StinkBug Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 On the way back from the Catalina fly in yesterday KMYFM20S and I got together for a little formation work. Unfortunately one of the cameras was pretty much useless due to fogging, but I managed to put together a short video with the other one. I posted this in the meetup thread but figured some of the non-socal people might enjoy it as well. 5 Quote
JohnB Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 That was awesome!! Ok you two have convinced me, I am definitely going to do some formation flight training! Very nice! 3 Quote
Hank Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 Always wondered how the many different models managed to fly together in the caravan. Looks like your C did well, although the S slowed down. Gives me hope for my little C. May try to do the Caravan next year, vacation is short this year with another new job. Quote
Oscar Avalle Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 Nice! Sorry about the camera! What cameras do you use? Quote
JohnB Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 Always wondered how the many different models managed to fly together in the caravan. Looks like your C did well, although the S slowed down. Gives me hope for my little C. May try to do the Caravan next year, vacation is short this year with another new job. That was my thought too Hank, but if I practice, I can fly slow as needed.. Im in! Hope there's another class in Yuma coming up.. (another place I'd like to find a reason to fly to) John Quote
FlyDave Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 John, There aren't too many reasons to go to Yuma, AZ. A formation clinic must be one of the very very few.... Enjoy the formation clinic and bring lots of water! Dave 1 Quote
StinkBug Posted July 13, 2015 Author Report Posted July 13, 2015 For a C to fly with a faster Mooney the faster plane needs to slow down quite a bit, but it's not quite "slow flight" territory. On the plus side when Karson flew wing with me from Yuma back to San Diego he was burning about 2GPH less than I was in my C. Amazing how efficient a big engine can be at low power settings. I've also done a small amount of formation flying with a Piper Warrior and a 172, which are of course significantly slower than my C. You just have to brief all the speeds before the flight to find settings that will work for everyone. With the Mooneys climbing at 100 and cruise at 120 seems to work pretty well most of the time, at least if one of them is a C. When I flew with the others we were cruising at about 100kias. You really just need a cruise speed where the wingman isn't full throttle just to keep up, they need a little extra to play with to be able to catch up when they fall back. 1 Quote
StinkBug Posted July 13, 2015 Author Report Posted July 13, 2015 Nice! Sorry about the camera! What cameras do you use? I have 2 GoPros one is the original HD Hero and the other is a Hero3. They both fogged to some extent, but the older one was the worse one. I've researched a few anti-fog methods that I'm gonna try and see if I can find a cure. Quote
JohnB Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 John, There aren't too many reasons to go to Yuma, AZ. A formation clinic must be one of the very very few.... Enjoy the formation clinic and bring lots of water! Dave Hey Dave! Yes I do want to find an excuse to go to Yuma, dog flight would be fun but formation clinic would be much better.. I would have to arrange it so I would leave at exactly 0:10 after whatever hour I depart for cinematic reasons.. (yes Im a movie buff and would milk a trip to Yuma for all it's worth For a C to fly with a faster Mooney the faster plane needs to slow down quite a bit, but it's not quite "slow flight" territory. On the plus side when Karson flew wing with me from Yuma back to San Diego he was burning about 2GPH less than I was in my C. Amazing how efficient a big engine can be at low power settings. I've also done a small amount of formation flying with a Piper Warrior and a 172, which are of course significantly slower than my C. You just have to brief all the speeds before the flight to find settings that will work for everyone. With the Mooneys climbing at 100 and cruise at 120 seems to work pretty well most of the time, at least if one of them is a C. When I flew with the others we were cruising at about 100kias. You really just need a cruise speed where the wingman isn't full throttle just to keep up, they need a little extra to play with to be able to catch up when they fall back. Thats great! You two make it look so easy. I'm in. By the way, did you put your go pro cam on your vertical stabilizer or? Great to meet you by the way! John Quote
StinkBug Posted July 13, 2015 Author Report Posted July 13, 2015 The right side one is on the very tip of the horizontal stab. Just in front of the swinging counterweight on the elevator. The left one is on the wing tip. 1 Quote
kmyfm20s Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 Great job Dalles! I was at 14.5" and 2450 rpm and 8.5 gph on our flight together. I see I forgot to turn off my strobes, not very courteous of me sorry. Maybe if put your camera in a Ziplock with silica beads before use you could get rid of some of the condensation and possibly keep them cool. I do recommend the Yuma clinic for anyone to attend. It will give you a much greater comfort level with your airplane and being close to others. 1 Quote
StinkBug Posted July 13, 2015 Author Report Posted July 13, 2015 For nice clear days like this I think I'm just gonna try putting the case door with the openings in it on. The sound might get a little crazy, but it's already just white noise. No worries on the strobes, I noticed them but they weren't bugging me any. Quote
yvesg Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 Always wondered how the many different models managed to fly together in the caravan. Looks like your C did well, although the S slowed down. Gives me hope for my little C. May try to do the Caravan next year, vacation is short this year with another new job. Airspeed is set to 120 knots for the Caravan. This speed is OK for all Mooney models. On Saturday we practiced a C model and a Rocket and did well. Yves Quote
Guest Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 Nice video! Looking at your plane in flight you may want to build or buy the fairing for your cabin step, it's big drag and free speed. Clarence Quote
Seth Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 120 is what we practiced at the Martinsburg Formation Clinic here on the East Coast. I've only flown formation those hours at Martinsburg and I'm hooked. Go participate in a formation clinic if you have not yet! -Seth Quote
carusoam Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 Fabulous! The long and the short of the Mooney story... I thought Karson's speed was going to be much slower? (Efficiency humor?) Best regards, -a- 1 Quote
kmyfm20s Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 I'm a little partial to Karson's Screamin' Eagle speed = 1.88 X L/Dmax Quote
gsxrpilot Posted July 13, 2015 Report Posted July 13, 2015 This year will be my second with the Caravan and I of course, fly a C. Here at home, I regularly fly with RocketMan (Mooney Rocket) and Pinto (Acclaim). We have no problem flying together. For the actually Caravan flight into KOSH, the organizers like to group similar models into the Elements. I'm Lead for Charlie Element which will be two C's and an E. Regarding the GoPro fogging, it's important to use the open back (vented door) on the housing. Unless you know you'll be flying through heavy rain, there is never any reason to use the sealed door. That will keep the lens from fogging up. Quote
Tankinbarber Posted July 17, 2015 Report Posted July 17, 2015 Awesome Video. If anyone in the southwest wants to head to a formation clinic let me know! Quote
Ned Gravel Posted July 18, 2015 Report Posted July 18, 2015 Tankinbarber: Have you considered practicing for the Caravan? Most of our Caravan safety pilots and instructors will be in Madison, WI, tonight and tomorrow, practicing for the actual Caravan on Sunday. Quote
StinkBug Posted July 18, 2015 Author Report Posted July 18, 2015 I'm pretty sure there will be another Caravan clinic in Yuma coming up in a few months. I was led to believe it's a yearly thing Quote
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