Never mind the weather - who has been flying, then?

[Tim Flyer]

Managed some great flights with my 20cc Hangar 9 Mustang on Saturday powered by a Laser 155(25cc).

 

What made it special for me was being watched by a retired senior RAF flying officer visiting the club with a friend, who was clearly enjoying the display. 
 

The relatively big engine in this plane is great, and it flys how a Mustang should. The pops from the engine when the throttle is rapidly closed on overrun are delightful! 

Edited September 9 by Tim Flyer

[GrumpyGnome]

@Tim Flyer which Mustang? The lovely big olive one? 

[Tim Flyer]

Yes it’s the olive one 

I think wingspan is 69 1/2 “. It’s a nice practical size. 

Edited September 9 by Tim Flyer

[Erfolg]

Standing at the French Window I was looking out as the rain came down just like the those olden stair rods. Today was to have been the club RC Scale flying competition. I guessed it was cancelled or club members at the field were huddled under the club house veranda or inside.

 

On Saturday the field was in exceptually fine condition, the grass as short as on all the local bowling greens, the ground as firm as a well prepared cricket pitch.

 

Although I have flown this year less than ever, over the year I had brought my Delta into a good flying condition, although I still rely on others to toss the model into air, I had felt that it was near to me self launching. My RC Nobler was finally flying once again with all the issues that had recently dogged it gone, another model that I once agin edging back to self launching. My own design model was now a predictable flyer. Unexpectedly my Sterling kit Fairchild PT 19 that was playing up, this must have been its first flight post the start of Covid, non the less it landed in one piece on the strip, after a very short potentially underwear soiling flight.

 

Now summer sems to have gone after short duration, has winter arrived, missing out Autumn?

 

At long last the replacement Moss road has been finished, it is good. Driving along it the other day, my wife informed me that controversy had now started over the interconnector to the offshore wind farm under construction, to the local distribution facility that now is visibly across the fields. I had assumed it would be a buried cable, watching a light aircraft making a landing, I am no longer certain, as it was quite high as it descended towards the runway. Thankfully it is at the other end of the town where we live. I can now get to the field  much easier again, although the area is plagued with road works, in an essentially rural area.

 

Roll on summer!

Edited September 9 by Erfolg

[GrumpyGnome]

9 hours ago, Tim Flyer said:

Yes it’s the olive one 

 

Ta. A flying buddy has one with a DLE20. Lovely model that I covet greatly......

[Brian Cooper]

Don't laugh, but  apparently it has been the warmest summer on record. . However, the first six months of the year were epically miserable with relentless wind and rain. My local flying field was like a swamp, and the ground was too soft to even stand on. 

 

It was a cause for celebration when the ground dried out enough to support the weight of a vehicle, and we have enjoyed the last three months of comparatively better weather. 

In the last few days, the weather has returned to being cooler, wetter and windier. . That's summer over, then. 

 

I feel sorry for the beginners... they can't learn to fly in these turbulent conditions. 

[payneib]

42 minutes ago, Brian Cooper said:

Don't laugh, but  apparently it has been the warmest summer on record. .

For global average. Unfortunately, being warm everywhere else makes our little island in the North Atlantic very, very wet. 

 

For the warmest summer on record in the UK, you have to go back to 2018. 

 

44 minutes ago, Brian Cooper said:

 

 

I feel sorry for the beginners... they can't learn to fly in these turbulent conditions. 

 

I volunteered to do my examiners exam two years ago and haven't got near it again since. Four flying days in a summer isn't enough for anyone to stay current, let alone learn from scratch. 

[Martin Harris - Moderator]

Four times?  I don’t know where you’re located but I can count on one hand the number of our regular Thursday and Saturday sessions on the North Herts/Beds border when we haven’t flown this year. 
 

Sometimes it’s been in spite of the weather but our regular attendees have gained a great deal of competence and confidence, flying models that can put up with a bit of rough and tumble. 
 

What has changed is the types of model flown.  It is quite noticeable that my more valuable (in terms of sentimental attachment as well as monetary considerations) and larger IC models have been out far less frequently. 

[extra slim]

Completely agree with Mr Harris. It surprises me how many members do not have "models for all occasions". Lets face it, the weather in the UK has always been unpredictable and variable, so I have all types of models to suit the occasion. Most members don't, and moan that they don't get many flights. When the ground is very wet, and grass long, and the middle of winter, I take electric models without an undercart etc. Alot have a "winter hack", but most have undercarts. They are not my favourite by any means, but it gets me out for a natter and coffee, and I get a flight in. Each and to their own. 

[Chris Walby]

Half full or half empty? Okay its not that close to last years number of flights, but I have moved house and had a lot of other things to do so i am happy with the 231 flights this year (so far). To be honest I could have flown more as at some of the club meets I have sat and bashed my gums rather than fly when other have been.

 

IMO its a case of picking the right model for the conditions and with the option of stabilisation the only real limiting factor is when the wind is faster than the max airspeed of the model 🤣

[martin collins 1]

Quite often windy here as we are not too far from the coast, i am a member of two clubs and there are only five or so between the two clubs who will fly in windy conditions, as said take a model that will handle it and does not hold a high monetary/sentimental value and go fly it. I find it helps with concentration and keeps you on your toes flying wise.

