Annual inspection and test flight

Yesterday I performed the last parts of the mandatory annual inspection. 

Today I made a check flight to make sure that I have not messed up anything. Once again I was made aware of the importance of making a check flight in good conditions after any maintenance. 

When taking of, the AOA warning stayed on longer than expected. I did not realize it during the flight but when reviewing the logs I can see that my airspeed indication was a little optimistic, I flew with settings that should give me 120kt IAS but it showed almost 125. When on final, I got the feeling of flying slower than shown and the AOA signal started warning me well above 75kt. I started to suspect something wrong with the static, dynamic or AOA inputs, either a loose line or that water had entered the system during the washing after the last flight. After an uneventful landing and taxi, I shut don the engine and systems and found the problem almost immediately after opening the canopy: One of the static input lines had loosened in the T-connection that splits the input from the static inputs to the G3X-GSU25 adhrs and the G5. The effect being that both the G5 and G3X system got static pressure from within the cockpit. I guess this was a good test, now I know what happens if I use the alternate static pressure valve :)

All is good now and I have just sent in the paperwork and expect to be approved for another year.

Smart glide tested

I finally got around to make another flight to test Smart Glide. I will update this post with a video as soon as I have gotten a approval from the authorities to share this video. (it should not contain anything secret but you never know ;) )

Basically it works as advertised but I´m not so sure it is useful in most scenarios. I will use it if I have engine trouble at high altitude in IMC, for a short while, while I organize myself before manually setting up for an approach.

It has a lot of potential for improvements that could make it close to as useful as Auto Land. The system has all information needed to create and let the autopilot use a visual approach guidance to a runway threshold, using the sink rate you have programmed and accounting for wind. All the pilot would have to do then is to make a final flare :D 

Updated with video:

Data collection for the upcoming Garmin Glide functionality

Garmin will soon give us G3X Touch users a nice new feature for free. In preparation for this I made a flight yesterday to collect the needed data for it. I wanted to verify earlier numbers.

Result from the worst case scenario (Engine still running but without power and prop full forward):

Measured at the best glide speed of 95kt IAS: vs -995fpm

From this you get:

no wind glide ratio 1:9.67

no wind decent angle 5.905 degrees

no wind 1.59NM / 1000 feet agl

no wind 2.85 km / 1000 feet

Reinstalled the Radio

Received the radio yesterday. Today I installed it and did a good ground check (it was snowing with a cealing of 3-400 feet so I did not perform a flight test today.

Great to read that the found an obvious problem and solved it :D

The intercom and G3X sound good, receiving from a handheld radio also checked out good and receiveing on the handheld from the reinstalled ICOM also sounded good. 

Expect to need to tweak the mic gain and squelch in the air to get the best result. 

Radio failure (on the ground)

 Lousy weather but good enough for a short IFR flight. The goal was to confirm or adjust the Intercom squelch level in preparation for a planned flight with my wife next week. The radio just died during the run-up while programming the GTN....

At least it is the best season to be grounded on...

LEMO-jack

Got around to installing the LEMO-jack for the right side. I decided to keep the traditional headset jacks as a backup. I also found the intercom squelch settings, now working perfectly on the ground, I hope to do a flight test tomorrow. 

Radio working properly :D

Last evening provided some great weather. I took the oppourtunity and made an early evening flight. On my last flight I made some radio checks with a tower and got the response that reception is fully understandable (even at significant distance) but that it sounded like I was flying in an open cockpit aeroplane.

For last evenings flight, I had reduced the mic gain setting a lot, now I need to keep my mouth really close to the mic to break squelch but I got only positive feedback regarding my transmission quality. Finally a fully working radio, I will try to increase the mic gain sligtly but now I know I have a setting that works in case this recreates the noice problems. :D

I got a nice picture from my area, the pool will be installed this week.

TOGA button installed

Decided to yet again redo some radio wiring, I will shorten the headset wiring by placing the jacks in the panel instead of the standard RV-14 position (beside the seats). This is still work in progress as I did not bring all needed tools to the airport.

I also installed the TOGA switch and configured the GTN 625 for "remote go around", works great.

Playing around and tinkering

Got an email from our EAA-flight operations manager that my manual is approved now and that he has requested to have the paper original printed. Hopefully he will receive the original tomorrow for final signing :D

I think all the other paperwork is also ok. so I hope I can receive the permit to fly in not to many days...

