Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Starting 1ES

Pilots,

I have seen numerous "failed attempts" to start Cessna 1ES, and to a lesser extent, the same problem applies to Cessna 17J and Piper 85Y - which is, fuel-injected lycoming engines use a weird approach to starting.

For warm weather (read: always), the procedure in the checklist will FLOOD THE ENGINE every time. Here is my procedure:

Master ON
Mixture to idle cut-off
Throttle in 1"
Engage Starter until engine "catches", no more than 10 seconds.
Mixture full

If the engine failed to catch, try the boost pump for 1-2 seconds and repeat.



That's it. Using the primer/fuel boost pump should ONLY be necessary when it is cold out, and even then, do not use the 5-seconds or the "until fuel pressure stabilizes" rule. That is for Continental engines. 1-2 seconds TOPS will suffice.

Starting with the mixture "full rich" like the carbureted planes (68U, 20U, 04H) is a recipe for flooding also.

Give it a shot -- if you have a particular "trick", I'd like to know. At $500 apiece, starters for 1ES are worth sparing. :)

Blue Skies,

- Mike

Wabbit season? No, pilot season!

Pilots,

Please join me in congratulating newly-winged U.S. Private Pilot Patrick C., who soared to victory in Cessna 17J with DPE Tom Hamm. Nice job, Patrick!



Blue Skies,

- Mike

Monday, August 27, 2007

Hiding an Airplane Factory

Some great old WW2 shots of the Lockheed Aircraft Plant in Burbank.

From Think or Thwim:

During World War II the Army Corps of Engineers needed to hide the Lockheed Burbank Aircraft Plant to protect it from a Japanese air attack. They covered it with camouflage netting and trompe l’oeil to make it look like a rural subdivision from the air.


Before:



After:








Wednesday, August 22, 2007

A wrench in the gears...

Pilots,

Please bear with us while we sort out a few logistical problems, to wit:

Cessna 1ES had a starter fail prior to a checkride. We removed the starter from Cessna 17J due to lack of available replacement parts. Cessna 17J has been down since awaiting a shipment of a replacement starter.



CFI Arty has left to push towards his commercial flying career. We are hiring 2 CFIs to replace him, because he was that great. Blue Skies, Arty! Students affected by his departure, please contact the office to see who fits best.

CFI Availability in general has been poor recently, with Alex on vacation, and assorted CFIs taking time off for summer -- apologies to those affected! We intend to improve our line-up mightily.

Cessna 08V completed her 100hr inspection last week



Things are otherwise normal around the ranch -- Happy Flying!

- Mike

Friday, August 17, 2007

Garmin's G1000 woes

Pilots!

There is buzz regarding increased failures in the field of Garmin AHRS 77 units, which create a red X on the background/horizon display of the PFD. Scary! This potential product recall, as of right now, affects Garmin 77 units manufactured on or after May 1, 2007. Julie is not affected by this recall.

For those who are interested, here is the scoop:



Garmin Confirms AHRS Issues In G1000 PFDs

Tue, 14 Aug '07 at Aero News Network

Pilots Must Rely On Standby Attitude Indicator Inflight

In response to inquiries regarding Columbia Aircraft's announcement late Monday night the planemaker was halting production, due to the reported lack of critical avionics components needed to finish the aircraft... Garmin confirmed to ANN the avionics manufacturer has stopped shipments of its GRS 77 AHRS (Attitude Heading Reference System,) used in the manufacturer's popular G1000 glass panel avionics system.

"Garmin recently observed a sudden increase in failure rates during aircraft manufacturer product flight tests of new GRS 77 AHRS (Attitude Heading Reference System) units used in G1000 installations," the company tells ANN. "Internal system monitors detect the component failure in the GRS 77 that results in a continual "red-x" of attitude information on the Primary Flight Display.

"After communication with Garmin's OEM partners and the FAA, it was determined that in all G1000 installations, continued safe flight can be conducted with the standby attitude indicator and other available instruments. If pilots should experience a failure of the GRS 77 AHRS, they should follow standard procedures and refer to the standby attitude indicator."

Garmin is publishing a Service Advisory to the field, and states it is "aggressively" working with suppliers and OEM partners to resolve the issue and resume deliveries. Other functions of the PFD -- HSI, airspeed, VSI -- remain operational if there is an AHRS failure.

The G1000 avionics system is widely used in several general aviation aircraft, including Cessna single-engine piston aircraft and the Citation Mustang light jet. Cessna tells ANN it has temporarily halted piston aircraft deliveries while it awaits a fix for the AHRS issue, but unlike Columbia plans to continue production.

Quick jot

Pilots,

Please join me in congratulating new U.S. Commercial Pilot Vince P., who proved to Tom Hamm that he is master of the chandelle in Cessna 1ES on Wednesday. Nice job, Vince!



--

Cessna 68U has completed her 100hr.

