On 7/30/2024 9:11 AM, Mark Langford wrote:
My point is that high speed taxi testing has a very useful purpose, and may save your newly minted plane from untimely destruction before you ever get to experience the joy of flying it.

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This is the kind of subject that makes great "click bait" discussions for the Gathering camp fire.  With Mark having more than 1000 hours of KR time and surviving 3 off airport landings (that he has told us about), no one is going to question his ability to fly a KR.  We must however be conscious of exactly what we are testing in high speed taxi test.   If any airplane to be tested can safely ,and with full control, be taxied from the hangar, navigate the ramp, taxi to the runway for a test, accelerate to near lift off speed, cut the power, remain under control for the slowdown to stop with a safe amount of runway left, you know all you need to know about the (ground handling) control-ability of the airplane.  If you feel certain the airplane can touch down on landing on any part of the runway you used to accelerate, it is ready to fly.  Any testing beyond that point is to train the pilot, instill confidence in the pilot that he can handle it, or increase the pilots comfort level and any additional testing may have undesirable consequences.

With three successful "first flights" and a forth "first successful flight" on an experimental,  I would never feel comfortable making a "crow hop" where you make the first takeoff in an untested airplane and then attempt to land it 3 or 4 seconds later.  On each first flight I took off, climbed to altitude and got comfortable with the airplane,  did at least one straight ahead power off stall, then practiced a decent at approach speed. All were uneventful.

Anyone contemplating making a "first flight" should self-evaluate their comfort level and recent flight time.  If I were making rules to live by I would require the following.  No one makes a "first flight" or even a maintenance test flight with less than 250 hours total flight time and no less than 50 hours in the past 12 months.  The pilot must have a very good comfort level getting in to an airplane so it doesn't slow his reaction time when unexpected things happen.  If you're not comfortable, consider someone more capable to make the first flight.

The FAA came out with the "second pilot rule" several years back.  Terrible thinking as far as I'm concerned.  Their intent, they say, is to minimize loss of control accidents.  So, on most small two place airplanes you intend to make the first flight at near gross weight with two souls on board at what is probably a more rear CG configuration.    Why in heavens name would you do that?  If the PIC is not capable of controlling the airplane if experiencing marginal control ability, someone else should be making the test flight.

Bottom line, know what you're actually testing for, consider failure modes, self evaluate your abilities, and do so as safely as possible.

See you at the Gathering...........and bring a list of topics to the evening camp fire.

Larry Flesner

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