I try to fly at least weekly, having some fun:

I am also tinkering with some nice to have things like the TOGA button. (single pole but separated by diods, one will go to the 507 TOGA input and one to the GTN 625)

A morning flight, Flight 42

Sat myself in the car a few minutes after 5am and headed for the airport. Block off at 6:03 and airborne at 6:14, living closer to the airport is great! I am now in the air before I would have arrived at the airport if living at my old adress :D

Today's flight was just a another flight to verify that the G5 works as it should. My radio interception is now much improved and I listened to Sweden Control for most of the flight, happy to hear some traffic again, it sure has been silent on the radio for many weeks now.

I was hoping to do some IMC flying but I am not sure the cloud flying I did at the end of this video even qualifies for logging IMC... When flying in IMC with the pitot heat on at 11 degrees Celsius with all normal equipment on and a camera on the USB interface, my total system draw is only 15 Amps. Flying at -40 celsius should make the GAP 26 draw a maximum of another 6 amps, feels great to have lots of marginal :D

Was home at 8:05 the kids had just woken up and my wife's greeting included "...perfect tajming, the coffee is just ready to be served". Life is great!

  

To-do/squak list

Done

- Install Garmin G5

- Wrap center panel

- Clean up the wiring behind the panel (some minor stuff left to do)

- Fix/replace the non working canopy fan

To-do

- Install new TOGA switch

- Re-label the center panel

- Forgot mounting the light regulators in the panel, a 5 minute job

- Connect the canopy warning switch (not sure if I will)

- Provide a USB connector at, at least one external camera postions

- Install the new access doors/covers

- Install Wheelpant access doors (to be able to fill up the tires without having to dismantle the fairings)

- Install flush iPad mini holder in the panel

Twilight flight, panel version 2.5

Spent many hours with improving the wire management, wrapping the center panel section and installing the new Garmin G5. Below is panel version 2.5 (version three will be with the soon to be installed iPad flush mount)

 I was tired and local time was way past 10PM but I could not skip testing out the G5 and this was also a great opportunity to check the landing light height adjustment.

Twilight ended at 23:26 at ESSU last night, I landed at 23:16, perfect! This was also the first flight with a working pitot heat. I turned off the heat when vacating the runway, it was still warm 6-8 minutes later when I had gotten out of the cockpit and checked it.

I need to tune the back light settings in the GMC507 and the ICOM. In real life, it is the G5, 625 and 470 that has a good brightness setting.
 

New toys for Panel version 3

Got this in the mail today :D

When installed I will feel comfortable flying into IMC.

Squak/to-do status:

Done
- Flip the flap switch
- Fix the co-pilot trim down switch
- Install Pitot heat switch (and breaker)
- Complete Pitot heat wiring
- New tail wheel axle
- New Tail wheel stearing link

- Connect the canopy fans, Done but one fan does not work...

To-do
- Install Garmin G5
- Install new TOGA switch
- Wrap center panel
- Connect the canopy warning switch (not sure if I will)
- Clean up the wiring behind the panel
- Provide a USB connector at, at least one external camera postions
- Install the new access doors/covers
- Install Wheelpant access doors (to be able to fill up the tires without having to dismantle the fairings)
- Install flush iPad mini holder in the panel

Flight 35, Fans

Today I finally got around to connect the two fans that wents the avionics and also help with getting fog of the canopy.

I also fixed the co-pilot trim up function, as last time it was the micro molex connector that had come loose. Last thing done was to set some squelch and mic gain, and other settings in the ICOM220.

Fueled the aircraft and then washed it for the first time. Take off video with the cleaned RV:

Flight 34, Fixed radio

Got out to the airport to continue dismantling the radio, I got out the tray and decided to just try it in my lap before removing all wiring. I then realized that I could push the radio in another millimeter into the tray compared to when it was in the panel! Now I got reception from inside the hangar :D

I then tried turning on the intercom using the key on the radio (hold in dual for 2 seconds), I had not done this before as I have a dedicated intercom switch, another win, the intercom is working.

With this, I reconnected the G3X sound into the radio, mounted the tray into the panel, further out and went for a test flight. I am still not happy with the sound quality but everything is much improved.

Made two touch & go, all three landnings was good today, basically no bounce on any.

New panel center section

The plan for yesterday was to get the noice certification tests done but the weather did not cooperate.

I then decided to install the new center section of the panel so I would no longer have to fly with the GMC 507 autopilot controller in my lap.

I managed to flip the flap switch upside down so I will have to correct that at the next session.