Piper 85Y has received her Right-side toe brakes. She is now fit for proper dual instruction. Why these brakes are so hard to obtain is a mystery -- but many thanks to the folks at Webco in Wichita, KS who helped us figure out the regulatory hurdles, and who provided the nice right-pedals to boot.

Cessna 20U should be back in action with a completely replaced door-latch mechanism

--

Stay cool up there, add "water onboard" to your pre-flight checklist!

Blue Skies,

- Mike

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Another pair of wings..

Pilots!

Please join me in congratulating new U.S. Private Pilot Kevin W., who got his wings yesterday in Cessna 1ES with DPE Tom Hamm.

Nice work, Kevin!

==

Cessna 68U will be undergoing her 100hr inspection a touch early tonight. Downtime should be minimal.

Blue Skies,

- Mike

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Topsy-turvy

Pilots,

Please join me in congratulating the newest United States Private Pilot, Kamau K.!

Kamau got his wings in Cessna 68U with DPE Ken Earl this afternoon, in a blustery windy wonderland.

I believe Kamau has studied under CFIs Matt, Robert, Stephen, Ryan, Jeremy, and finally Roman got him over the finish line -- although I might be missing a few in there over the years.

Many of you will have noticed Kamau playing around in the hangar at the FlyC ranch -- Kamau has worked line for us for nearly 3 years. He departs next week to study Aeronautical Engineering at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (aka "Harvard of the Sky"). We will miss Kamau sorely, but he is off to do amazing things for General Aviation and explore the next chapter of his life at Daytona Beach, Florida. Best of luck, Kamau! Stay in touch!

Kamau is featured here making Cessna 08V look suave



==

In other news,

Cessna 20U is down pending a repair to her door mechanism.

Cessna 17J's XM Data is finally (really, for real this time) activated. Music will activate next week sometime. Apparently XM confused the data radio ID with the music radio ID in their system. Expect us to spend an additional 6 months trying to get them to credit our account for the un-delivered service.

There is a rumor of a potential 172SP (like Julie) with Nav II Avionics (like 1ES) coming to the FlyC flightline.

There is a rumor of a C182 coming to the flightline. Details are early yet.

==

It's nice out -- grab some sky!

Blue Skies,

- Mike



Hmm, I wonder if 08V would fly better with an all-composite blended-delta wing with an increased dihedral? Would the drag reduction be worth compromising the recoverability of the flight regime in stall or spin configuration? There has to be a point where the trade-offs converge... Also, I wonder if my first solo went okay... maybe I'll step outside and ask Ryan.

photo circa 2005

Tuesday, August 07, 2007

Mad science

Pilots,

If you know anyone who wants a joyride, potentially on the cheap, look no further than eBay.

While we learn about eBay, here is a chance to get a friend of yours airborne for less than the normal tariff. :)

--

In other news,

Piper 85Y is down late this week for her (finally) Right-Hand Brake Pedal installation.

Cessna 17J is off to Toms for the XM rerererererere-activation

Cessna 20U seems to be be needing a new copilot door handle. Expect some downtime for that one.

--

Blue Skies abound!

Cheers,

- Mike

Sunday, August 05, 2007

Farewell, Rose!

Pilots,

The end of an Era was witnessed last night, as Corona's DC-3, Rose, took to the sky for her last flight in the LA Basin.

Rose has been acquired by the Boeing corporation, and she is intended to be part of a museum in Brazil. The ramp just won't be the same without her.





In April 1943 Rose was delivered from the Douglas Aircraft factory, Santa Monica, CA directly to the U.S. Army Air Corps. She served with the 8th Air Force in Europe thru August, 1945. During which she flew approx. 1,700 hours as a C-53 (Military designation of a DC-3 as opposed to a cargo version C-47).

1945 'Rose' was sold thru the Reconstruction Refinance Agency to Pan American Airways. Flew with Pan Am thru 1956 primarily with their PanAgra fleet in Central and South America.

1956 'Rose' was converted by Remert-Werner in St. Louis, MO to a DC-3C (executive interior with AC/DC electrical and many other mods).
'Rose' then flew with at least two corporations thru the late '60's / early '70's. She then flew for a company called Hawkeye Airlines in the Ohio / mid-west areas for a few years and the she was in Las Vegas for awhile as a executive airplane. Rose was then sold to a parachute jump group in Lodi, CA and S. Oregon. In approx. 1995 she was sold again to a corporation in McMinnville, OR. We purchase 'Rose' from that corp in 1997.

DreamFlight has owned / operated 'Rose' since 1997 .


==

In other news..

Cessna 68U has had a seat repair done

Cessna 17J will be going to Toms to re-re-re-re-activate the XM radio, and attend to some squawks and software upgrades

Cessnas 20U and 1ES have some new tires.




Business as usual otherwise.

Blue Skies,

- Mike