Under the Weather

...and something else

I was a bit tired this morning and not really in the zone for relaxed flying, but I decided to take advantage of the still weather and so made the usual detour from my work commute for a quick fly. This would be the second outing with the Phoenix 2000, and the first after having replaced its propellor and spinner following the control mix-up.

Turning off the freeway and heading up the hill I already felt better at the sight of the bushland and open paddocks coated with low morning mist. Arriving at the field the transient pond at the far end had returned along with the little ducks who were enjoying paddling in the shallows. A grey heron also made an arrival for a quick morning drink before heading off with a raucous cry, not at all what I'd expected from such an elegant bird.

With the Phoenix plugged in and ready to go I hoisted it up and tested the propellor, before setting the power for launch. No, a bit more, little bit more...and launch.

Now you may recall that the Phoenix had ended up in the shelf due to its tendency to head into a vertical climb with too much power. I had managed two perfect launches a few days before but today, feeling a bit stressed and out-of-it as I said, I set too much power. The Phoenix flew across the field, and then started to climb rapidly. Silent scream.

Now the problem is that it doesn’t maintain this rate of climb. Afterall it’s a large two metre glider, not an Extra. So you have it pushing over from a near-stall without having gained much height. Having said that, in the videos I've watched the guys launch it with a lot of power. The benefit of this is that by the time it stops climbing it’s gained enough altitude to be safe. For now, though, I'll be sticking to flat low-power launches...

So back to the Phoenix on the brink of disaster. Now, by a stroke of luck and I perhaps a little more experience, I managed to recover but sent the plane heading back across the field towards a light post. Putting it into a turn it now climbed again again as I’d not reduced the power fearing it would stall and crash after the first intervention I’d made. However, by subduing the rising panic and leaving the power on, I managed to pull it up with about two metres to spare - plenty of room. Sigh of relief...

A flew a little more but, being a little nervous and really wanting to avoid any further incidents, I brought the Phoenix in for a nice smooth landing, thanked my stars that all ended well...