Sunday, April 22, 2012 Travelling to Luverne

Shortly after our latest cancellation of the trip to Luverne, Larry Miller and I conjectured that Monday, April 23rd might be the next day that shows decent weather, particularly positive wind conditions. So Larry and I agreed that I would come down on Sunday, the 22nd and try to fly the JW early on Monday, when the winds should be calm.Whether thinking about the trip or what, I did not sleep very well the night before the trip, so I was already tired as I loaded up and attached the trailer to the car and took off for Luverne Sunday afternoon. There were some rain and dark clouds as I departed from the Minneapolis area and I was hoping the weather was not representative of what it would be like down there.Gladly the weather did clear and the sky was mostly sunny as about 5PM I pulled up outside of Larry’s hanger at the Quentin Aaronsen airport. He was there tinkering with his newly-acquired toy, an RAF 2000 gyrocopter. He was trying to get the engine started but was having some problems with that. But he immediately turned from that to give his full attention getting set up to get the JW unloaded and rearranged things in his hanger so everything could be stored in it overnight.I wanted to get the engine going and do some taxiing. This time I will not make the same mistake as I had that let to my accident two-and-a-half years ago and will not have the wing attached when I taxi. Essentially the only thing that needed to be done was to raise the mast and attach the side rails and downtube and start the engine. We got the engine started without any problem, and I’m gratified that I think I know now how to start the engine when in both cold and hot conditions. I had asked Larry to videotape my taxi tests, so after strapping in I added some power and started taxiing around the tarmac and down the taxiway of the runway. I was exhilarated as I experienced impressive power and thrust. I did not have the courage to give full power, but at about 2500 RPM, it was impressive and moved very well. The Halls indicated as high as 25 MPH or so and that was fast enough for me. At one point, as I was on the taxiway, my foot slipped and the JW immediately skewed into the scrub between the taxiway and the runway before I could shut down the power, providing some alarming moments. But overall I was very pleased with the experiment.It was heading toward dusk as Larry and I stored away the JW, closed the hanger, he went home and I started the search for a place to stay for the night.

Monday, April 16, 2012 Will I Ever Make it to Luverne?!?

By looking at the weather forecast in the Sioux Falls area, particularly at the Luverne airport, I am able to monitor the conditions, especially the wind. On a number of occasions this past month or two I have scheduled with Larry Miller to come down and get the Jetwing flying. The latest was early this week. On Monday and Tuesday this week, the winds were forecast to be light so we scheduled the trip. I was to leave on Sunday afternoon (yesterday) so we could fly Monday and possibly Tuesday. But every time we schedule, the weather turns bad. There was even some tornado activity in southwestern Minnesota and South Dakota this past week-end, and some extreme weather in other parts of the Mississippi River Valley.

So again we were met with disappointment. I really hope that when we finally take this trip, we can accomplish our purpose in one day. That purpose is to first have Larry again inspect the aircraft and then for him to do an initial test flight to ensure it is stable, airworthy, and safe. Then, second (assuming Larry’s flight is in all ways successful), I want to fly the Jetwing myself. I will be happy with a single take-off and landing, or maybe a series of take-offs and landings, or possibly even some touch and go’s. After I do that under Larry’s supervision (I should not call it “supervision”, since he is not a CFI yet, but at least his observation), I will feel confident that I can fly it here and develop techniques and skills I will need to be an accomplished Jetwing pilot.

In the meantime, I have been doing some other stuff. Just for fun, I have been doing some flight planning for short trips around the area here if (and when) the Jetwing is able to be flown. Even though I know the Jetwing is not a real cross-country airplane, it is fun to go through this exercise, reading charts and planning trips.

I have even been playing around with John's old Garmin 295 GPS to learn what it can do. It does have an altimeter function, which I don't have on the airplane, and can of course give speed and tracking information. That will be good to have.

So we wait.

