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Posted for "Mr Gary Burns" <gkburns@bigpond.com>:

Hi All,

Yesterday (19th August) I had the pleasure of being co pilot during Frank Fry's ( Frank's e-mail  belvoir@ca.com.au  ) first flight in his Walter 601D powered Lancair IVP. The aircraft completed weighs 2200 pounds empty & for the test flight we added 110 US Gallons of Jet A plus 2 pilots for a total of 3270 pounds. The start (as for all turbo props) required a good battery source & as we had been testing avionics,  we decided on using a ground power source to assist the start.The max ITT on start was less than 600 C. Taxying the aircraft was similar to the piston except that the speed built up quickly untill beta was selected for braking. Before the first flight we had 2 high speed runs on an 11,000 foot runway with full flap in order to just get airborne & feel the handling qualities in the landing configuration. The first take off was just amazing. We limited the torque to 83%, left the gear down & were still climbing at 3000 feet per minute! I have no doubt that double this rate of climb will be achievable with the gear up & a higher power setting. After cycling the gear successfully, we decided to assess the affects of power changes. It reacts much the same as any IV in that for every speed or power change you must make trim changes (especially rudder). Reducing power causes the 86 inch prop to really create a mass of drag ,far more effective than any speed brake. Obviously speed brakes would be wasted on any IV with this engine installation. I took my headset off to make note of the noise level in the cockpit. It was easily the quietest Lancair I have ever been in. I also noted how smooth the engine runs. When a large amount of power is added, you are literally thrown into the back of your seat. With only 30% torque we indicated 155 knots with a fuel flow of 17 us gph at 2000 feet. We powered up to 83% for a short time & the indicated airspeed was accelerating through 250 knots & the tower confirmed a ground speed of 270 knots. My IV was capable of 256 knots on a cold day with every thing firewalled. This aircraft has so much more in reserve that it will certainly be exciting exploring the envelope.My initial impressions are that the airframe handled the firewall forward installation every bit as well as the Continental. The engine management is certainly simpler than a piston, the reduction in cabin noise & vibration  plus the quantum leap in performance make this a great aeroplane to fly. In the absence of high horsepower diesels, I think this is the way to go. Regards Gary Burns

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