[payneib]

40 minutes ago, Martin Harris - Moderator said:

Four times?  I don’t know where you’re located but I can count on one hand the number of our regular Thursday and Saturday sessions on the North Herts/Beds border when we haven’t flown this year. 
 

 

To be fair, there were three other good weather weekends in Yorkshire this summer, but I was busy for those. Unfortunately midweek is block booked for the next twenty years (fingers crossed) due to being employed. 

 

I did more flying in my 6 night holiday at Buckminster, than I did between May Bank Holiday and putting the tent up at the National Centre. 

 

As for braving inclement weather, I'm usually one of the 3 or 4 at the club to not give up due to wind - there's not much my Acrowot XL won't go up in - but even that's been grounded most of this summer. 

Edited September 10 by payneib

[Dickw]

I am another one for flying in any weather and taking a suitable model with me.

At the beginning of this year I bought a Wasp E2K kit from Cloud Models for bad weather days.

Very cheap, simple box fuselage plus veneered foam wing, so no great investment in time or money. If I break it that would be no great loss, but it is simple to repair so would probably be in the air again very quickly.

 

BUT very fast and will fly in just about any weather, so I take it with me on bad days and it has had many outings this year (no breakages yet!).

 

NOTE - other similar types of model are available from many manufacturers, so I am not pushing one particular model - just a type.

 

Dick

[Erfolg]

Hmm, must be a bad boy, my post now needs moderator approval.

 

Anyway, it could be the weather, it could be just club members, we now have a proliferation of large Tundra type models, you know the type, 19 inch, low profile tyres, tabulators on the wings.

 

I have been sceptical with respect to many of the assertions with respect to UK weather. I remember with clarity a long hot summer in the 70s, massive thunderstorms in some years and so on. Many of the figures used are based on resent times, when records started to be noted centrally, not all figures used the same standardised methodology. Some values taken from tree rings and so on. Not as definitive as presented.

 

I di read a little way back that during the 1800s, a amateur scientist took daily readings, using his standard methodology. His records and diaries have recently been discovered. They suggest that little has obviously changed, by a margin worth noting.

 

Non the less, glaciers seem to be retreat at present.

 

Last week I read that a (world) wide magnetic field has been discovered, that is thought to have a significant impact on the jet stream. To a far greater extent than Sun Spots.

 

Non the less, it feels windier than ever, here on the coast, this year it has rained a lot and has been cool enough to kill my Dahlia rhizomes, Geraniums, that had previously survived 7 winters.

 

 

[john stones 1 - Moderator]

7 minutes ago, Erfolg said:

Hmm, must be a bad boy, my post now needs moderator approval.

 

Anyway, it could be the weather, it could be just club members, we now have a proliferation of large Tundra type models, you know the type, 19 inch, low profile tyres, tabulators on the wings.

 

I have been sceptical with respect to many of the assertions with respect to UK weather. I remember with clarity a long hot summer in the 70s, massive thunderstorms in some years and so on. Many of the figures used are based on resent times, when records started to be noted centrally, not all figures used the same standardised methodology. Some values taken from tree rings and so on. Not as definitive as presented.

 

I di read a little way back that during the 1800s, a amateur scientist took daily readings, using his standard methodology. His records and diaries have recently been discovered. They suggest that little has obviously changed, by a margin worth noting.

 

Non the less, glaciers seem to be retreat at present.

 

Last week I read that a (world) wide magnetic field has been discovered, that is thought to have a significant impact on the jet stream. To a far greater extent than Sun Spots.

 

Non the less, it feels windier than ever, here on the coast, this year it has rained a lot and has been cool enough to kill my Dahlia rhizomes, Geraniums, that had previously survived 7 winters.

 

 

 

No knowledge of your posts needing moderator approval Erf, unless it's in for sale/wanted. Your Dahli/Geranium ain't been killed by the cool weather, you've to look elsewhere for the reason.

[payneib]

29 minutes ago, Erfolg said:

 

I have been sceptical with respect to many of the assertions with respect to UK weather. I remember with clarity a long hot summer in the 70s, massive thunderstorms in some years and so on. Many of the figures used are based on resent times, when records started to be noted centrally, not all figures used the same standardised methodology. Some values taken from tree rings and so on. Not as definitive as presented.

 

I di read a little way back that during the 1800s, a amateur scientist took daily readings, using his standard methodology. His records and diaries have recently been discovered. They suggest that little has obviously changed, by a margin worth noting.

 

Non the less, glaciers seem to be retreat at present.

 

 

 

Historical weather data mostly comes from Royal Navy log books, dating back to the 17thC. It's a fairly massive, cohesive data set. 

[leccyflyer]

Looking at my flight logs, for the year 1st January-1st September, this year I'm down about 20% on the same period, compared to last year, when I flew more than I ever had, due to just being retired. Compared to 2022, \i flew more than 60% more flights this year, though obviously didn't have anywhere like the number of opportunities to go flying as I was working.  I don't think 20% is a massive reduction in the number of flights even though my perception is that the weather has been lousy for much of the summer and we had a very wet spring, compared to last year's glorious spring.

