.

The Swordfish has a 750hp Bristol Pegasus radial engine on the front and
weighs around 7600lb. It is a fairly draggy beast and burns about 40
imperial gallons of AVGAS per hour at 90kt. (I'll never complain about fuel
burn again in anything else I fly!)

She is pretty docile for such a big tail dragger and leaps off the runway at
about 60kt. Climb is a rather sedate 70kt doing around 500fpm. Despite being
so big the controls are pretty light but does require fairly large bootfuls
of rudder to maintain balance in turns. She is very manoeuvrable and will
turn on a sixpence, the roll rate is surprisingly spritely for such a large
aircraft. As you fly along you can see the valve gear and springs tapping
away on the cylinder heads in front of you, a sight to behold especially if
you love mechanical things.

Unfortunately I had to cut the sortie short due to the oil pressure being
abnormally low as we levelled off and I elected to return to the field,
discretion being the better part of valour and all that! It turned out to be
an air bubble in the capillary to the oil gauge thankfully.

I rejoined the field and set up for my first landing. A fairly daunting
prospect when you are flying the only currently airworthy example of type in
the world (it's not your common as muck Mustang or Spitfire you know)!

The landing was fairly straight forward and I had a 12kt crosswind 50
degrees off the runway. I set it up for a tail down wheeler and managed
grease her onto the runway first time. The landing was a none event,
although you do have to get used being sat with your eyeline about 10ft off
the runway.

Taxying is the most difficult aspect about operating a Swordfish especially
when there is a bit of wind to contend with. She has a large side area and
likes to weather cock when taxying crosswind. The tailwheel is free
castoring and the brakes are pneumatic. The pneumatic brakes inflate a
bladder that the brake pads are attached to, this then expands against the
brake drum giving you braking action. The brake lever is on the spade grip
of the control column and is differential when you move the rudder bar in
the appropriate direction. The problem with pneumatic brakes are that they
expend air faster than it is replenished by the engine driven compressor,
especially when taxying at low RPM so you run out of brake pressure very
quickly in windy conditions. You also have to anticipate the brakes as there
is lag in the system as the pressure builds and dissipates after you operate
the brake lever.

Overall it has been a privilege as a serving Naval Aviator to fly such an
historic and iconic aircraft, particularly one with genuine WW2 combat
provenance. It was an awe inspiring experience and I look forward to
displaying the Swordfish to the British public at airshows around the UK
this summer. As I write this and reflect on my first sortie I can't believe
how lucky I am to fly this wonderful machine.

On the Quickie front I hope to have my Q2 flying in August again and that is
another unique taildragger I can't wait to fly!

All the best.

Simon Wilson
Quickie Q2
United Kingdom

You're gonna love it Rick!Please send us a pic of your ear to ear grin when it get air-born!Bruce

Roger that Sanjay.You might also check to see if your reflexer could use more range. I think that any time you fly faster than cruise a Quickie will push back on the stick and want to climb. Somehow that also equates to a bit of stability for the pheugoid (sp. it's been awhile) process if you can find the cruise "sweet spot".Bruce

N1711Q continues to progress toward her return to the sky.

We removed the left elevator, exposed the 1/4" tubing remains of the original pitot tube and fabricated a replacement. Anchored it with 5-min eposxy and later glassed it in place.

Tail is removed and control cables connected. We got the battery box size and will pick up a new battery tomorrow. There are a couple minor things still to do while the tail is off.

After completing the CHT and EGT wiring I powered the plane up with a bench power supply and discovered a weird problem with EGT #1 indicating temp far in excess of ambient. I had checked them before putting probes into the plane, so something was odd. When I patched in a different probe the problem was gone, and when I put the probe into the exhaust pipe it came back bad again. Next step was to check the wiring for that probe. Disconnecting the Db25 from the engine monitor, removing the hood, and there I see a pinched wire making a ground fault against the hood. Had I used a non-metalized hood I would never have seen the problem on the display. Easily fixed.

But I also see the oil pressure showing max. Checking the sender, I see it was defective. OK, I have a spare which checked out OK.

So the engine instrumentation is now GO for startup. I have an OAT probe yet to mount.

And I still have a full page on the task list. So many details. My intent is to have every known issue resolved so the first return-to-flight will come back ready to fly off the local flight time. We'll keep it in glide distance the first five hours.

Oh, yes, remind myself to put fresh batteries in the camera and patch in the digital voice recorder to the intercom.

Rick Hole
N1711Q oh-so-close to flight

Hi guys,

I know this isn't directly Quickie related but I had a first flight today that I thought I should share with you all. Although not a Quickie the the aircraft is just as interesting none the less.

Today I flew a Fairey Swordfish MkII biplane for the first time. It was an absolutely amazing experience. For those of you that have never heard of it, it is a Second World War Torpedo Bomber that saw action with the Royal Navy at the Battle of Taranto and helped sink the Bismarck during the Battle of the Atlantic. It was also involved in many other actions during the Second World War. The example I flew today actually took part in the Battle of the Atlantic in 1943. It is unique in that it is currently the only airworthy Swordfish in the world and it is still owned and operated by the Royal Navy and flown on the military register to military regulations, more details can be found at http://www.royalnavyhistoricflight.org.uk there is also some info on wiki about the Swordfish.

