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Posted for "Chuck Jensen" <cjensen@dts9000.com>:
Lowell,
Very well put. If it took me 100 of dual and 3 check rides to get a SEL
license, I would hope I'd resorted to something less dangerous that I
might be capable of...like getting out of bed in the morning. After
that, everything would be high risk activities.
I suspect there are very few pilots-in-training that are washed-out by
their instructors. They just keep ringing up the hours (and bill) until
they give it up either due to finances or frustration. Flying is very
simple, flying well is extremely complex. Some do it well, some just get
by and some never get it.
I was looking at buying a Lancair for the same reasons that everyone
else is interested in them. But the more I looked, the more I read, the
more concerned I became. The final straw was a local Lancair that
'almost' made a good landing...came up 3' short and hit the abutment at
the end of the runway. He survived, barely, but his passenger didn't.
Accidents do happen and its never scared me off from aviation, but when
I spoke with some of other pilots at his field, there wasn't one of them
surprised about the outcome. Besides questioning his pilot skills and
decision-making, they said on approach to this 2700' strip with water on
both ends, that they could visually see the 'squirrelly' behavior of the
plane on approach and final. And, if you can see it from the ground,
it's twice as bad in the plane.
So, I decided to 'putts' along at 180 kts in a Velocity canard pusher
with stability characteristics similar to a flat rock laying on the
ground. I don't get there quite as fast, but I arrive alive, which is
more than can be said for a lot of Lancair drivers that get slow and low
in the pattern. Still, it's a great plane. I just wish someone could
figure out how to give up 10 kts and get it back in spades in stability.
Chuck Jensen
Diversified Technologies
2680 Westcott Blvd
Knoxville, TN 37931
Phn: 865-539-9000 x25
Cell: 865-406-9001
Fax: 865-539-9001
cjensen@dts9000.com
"""
From some of the posts it appears to me there is a suggestion that
anyone
can
fly a Lancair with proper training, experience and discipline. With
that
in
mind, how many golf lessions do I need to consistently shoot par at
Augusta
National, or Pebbel Beach or maybe just my home course.
I have no problem with the airplane. What I do wonder about,
however,
Does
anyone ever wash out in the training phase. Or possibly more
important,
does
anyone ever just admit that it is just too much airplane for his
native
abilities? Sort of like my abilities at golf , or art, or math or
walking
on
walls.
"""
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