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from http://www.aero-news.net/ -Rob
Lancair IV Turbine Makes First Flight
First flight pilot Dave Morss had already left for another test flight
Thursday, but we were able to reach Bob Fair, Lancair's General Manager,
who filled us in on the Lancair IV Turbine. In an exclusive ANN
interview, Mr. Fair said, "The flights went on without a hitch. It
handles as easily as a standard piston-engine IV. It is, of course,
smoother and quieter, with that turbine." OK, understood, but how does
it go? "At 60% torque," Bob told us, "it had tremendous acceleration --
It's too early for flight numbers -- but they'll be impressive." We
understood that, but we wanted to know what the pilot was able to find
out. "We've only gone up to 12000 feet, so far. Just so you know, at
40% and 8000 feet, we were doing about 220 knots. We think we will
reach our goal, if not exceed it." [The goal, he told us, "is 340~350kt
cruise." --ed.] It's not going to Arlington. After all, it's a newborn.
Besides, there's too much to learn; and there's always that pesky flight
restriction to bea good inspection," Fair said. "We plan another two or
three test flights with Orin Riddell flying [Orin was right-seat on the
second flight in the morning --ed.] -- until it's dark, or until we lose
the weather. We had thunderstorms yesterday afternoon -- otherwise we
would have flown."
First pilot report:
"It's been a great day for Lancair," said Orin Riddell, the man who is
one of the two men who have flown this hi-powered machine, in an
exclusive ANN interview. "We've been having fun today," said Orin
Riddell, sales manager and sometime test pilot, who called the ANN HQ
late. Orin was still running about a 20% adrenaline mix in his veins,
from the sound of his report. "Dave [Morss] flew it really early, about
6:30 this morning; then we both went up for maybe an hour; then I went
up with an observer with me, twice, in the afternoon." 'What's it like?'
I said, just as in an There's still power in there, for sure." It's
still a Lancair, and the power wasn't supposed to have changed that.
Orin assured us that it didn't. "The big thing, which is really neat --
the weight and balance -- everything is just gorgeous. It's the same
weight as the piston installation -- the engine's 100 pounds lighter;
the prop's 50 pounds heavier; and the fuel weighs a little more, along
with an extra, maybe 50 pounds of batteries -- but you've got double the
power, and full-reverse." That last feature of the Hartzell leads to
some savings in airframe complexity. "We did not put speed brakes in
this plane -- in flight idle, it does a 2500 fpm descent -- at cruise
speed. It lands very well -- I could land it at flight idle. It may
float a little more than the piston engine 'IV' in ground effect, but
it's a small amount," Orin said. How far can you go? Mr. Riddell told
us, in a roundabout way. "We've got 122 gallons of fuel -- burning
somewhere 30 and 40gph, depending on power and altitude." He left it to
us to do the math. He really, really liked the way it flew. We could
tell, from how he kept telling us things: "The control harmony, the
pitch, roll, stability -- this is more than we had hoped for."
Of course, there's the power...
Orin continued, "Maximum hp is rated by Walter -- it's a factory rebuild
-- is 750. Here's a neat thing for guys who don't fly turbines -- we're
cruising 1900 rpm on the prop -- max cruise. That's the big reason why
cruise is so much smoother than in a piston-powered machine. It's not
like a jet's any quieter than a recip -- it isn't; but the prop's just
so much slower." Orin explained the prop, too: "It's a free-turning prop
-- it's just connected to the power section of the engine by... air."
The Walter itself could have been intimidating; but its systems take a
lot of that fear away. Orin told us, "This installation is offered with
Walter's fully-automatic starting system. There's three main features:
a timer, which turns the starter on for 20 seconds; an interrupter box
that controls the igniters; and a limiter that controls the fuel --
those three are all automatic. To start the engine, you turn the
battery on, the boost pump -- and hit 'start.' In about 15 seconds, the
engine's idling at 60%. It's incredibly easy -- the limiter
automatically reduces the fuel, if anything's ramping up too quickly, or
if temps are rising too fast." Is that unusual? Orin said, "One big
difference between the Walter and the P&W is that the Walter has two
fuel nozzles and two, well, sort of 'spark plugs,' that are operational
only during starting. Once it's started, there are NO fuel nozzles to
clog, in the Walter." This guy ought to be working for Walter, we
thought -- he really likes the 'look and feel.' "It's user-friendly --
low maintenance," he continued. "Oil changes are at 300 hours, or
annually. Typically, between oil changes, you might add a quart -- in
300 hours." All done? "We've got a lot of flight testing to do-- a lot
of optimizing of prop/engine parameters, and other things," Orin assured
us. For those who hadn't followed the genesis of the Lancair IV Turbine
until now, Mr. Fair, back at the shop, reminded us, "It's [the engine]
a Walter 601E, with a 3-blade, 84-inch Hartzell -- there's a lot of
horsepower there." The test flights weren't done in secret, either: "We
had three of our customers who will be building the IV-P Turbine, and
they came here for the first flight. They're ready to get home and back
to work -- they're on pure adrenalin right now," he said. The machine
will be available to see in a couple weeks. Fair told us, "We'll have
it on display at Oshkosh, in primer. The flight time is more important
than the paint job. It will still be in the test phase for the rest of
the summer; then it gets the pretty paint job and interior." By
September, though, it will be ready for show. "It will be our pace
plane this year at Reno," Bob told us. Keep your eyes on the blur.
FMI: http://www.lancair.com/flash/ivp.html
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