The Swordfish is a rather large aircraft when you get up close to it and is only marginally smaller than an Antonov AN-2 biplane. It has a single set of controls in the pilot's cockpit as the rear cockpits were for an Observer and a Telgraphist Air Gunner. The three cockpits are open to the elements and it gets rather windy and noisy particularly the rear cockpits. The conversion to type is fairly unique in that your first sortie involves standing in the rear cockpit looking over the shoulder of a pilot experienced on type. He demonstrates a take off, a few general handling manoeuvres and a landing. He then taxis in and keeping the engine running we swap cockpits, then I fly the same profile he has just shown me with him looking over my shoulder although I should do a few more circuits when we return to the field.

The Swordfish has a 750hp Bristol Pegasus radial engine on the front and weighs around 7600lb. It is a fairly draggy beast and burns about 40 imperial gallons of AVGAS per hour at 90kt. (I'll never complain about fuel burn again in anything else I fly!)

She is pretty docile for such a big tail dragger and leaps off the runway at about 60kt. Climb is a rather sedate 70kt doing around 500fpm. Despite being so big the controls are pretty light but does require fairly large bootfuls of rudder to maintain balance in turns. She is very manoeuvrable and will turn on a sixpence, the roll rate is surprisingly spritely for such a large aircraft. As you fly along you can see the valve gear and springs tapping away on the cylinder heads in front of you, a sight to behold especially if you love mechanical things.

Unfortunately I had to cut the sortie short due to the oil pressure being abnormally low as we levelled off and I elected to return to the field, discretion being the better part of valour and all that! It turned out to be an air bubble in the capillary to the oil gauge thankfully.

I rejoined the field and set up for my first landing. A fairly daunting prospect when you are flying the only currently airworthy example of type in the world (it's not your common as muck Mustang or Spitfire you know)!

The landing was fairly straight forward and I had a 12kt crosswind 50 degrees off the runway. I set it up for a tail down wheeler and managed grease her onto the runway first time. The landing was a none event, although you do have to get used being sat with your eyeline about 10ft off the runway.

Taxying is the most difficult aspect about operating a Swordfish especially when there is a bit of wind to contend with. She has a large side area and likes to weather cock when taxying crosswind. The tailwheel is free castoring and the brakes are pneumatic. The pneumatic brakes inflate a bladder that the brake pads are attached to, this then expands against the brake drum giving you braking action. The brake lever is on the spade grip of the control column and is differential when you move the rudder bar in the appropriate direction. The problem with pneumatic brakes are that they expend air faster than it is replenished by the engine driven compressor, especially when taxying at low RPM so you run out of brake pressure very quickly in windy conditions. You also have to anticipate the brakes as there is lag in the system as the pressure builds and dissipates after you operate the brake lever.

Overall it has been a privilege as a serving Naval Aviator to fly such an historic and iconic aircraft, particularly one with genuine WW2 combat provenance. It was an awe inspiring experience and I look forward to displaying the Swordfish to the British public at airshows around the UK this summer. As I write this and reflect on my first sortie I can't believe how lucky I am to fly this wonderful machine.

On the Quickie front I hope to have my Q2 flying in August again and that is another unique taildragger I can't wait to fly!

All the best.

Simon Wilson
Quickie Q2
United Kingdom

Bruce:
Regarding sparrow strainer setting for level cruise, my recollection from
last flight is that stick pressure was mild, if any, at 2200rpm and level
flight. So I am guessing that the sparrow strainers is probably reasonably
oriented for level flight at cruise, just not for full power. But if I lower
the sparrow strainers (TE down) it would need less fwd pressure when going
at higher power setting, and would require a little aft stick pressure
during level cruise.
Secondly, I have not yet changed reflexor setting, which may be yet another
adjustment to reduce amount of climb and fwd stick pressure at full power.
On my next flight I will try to pay attention to this stick force at cruise
power and level flight.
thanks
Sanjay

_____

From: Q-LIST@... [mailto:Q-LIST@...] On Behalf Of
jcrain2@...
Sent: Tuesday, June 28, 2011 9:15 AM
To: Q-LIST@...
Subject: Re: [Q-LIST] Test Flight #3




SanjaySounds like you've got a handle on your Q! Excellent work on the
numbers! As for the climb at full power I think you should perhaps work on
the sparrow strainers for level cruise to see if they need to be modified
any. When you are cross country it is nice to have a stable pitch with no
hands on the stick if possible.Congrats again!Bruce
__________________________________________________________
57 Year Old Mom Looks 27!
Mom Reveals $5 Wrinkle Trick That Has Angered Doctors!
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Hello Sanjay,

Great report and I like the last paragraph the hardest part good decision
making.

Still getting ready for the man.

Charlie Johnson, building Dragonfly Mk-II/Corvair
Ogden, Utah

Great report Sanjay. I'm glad you are getting time on it. You will notice quite a difference in takeoff and landing performance when there is a tailwind component (wind 110@4 using runway 23). But as long as you've got enough runway, you shouldn't have a problem!

