F.Rizzo

.....because after seeing this:

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=752f554b0b

I FOR SURE want to try flying....

wavshrdr

The guys an idiot. You can hear the motor going south and he does nothing about it. I always hated 2-stroke motors in ultralights even though they were lightweight. Their longevity isn't that great and if they aren't jetted right you could easily seize the motor. Speed and altitude are your friends when flying, that guy had neither!

Nabbs

Ouch! He definately had a nice view of his trailerpark before he went in...lol

I won't fly small twin engine planes, let alone a single-engine C152 or 172...you'd have to incapacitate me to get me onto an ultra-light.

wavshrdr

Small twins aren't too bad as long as you don't lose a motor on takeoff/landings or over moutains. Unfortunately most of them have low single engine service ceilings but flying over water it sure is a benefit as long as you aren't at high altitudes.

Ultralights are a lot of fun especially the amphibian ones though I'd definitely go with a 4stroke motor. It gets tiring pretty quick hearing the angry hornet sound in your ears of the two stroke and annoys the neighbors a lot more. Only thing that PO'd them more than a 2 stroke ultralight I had was a 2 stroke hovercraft with 2 motors. That really got their attention which isn't exactly what I wanted...

On benefit of ultralights is normally you aren't going to fast if you crash and icing isn't usually an issue either. Engine off descent rate isn't measured in thousands of FPM either like jets are. Sadly not enough people who buy ultralights go through any sort of formal training which definitely contributes to the amount of crashes. It reminds of a joke I heard while living in ATL. What is the last thing a Redneck says before he crashes? "Martha, lookey here!"

Stevenm

That guys lucky we have modern medicine

crazymjb

Great, but in the future please post this in the off topic section.

Mods, please

Mike

flar

2-strokes, 4-strokes, twins, singles, blech!

Yes, it's much better to go without any engines at all... ;-)

(licensed sailplane pilot)

wavshrdr

My first license was in sailplanes. Nothing like flying ridges or catching a moutain wave! Later on it was no problem looking for emergency landings in a plane with a motor as I was already used to looking for suitable landing spots. I became very proficient at disassembling sailplanes in farmer's fields... ;-)

flar

You should be very proud of your disassembly merit badge.

I was mostly a wimp. I got my license, did occasional local sightseeing flights around the airport, and never ventured far enough away to need to land out. I was originally planning to do acro training, but ran into another hobby that was far less expensive before I got there. I did take one wild ride with the owner of the glider facility in his Fox - flying straight up until you run out of momentum and then tumbling down until you get enough airspeed to pull out and go into a loop or a barrel roll - you think the RDX handles well?

Hmmm... Is it possible to fit "My other vehicle would be a Fox" on a CA license plate?

737 Jock

Many years ago I lost an engine on a Navajo Chieftain (blown cylinder) over the center of Lake Erie on a freezing February night. While the PA-31 did not climb well in ice with one feathered, it did get me all the way home to Cleveland.

Fast forward 15 years; shut one down on an ATR-42. Fancy kerosene turbines will fail too when the mechanical fuel control unit has itself for lunch.

The hazard inherent in any endeavor in inversely proportional to the degree of care and preparation in accounting for every conceivable outcome: i.e. don't operate within the zone where there is no reasonable chance of reaching safety.
Sometimes that means don't go at all.

This certainly applies to seriously fast little SUVs.

I know a guy who used to fly Ultra-Lights with a perfect safety record because he was meticulous. Now he goes ocean kayaking. Safe? Well, probably safer than leaping out of airplanes that are still flying and not even on fire, then hoping that your chute opens.

"Judgement is what we learn just after we really needed it."