Saturday, April 07, 2012 Get the Engine Started

Today’s task is to try to figure out the starting technique so the engine will cold-start. I had put the charger on the battery all last night so there should be plenty of juice. The first thing I found after unloading the carriage, was to discover that the in-line fuse holder for the starter had broken. So I had to make a quick trip to the local auto parts store to get a new fuse holder. I saw the fuse was 15A, which seems a little wimpy to me, but it won’t hurt to use a lower amperage one than a heavier one; the worst that can happen it that it will blow easier.

So after returning from the parts store, I wired the fuse holder in and then attached a rope from a post in the garage to the axle of the carriage, just to be sure to prevent a runaway. Richard Schmidt had e-mailed me a suggested cold-start procedure and I will try that. He said that since small 2-cycle engines had the tendency to load up and flood, he suggested that the throttle should be closed until the engine started. So here’s the procedure: 1) throttle closed, 2) choke on, 3) push primer bulb until you feel resistance (indicating that the carburetor bowl is full), 4) switch on and starter engaged. After doing this, the engine cranked but did not start. But after a few seconds of rest, I tried again and the engine roared to life, albeit missing and sputtering. Not surprising for the 2-cycle with choke on. I turned the choke off and gave a little gas and the engine ran and continued to run smoothly.

That is the extent of my task today, so I’m pleased. I should be able to replicate the starting procedure when I go down to Larry’s in Sioux Falls next Tuesday night so we can fly early Wednesday morning when the winds will be hopefully light.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012 Working on the Wing

The JW has been languishing in the garage for several weeks now. It’s comforting to know it’s there and not stuck in the hanger 45 minutes away. We’ve been able to easily negotiate the car in and out of the garage with the JW there and, except for a bunch of stuff crammed into the front that’s destined for the church rummage sale in May, the garage is surprisingly clear of clutter.

Last week I hauled the trailer down the driveway so that I could unload the JW and work on little things on my list. I worked on adjusting the pip pins so they would work easier when assembling, improved some of the wiring, etc. Getting the JW on and off the trailer is a pain, and can be improved by possibly adding a winch similar to a boat winch so I can dismount the JW by myself. Have to think about that. Right now, I just tilt the trailer up, jam a 2x4 to hold up the front, and use a rope around the front of the trailer to load and unload the JW, which works OK for now.

Today I dedicated myself to tinker with the wing. There’s a number of little things needing work, such as adding a strap tie that was missing to the nose, attaching the washout struts, smoothing the fabric to improve the airflow, etc. I had to do all this in the back yard and the door from the garage was blocked with stuff, so I had to carry the wing all the way around the house. My back was killing me afterward! But I’m pleased with the outcome.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012 Freeing the Jetwing from Purgatory

Yesterday (Monday) I received a surprising call from someone at the Airports Commission. In an apologetic manner he told me that they had cut off our lock on our hanger (which we obviously already knew) and replaced it with one of theirs. Since there was also a letter posted on the hanger door stating that our lease had run out, I had assumed that the lock change was done to deny access until the lease had been resolved. But this apparently is not the case. The caller told me that they had to do some repairs to the hanger and had changed the lock because they did not know the combination of our lock. He said that I could get the key to the new lock and they would even reimburse us for the removal of the old lock. Amazing! I told him that I would be up there the next day (today) to get into the hanger, and he told me just to call one of the maintenance people who would meet me and give me the key.
So since the hitch is installed on the car, all that is needed is for me to get a 2” ball and I should be able to tow the trailer home. So after getting the ball at an O’Reilly Auto Parts store on the way to Crystal, I arrived at the airport at a little after 8AM, called the man who then came and met me, and opened the hanger. There wasn’t much in the hanger, since John’s 172 had been taken by the broker who is storing the plane in his hanger to facilitate its sale. There were some scraps of aluminum tubing from the wreckage of the Jetwing which I plan to donate to our church who is having a metal scrap drive to raise money, so after collecting all that, doing some final sweeping, and attaching the Jetwing trailer to the Camry, the hanger is empty and I’m ready to go. Initially the lights didn’t work, but I figured that out in short order and headed down the road.
The trailer and Jetwing is light-weight enough that the Camry isn’t having any trouble towing it, and I am very pleased. Visibility is good; I can see the trailer with the standard mirrors even better than when I was towing it with John’s pickup. The car didn’t seem to notice the trailer and I maintained a cruise speed of 60 MPH on hwy 494 and hwy 12 just to stay conservative. After arriving home, I rearranged the garage to accommodate the trailer and, although it is wider than I had remembered, there’s room for it alongside the car.
So that part of the project has turned out well. Now I can do the final few tasks that need to be done and use the Camry to tow the Jetwing down to Sioux Falls to again try with Larry’s help to get it flying. I figure we can do that in a couple of weeks.