[john stones 1 - Moderator]

We are in Britain, talking about the weather is what we do, Quack.

[leccyflyer]

Blowing a hooley this morning, so very little chance of flying, but did put a model in the car and set off for the field in search of my tree-d Vulcan. Couldn't see any sign of it, despite searching for an hour last night, when it didn't seem to be in the tree where it had ended up on Sunday. Couldn't find it with binoculars and the radio wasn't responding - kept at it until it was almost dark before giving up, including an extensive search of the ground under the trees.

On returning this morning, arriving at the field, my flying pal Bob M said that it wasn't in the tree, he'd searched and located the model in a different, lower tree, where she'd obviously been dislodged by the very strong winds and fallen. Bob played a blinder and was able to recover the model using a ladder - something that I definitely wouldn't have been able to do, but he was a linesman so well equipped to get the Vulcan back.

Apart from the missing nose, she's remarkably intact and recovering the model has contributed some extra information about the crash on Sunday. The first thing we'd noticed was a bit more noise than usual in the air, then the Vulcan refused to turn at the end of the circuit, eventually fell into a spiral dive to the right, from which I managed to recover, but she then hit the top of the trees. There's no damage to the trailing edge, but the starboard prop adaptor and prop is missing. I believe that the prop had come off in the air and the asymmetric thrust had resisted my attempts to turn, then thrown the Vulcan into a spiral dive to the right. When I came out of that, she hit the top of the tree.

End result is a missing nose - that's a thin ABS moulding and in all likelyhood shattered on impact, hence us not being able to find it on the ground under the tree, despite a long search. The twin 3s1p 2200mah lipos are completely dead and will go in the recycling. I can probably 3D print a replacement nose. So that was a very good result - we were convinced that the model was firmly wedged and up there for good - but the 18mph winds were obviously enough to bring her down. Bob's expert climbing skills and safe recovery techniques saved the day - thanks Bob!

 

[Merry Mark]

On 10/09/2024 at 12:43, john stones 1 - Moderator said:

We are in Britain, talking about the weather is what we do, Quack.

True! Unless we have a calm spell of high pressure, tend to go back to low maintenance hand launched models over the winter months.

 

Take the same attitude as Dickw.  Even braved flying with the boys in Storm Isha back in January.  Hones the skills for summer and a great demonstration of air vs. ground speed 😀 
 

 

[Erfolg]

Payneib (has it a hidden meaning), I would expect that the navy records will have concentrated on a relatively narrow criteria. Mainly coastal data, often being a subjective judgement, such as stiff breeze, until the Beaufort scale, again not totally definitive. Water conditions being another area. 

 

We have had CO2 levels double the current in the age of dinosaurs, no ice caps, deferent fauna, also an Ice Age. In the middle ages many vineyards apparently in the UK.

 

With the Global Warming, I have come to see many Deep Thought projects, will the answer be 42?

 

I do know that the wind and rain at present are spoiling my own fun. Although my Tomatoes are now ripening.

 

I had a similar experience with my own Delta, although my experience resulted in a perfectly flat spin. It became apparent what had happened, fiding one prpp assembly missing, no other damage.

 

Ealy morning, we have had prolonged Hailstone, followed by heavy rain. I am being sopped from playing by wind, no, no, not me, real wind, strong breeze to moderate gale. 

[Geoff S]

The weather certainly has changed.  Up to 1990 I sailed/raced my dinghy just about every Sunday (at least) for 9 months of the year and on Wednesday evenings when there was daylight.  90% of my sailing was on inland lakes/reservoirs and occasionally rivers.  What typified the Wednesday evening races was that as soon as a race started at 1800 hrs, somebody shut the door and the wind disappeared.  That doesn't seem to be the case now. In fact on Wednesday 1st August 1990 I had to haul my Laser over 50 metres of hard mud after a typical drifter race because there was so little water in the reservoir. That was the last time I sailed because the following morning I had the cycle accident that put a stop to my shenanigans.  It was incredibly hot in the hospital and there was almost no wind outside. 

 

I can also remember winters when the roads were deep in snow for weeks.  I don't think we had any snow last winter other than a light dusting that disappeared in a few hours.  I once kept a record of wet cycle-commutes (27 miles total - 1.5 hours minimum/day) and it was fewer than 1 ride/week (1 in 10).  That wouldn't be the case this last spring.

[Learner]

 

Weather looks OK for tomorrow but a scary sky tonight

[GrumpyGnome]

Red sky at night is supposedly good....... for Shepherds at least.. 

 

Still very breezy (and chilly) here so no flying; mowed the field in the hope I can use it tomorrow.

[payneib]

1 hour ago, GrumpyGnome said:

Red sky at night is supposedly good....... for Shepherds at least.. 

 

Still very breezy (and chilly) here so no flying; mowed the field in the hope I can use it tomorrow.

Forecast looking ok for the weekend last I checked - better Sunday but flyable both. Hopefully get some CL practice with Grayson, and some RC for myself.