Buzz. With reference to your concern about high altitude there are a couple of issues to take into account. Firstly, at altitude your MTOW is always going to be reduced over the MSL maximum. Extending the wings may well compensate for that, but then you are going to get a higher drag, requiring more HP to overcome it. Secondly, and of greater concern, the higher altitude will also affect the level of control authority, so while you may well get off the ground on that hot day at your high altitude strip with a moderate load, you may find that you lack sufficient elevator authority to get out of ground effect, and even though you may have sufficient lift from your wing extensions, and power up the yazoo from your turbo'ed engine, you are still going to trip over the boundary fence because you are stuck in ground effect. It's overcoming that ground effect that is going to be the reall isue for you, not the horsepower of your engine. I'll have a hunt around, because I also live at the top of a mountain range, and it is an issue that I too will have to deal with .
Cheers. Peter Bancks. stranged...@dodo.com.au
