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Title: Still
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Published: Jun 22, 2023
Author: Whisperin' Bill Anderson - singer
Post Date: 2023-06-22 15:59:34 by Lod
Keywords: None
Views: 5145
Comments: 75
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#1. To: All (#0)
Reminded me of this one, as time winds down...
I washed my truck Tuesday afternoon for the first time in about two years. Of course, that had my back out of commission yesterday and on the narcotics. I'd be having the time of my life if it wasn't for the pain. My excitement now consists of giving away money and drinkin'. Anyway, the truck looks good. It ought to, it's got less than 11k miles after ten and a half years. FWIW, John Denver died at 53 in 1997 He died on the afternoon of October 12, 1997, when his light homebuilt aircraft, a Rutan Long-EZ with registration number N555JD, crashed into Monterey Bay near Pacific Grove, California, while making a series of touch-and-go landings at the nearby Monterey Peninsula Airport.
Why would a pilot make a series of touch-and-go landings? Practice? Fun? Testing the aircraft?
I don't remember the details. JD had plenty of hours, the aircraft was a homebuilt/experimental deal. Maybe he was trying to get used to it, I don't really know. Back in 2013, I was getting ready to get my rotary wing license. I wanted to finish up my Texas Two-Step lessons at the American Legion in Waynedale first. Texting Granny irrevocably changed my destiny on 26Nov2013.
The engine quit on John Denver's plane for running out of gas. It had a switch controlling which tank it drew gas from but in an unusual spot, I think above and behind the shoulder which was a customized location, and for some reason, one tank ran dry. So the crash was not any fault with the aircraft's avionics or general design.
Is the engine in a small aircraft like that easy to re-start in flight? What turns the engine to re-start it? Air over the prop? An electric starter like a car?
I think it's both, mostly electric starter motor in post 1940 designs, but I swear I've seen footage of an engine stalling out and the only recourse was to dive the plane hard enough to force the propeller to spin the crankshaft enough to restart the engine.
One of LT's Cessna 152s at 07C (Auburn) had a bad battery and the only way to start it for awhile was to hand-prop it. It takes two people to do it safely (switch off/on, brakes, etc). Me and Skillethead used to do it to fly, but we were young and immortal back then. I'm the only immortal left now. It was called windmilling. We didn't usually fly high enough to rely on that. Usually 500' AGL.
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#2. To: Lod (#1)
#3. To: Esso (#2)
Nice! thank you.
#4. To: Lod (#3)
...as time winds down...
#5. To: Esso (#4)
#6. To: StraitGate (#5)
(Edited)
#7. To: Esso (#6)
#10. To: Pinguinite (#7)
#11. To: StraitGate (#10)
#14. To: Dakmar, 4um (#11)
...the only recourse was to dive the plane hard enough to force the propeller to spin the crankshaft enough to restart the engine.
Replies to Comment # 14.