Saturday, March 10, 2012 Is Spring Finally Coming?!?

It is now more than four months since my trip last November to Sioux Falls and abortive attempt with the help of Larry Miller to fly the Jetwing. Nothing much has happened since winter came to Minnesota, and, although a relatively mild winter, the temps and precipitation have proved too cold and wet to try to fly, to no one’s surprise.
But this morning for the first time this year, we awoke to the sound of birds singing, which usually in Minnesota is the harbinger of spring and we were excited.
I have made a decision that I hope will speed up the process of getting the Jetwing flying. Awhile ago I ordered a trailer hitch for the Camry so that as soon as possible I can move the Jetwing from the hanger at Crystal Airport to our garage here in St. Bonifacius. I have organized the garage to accommodate the trailer alongside the car and I think it will work well. So today I installed the hitch on the car, including the lighting system, and all seems to work well.
A couple of months ago I went to the airport to work on a couple of final minor items with the Jetwing and found to my surprise that our combination lock on the hanger door had been cut off and replaced with a different and strange lock along with a letter that was taped to the man-door. The letter was addressed to son John informing him that they had not received a signed renewal to the lease and until they received it, we would not have access to the hanger that contains his 172 and my Jetwing. So I called the Metro Airports Commission and clarified what would have to be done to gain access. So after resolving that minor inconvenience I can bring the Jetwing to our garage. So we’ll see what happens, hopefully soon.

Tuesday, November 1st Fly the Jetwing?

We got up before dawn knowing the wind would be light. We arrived at the airport at about 7AM, just as the sun was rising. The sky was clear and it was a very pretty morning.

We got the JW out in the area of the hanger. Larry bundled up in his flying suit and we started the JW. Rather we TRIED to start the JW, but it would not start. Nothing we did would get it started, and eventually the battery died. So Larry suggested we go with “Plan B”, which was to fly the Northwing 2-place. It’s a fine airplane. Larry was in front and I in back. We did some T&G’s and he let me do a couple of landings, which worked out without incident. It was the first time I had flown this year since I flew with Don Lindemann. It seemed like I had not forgotten how to fly WSC.

After the flight, I suggested we put the charger on the JW battery and go into town (Luverne) and get a cup of coffee and let the battery charge, which we did. But by the time we returned from town, the wind had turned gusty (20+ kts) as it had the day before. As a matter fact, when we got back to the airport, the JW, which we had not secured, had been blown in an entirely different place on the tarmac. Had we not gotten there when we did, it is not inconceivable that the JW could have been blown into the hanger and been damaged.

So the only thing left to do was to take down the wing and put the JW on the trailer. When we took the wing off, the wind almost took it for a ride without us. It was a little scary; we put the wing on the leeward side of the hangers so we wouldn’t lose control of it. We put the wing into the wing bag, during which time Larry gave me many pointers on how to fold up the wing properly. We got the JW carriage onto the trailer, secured it, and attached it to the truck. We said our good-byes and I took off. Again, without incident I arrived home after about three hours.

So the results of the trip were bittersweet. On the positive side, I was pleased that the trailer and JW travelled so well, that Larry gave his blessing as an experienced JW owner that my JW was in good shape, but on the negative side, it would have been good if Larry and/or I could have flown the JW. I am pleased that I got to meet Larry in the flesh, and consider him a good friend even after meeting him only the one time.