NetHeads, This is a bit off topic, but it does have to do with flying...or not flying as the case may be. I'm temporarily grounded due to an unfortunate incident where a loose nut between the stick and the seat has incapacitated the Swift. I was entering downwind and was going faster than the 100 mph "gear drop" speed, so I skipped that part of the GUMP checklist, but unfortunately never got around to that little detail before landing. My next clue that I'd screwed up royally was hearing the prop tips on the runway. I was as shocked as one could imagine, except the bright flashing "gear is up but throttle is reduced" light was one clue that I'd blown it, and another was the gear switch was clearly UP. After 93 Swift landings in 21 hours of flight, I thought I was safe, but apparently not. The good news is they say "you'll never do it again". I guess that's the corollary to "there are those who have, and those who will".
Fortunately it was a real greaser of a landing, so damage was minimal, but when you start with a new prop and an engine "sudden stoppage" teardown, it doesn't take much more damage to total a 66 year-old airplane. I was able to squeak by without totaling it, fortunately, because I really need something to fly, and the Swift is just about perfect as far as general aviation aircraft go for what I need. Bottom line though is that I'm not flying for a while, but the plane is repairable, and I'll end up with a "free" major overhaul on the engine. Folks may remember that when I started building my KR I said something like "No way am I going to build it with retracts, because I'd probably land it gear-up first time, second time, and several more times before it was over". I really hate it when I foretell the future, and 10 years later, I LIVE it! That's not the end of the world though. I've been considerably more productive at home lately, fixing annoying little things that have gone undone for years, as well as continuing to clean up the basement and reconfigure the layout for construction of the next plane. Now that the check is in the mail, Swift work will commence. And by the way, I've ordered all the spruce, plywood, and foam from Wicks that I'll need to build my next experimental, and it's due here in a week or so. I wish I could say that it's fully designed, but it's not. I still have a pretty good idea where I'm going with it though. Whether or not it's an LSA depends on whether the FAA follows through with the "no-medical-required" change that allows pilots flying aircraft with less than 180 HP to fly without a medical. That will tell me how big an engine I can hang on the front, so it might still be a Corvair with an improved "aviation grade" crankshaft. I'm too busy at work to pioneer that, but I hear some folks are working the issue. See http://www.n56ml.com/swift/120227_027m.jpg for a truly embarrassing picture. It should be flying again in a couple of months though... Mark Langford ML at N56ML.com website at http://www.N56ML.com --------------------------------------------------------
