RV-6A (N6NF) had its maiden flight this past Thursday. A year ago or so, I had started thinking about whether I, or someone else, would be making the first flight.
I have not flown any in the last 12 years (13 years build time with 5,000 documented hours in the construction log book). I realized that if I wanted to do the first flight myself, I would need to get current as a pilot, then transition training in an RV. Even then, I questioned my readiness to cope with the unexpected on a (or my) newly airworthy aircraft.
Long story short, I consulted with a friend who has 1,000 plus hours in RV-4's, RV-6's, RV-7's, an additional 700 hours in an Extra, and about 10,000 hours total. He volunteered to perform the first flight.
The first flight went great. Everything functioned as expected...except that the air speed indicator "stuck" on 130 knots 3/4 of the way into the flight. The plane was slowed down, but he ASI still showed 130kts.
My plane has both traditional "steam gauges" and a Dynon 10A. The Dynon unit was turned off during the A/C start up as the pilot did not want to deal with the solid state gizmo. The pilot was instructed to turn the Dynon unit on and auto-magically, the Dynon unit provided the correct airspeed information.
The aircraft was slowed to slow flight parameters and a beautiful landing followed. The pilots post-flight brief showed no discrepancies (except for the steam gauge ASI), and a beautifully handling and flying aircraft. Now, he wants a Dynon unit for his RV-7.
I pulled the ASI from the aircraft (still showing 130 knots) and opened it up. The problem was the indicator pointer counter-weight was rubbing on the instrument dial face plate. A little reforming of the counter-weight was all the was needed to revert to a functioning ASI. I still need to hook it up to a manometer to verify the pressure vs indicated readings.
Sooooo, back to the original thoughts on the first flight. No, I was not disappointed that someone else performed the first flight in N6NF. I was elated that it flew, and it flew well. I was actually thankful that my friend had so much time in RV's, knew how they flew, knew how they "felt" and could deal with questionable ASI readings. For me, THAT is the reason that a qualified / experienced pilot be allowed to take that first flight.
I have not flown any in the last 12 years (13 years build time with 5,000 documented hours in the construction log book). I realized that if I wanted to do the first flight myself, I would need to get current as a pilot, then transition training in an RV. Even then, I questioned my readiness to cope with the unexpected on a (or my) newly airworthy aircraft.
Long story short, I consulted with a friend who has 1,000 plus hours in RV-4's, RV-6's, RV-7's, an additional 700 hours in an Extra, and about 10,000 hours total. He volunteered to perform the first flight.
The first flight went great. Everything functioned as expected...except that the air speed indicator "stuck" on 130 knots 3/4 of the way into the flight. The plane was slowed down, but he ASI still showed 130kts.
My plane has both traditional "steam gauges" and a Dynon 10A. The Dynon unit was turned off during the A/C start up as the pilot did not want to deal with the solid state gizmo. The pilot was instructed to turn the Dynon unit on and auto-magically, the Dynon unit provided the correct airspeed information.
The aircraft was slowed to slow flight parameters and a beautiful landing followed. The pilots post-flight brief showed no discrepancies (except for the steam gauge ASI), and a beautifully handling and flying aircraft. Now, he wants a Dynon unit for his RV-7.
I pulled the ASI from the aircraft (still showing 130 knots) and opened it up. The problem was the indicator pointer counter-weight was rubbing on the instrument dial face plate. A little reforming of the counter-weight was all the was needed to revert to a functioning ASI. I still need to hook it up to a manometer to verify the pressure vs indicated readings.
Sooooo, back to the original thoughts on the first flight. No, I was not disappointed that someone else performed the first flight in N6NF. I was elated that it flew, and it flew well. I was actually thankful that my friend had so much time in RV's, knew how they flew, knew how they "felt" and could deal with questionable ASI readings. For me, THAT is the reason that a qualified / experienced pilot be allowed to take that first flight.