It's also good that you got a chance to look around and enjoy the flight! Just 37.9 hours left before you can actually go somewhere!

- Paul


From: Q-LIST@... [mailto:Q-LIST@...] On Behalf Of Sanjay Dhall
Sent: Tuesday, June 28, 2011 06:57
To: Q-LIST@...
Subject: [Q-LIST] Test Flight #3



Sunday June 26, 2011 10am
KYIP ~70f winds 110@4 clear
The goal of this flight was to stay very near the airport, build confidence
in engine by a prolonged flight, calibrate airspeed indicator against gps,
test my recent transponder antenna attachment fix, study slower speeds,
approach pitch-buck speed, practice landings and go-arounds.
Took off from 23L - needed a lot of right rudder to keep centerline - did
not do too good at that - plane wandered left a bit, then the nose tucked
down, I added aft stick to get it off the ground. I seemed to have gained a
false familiarity with the plane's behavior, where I was anticipating the
expected behavior but expected it sooner. So I was more aggressive in
wanting the plane off the ground. Hasty, somewhat less graceful takeoff, but
airspeed was not an issue.
As it climbed I watched the gages more carefully now, tach showed 2450, and
saw the climb rate go from 700 to about 1200 and 120 mph on airspeed
indicator. Engine sounds a little rougher ( just my imagination?)
Today I was also watching gps speeds and being generally aware of wind
direction upwind and downwind. As I turned right slowly leveling out and
started to setup 2-3mile radius circles around the airport at about 2500
msl, airspeed indicated little over 170 but adjusted for wind direction and
corellated to gps I estimated an average gps speed of 160. I also saw the
tach cross the 2750 mark to about 2800. CHT showed just under 400, oil temp
was still rising to settle at about 175 and oil pressure was steady at 40. I
noticed that with full power it takes a lot of fwd stick pressure to level
the plane, it wants to keep climbing. Cut power to a steady 2400. CHT
settled at about 360. Circled. watched speeds, watched response. enjoyed the
view. Asked tower for my alt - they reported 2500 when my own alt was
showing 2600, good enough, the transponder is now back online. Not far I saw
the Detroit Metro airport on the east, Ann Arbor downtown on the west. farms
and lakes elsewhere. Slowed engine down to about 2200. After several more
circuits, I climbed to 2700 feet, and then slowly reduced power close to
idle, then tried to maintain alt. Now I was losing speed gently and
descending. I was around 85 on airpseed indicator when I began to feel a
mild hint of pitch-buck, but not as marked as it had been in other Q flights
where I was a passenger (perhaps the pitch buck will be more marked with
more weight and more aft CG location). My stick was all the way aft. but no
further reduction in speed - just descending. At the end of my test I had
descended about 600 feet. Tower called to alert me that I was approaching
the 2000 feet floor they wanted me to inform them about if I was going to
breach. So I added power and climbed back up to 2700. No trouble recovering
from the pitch buck state. Based on gps speed changes in keeping as level as
possible through the circle, and comparing indicated airspeed I concluded
that my airspeed indicator shows about 10-12 mph higher than actual (gps
based) speed. Based on this my pitch-buck speed is about 75 actual. Does
this sound right? Indicated is about 85 on my airspeed indicator. Will have
to test these numbers again at higher alt.
Requested flying left hand circles for a while. Transitioned to the left
traffic via a a very tight bank. That was a rush!
After several more left circles came in for a landing with a long stable
approach. And just when I thought I was about to make a smooth landing, I
felt a bounce. Added power to go around. Tower asked me to make a tight
approach. I requested the tower to let the other traffic land first, so my
approach was not rushed. Tower informed me not to wait for the other
traffic, since I probably would be able to go around the pattern 4 times
before the other traffic was going to land. Looking around I located the
other traffic which was a replica of 1911 Ely Curtiss. What a sight.
On my second landing the approach was shorter, but stable. The canard/wings
rocked back and forth. Landed about 2500 feet down the runway, but no
bounce. 7500 foot runway did come in handy! Taxied back - refueled. Then saw
the Curtiss on the taxi way.
Total cumulative hobbs time 2.1 hrs - 3 flights
Took the Q out of hangar again Monday morning, but listened to weather and
talked myself out of flying, due to near crosswinds of 10 gust to 20. Soon I
will need to deal with these conditions but not today.
thanks
Sanjay

Great job Sanjay! It's great to hear these reports. Keep up the good work.

Cheers,
Dan Yager
QBA Editor
www.quickheads.com

SanjaySounds like you've got a handle on your Q! Excellent work on the numbers! As for the climb at full power I think you should perhaps work on the sparrow strainers for level cruise to see if they need to be modified any. When you are cross country it is nice to have a stable pitch with no hands on the stick if possible.Congrats again!Bruce
____________________________________________________________
57 Year Old Mom Looks 27!
Mom Reveals $5 Wrinkle Trick That Has Angered Doctors!
http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3131/4e09d40a4eb16ddcc3st01vuc