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Anyone ever land their RV-10 at B18 (Alton Bay ice runway)

mikelupo

Active Member
Patron
For several years I've enjoyed landing my PA-28 on the ice runway at B18. As a new RV-10 owner I think I need to consider that the castering nose wheel might make the take off roll unsteerable. On a slick (as opposed to crusty) ice runway, I might not be able to use brake force to keep the plane from venturing off the left side of the runway when adding power to take off.
Curious if any other RV-10 owners out there have landed there and if so can you share any experiences or advice...and were the ice conditions slick or crusty?
 
Castoring nosewheels CAN land on ice. One needs to exercise caution and be extremely ready to pull the mixture at ANY time in order to kill thrust and stop the prop before it contacts a snowbank. Control taxi speed very closely - anything more than a slow walk is likely too fast.

Keep in mind that ice quality varies highly, as does coefficient of friction on those variable ice surfaces. Ice can have a granular texture which provides good traction, or can be smooth as glass. An overflight to inspect the runway is always a good idea, as is practice at landing and minimum speed. One should also get good at feeding in takeoff power gingerly so as to ensure rudder effectiveness is balanced against the yaw caused by power application.
 
Landed multiple times with the castering nose wheel

Castering nose wheel can be interesting, but no real problem. You can put a little angle to adjust for the P factor. First to at Alton Bay and the last photo is Branch Lake ME

Landed there 4 over the last 5 years

https://youtu.be/6nv7bcyy45Mhttp

Also landed at my old house in Maine

https://youtu.be/p3u1H0Xgaek
 

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