A squak/to-do list to make me remember:
- Flip the flap switch
- Wrap the center panel
- Label the center panel
- Fix the co-pilot trim down switch
- Connect the canopy fans
- Connect the canopy warning switch
- Install the Pitot heat switch
- Clean up the wiring behind the panel
- Provide a USB connector at, at least one external camera postions
- Install the new tail wheel axle
- Install te new tail wheel staring link
- Install the new access doors/covers

Flight 25, 26, 27 Airspeed verification

Flight 25 was a flight to verify that all still worked well after the annual service including oil/oil filter change. During this flight I also did some cardinal heading&track runs at 4000 feet to use for airspeed indication verification.

Flight 26 was a familirazation flight for my second observer and controller Jan-Erik. After the upcoming noise certification tests, I need to focus on solving the intercom problem.

Flight 27 was a great evening flight, I got a rainbow on camera, it looked much greater live. I also adjusted the autopilot, I made a small increase both in gain and torque, getting nearer to what I consider perfect. 

Yesterday I got around to enter the data from flight 25 into the excel sheet provided in Kitplanes to help calculate IAS correction. The result was an amazing -0.29 knots!

  

Autopilot installation, flight test

Finally everything lined up and I could perform the autopilot testing. I could not get the trim to work properly thru the autopilot but as it is recommended to do the first test without autotrim, I performed the other ground tests, disabled the autotrim function and then went flying.

First I flew around with just the flight director enabled, after being satisfied that it guided me correctly I climbed to safe altitude.

At 3000 feet I had one finger on the cws/ap disconnect button, the other at the AP controller, I took special care to where the AP servo breaker was and then activated the autopilot. At first I just had it in heading and alt mode. verified that I could disable the AP with a push on the AP/CWS button on my stick.

I then tried some turns just turning the heading knob, did some VS climbs and descends, happy that it captured my set altitude. With these tests done, I flew with less concerns and got down lower.

I have now done altitude captures from high and low, altitude hold directly. only done VS climb and descents so far. For the horizontal part, I have done heading and nav from the GTN625.

All have worked great. The autopilot is precise and very smooth, I think I will set it to be a little more aggressive later on, but for a first test with just the recommended values from Vans I think the result was amazing. It is already better that 90% of all other autopilot equipped aircrafts I have flown :D

Autopilot installation, wiring almost done

Sorry for the lack of updates.

Not only have me and my family moved to a new house this spring, I have also been more busy at work due to covid-19. And as if that was not enough to shift my focus away from the RV, I have started a new demanding position at another company this monday.

This evening I finally found time to continue my autopilot installation. At first it was a complete mess, the roll servo did not even show up on the configuration screen and the rest of the system showed huge amounts of canbus network error:

It stayed like this for weeks, I did some improvements in my wiring, installed a shielding ground but nothing helped.

I began suspecting that it was a canbus termination problem as the instructions from Vans did not clearly indicate that the servo harness was designed so that pin 3&4 on the servos were connected (this makes the servos use the built in 120ohm canbus terminators)

After posting on the Vansairforce forum this afternoon, I quickly got some trouble shooting assistance and this evening I went to the hangar to check.

I could quickly determine that the canbus termination was as specified. I then disconnected the roll servo as that LRU showed the biggest problem (not showing up at all)

With the roll servo disconnected, the bus was fine again. I went back to my documentation and after reading the relevant documentation several times and scratching my head, I finally found my error. Due to this mistake in my documentation, I had switched the can-hi and can-low wires.

After redoing this part of the wiring harness, I was presented with this pleasing screen:

 Time to put everything together, set some values in the configuration and go out testing...perhaps on Sunday.

Flight 17&18 AOA and apch

Two more flights done, the spring weather has been much better so far, compared to the lousy fall and winter weather.

I have now done a full AOA calibration and during the last flight I tried a GPS assisted NDB-NDB apch.

Flight 16, a "Q-moment"

Did flight 16 today in an amazing blue sky with light winds. Some minor turbulence but all in all a very enjoyable flight.

There was some spice in the beginning. I used the heating pads to give the oil a better starting point, in was about -6c when I arrived at the airport, +4 when I left. After a normal preflight, start and all the normal taxi, run-up and take-off, I leveled out at 1500 (1400agl) and quickly accelerated, the stick force got heavier and heavier until I realized the trim acted in the opposite way.

Only thing done since last flight is installing the pitch autopilot servo. So be aware that when installing the autopilot servo, the trim might reverse. (the trim commands goes thru the AP-servo)

In the cozy3 that I am a part owner in, we actually have the trim set opposite to normal so adjusting to having the pitch trim going against the stick movement was no problem at all.

I had forgotten that I had the gopro set in pro-mode with iso min-max set for low light mode, all footage outside of the hangar was completely washed out.