CFII1974

My Feedback: (5)

I wonder if Uncljoe can fix this one.
Well this weekend I lost my Eurosport, This is my first (hopefully last) total crash of a jet.
The day started out good enough, I got up early to drive an hour and a 1/2 to see a friend of mine that I don't get to fly with too much. It was my turn, the last several times he has made the drive my way. We got to the field looking forward to a nice long day of flying, He flew first, His A-10X flew very well. Next it was my turn.
Went through all the normal pre-flight steps, tested everything, Range check with the turbine running. it all looked good so it was time to go. Take off was good, the Merlin is able to send my eurosport vertical after about a 225 foot roll. I made a few high circuits of the field and decided I would make a lower pass to get my approach path set in my head. I had never flown at this field before and it has more trees around then my normal spot I fly. Well on the pass right about the tree top level the plane failed to respond to aileron input, just I started to get very concerned it came back and I was still feeding input in so it made a very fast roll and a half to inverted. I got it right side up and decided it was time right then to get it on the ground from the other direction. I pulled the power back put the gear down and started my approach. About the same altitude as the hit on the other side of the field it happened again. I had nothing!! The plane went into failsafe, the turbine shut down and the gear locked down. It became clear very quick that the plane was going to crash and I had no control, the turbine was dead the controls were dead and I could not put the gear up.
The plane descended into the trees at about a 45 degree down angle and hit with a very loud smack boom sound. We hurried out to the plane. I was expecting to find my Merlin crumpled like a beer can, but it was the first thing I saw and it looked fine, It was sitting on the tail cone against a small bush, it had come right out of the mounts and other then the temp probe being broken off and a few scratches from exiting the mount it looked fine. The plane on the other hand did not. Both wings had been shucked off and were for the most part in one piece but the fuse was waited, it more or less quartered itself. The impact you could tell was off center on the right side, we never found the right side canard and only the top piece of the Jettronics valve that was right there as well.

It looks like all the core components survived. I striped a gear in one 8611 and pulled the end connector of another, the crash pulled the antenna out of the receiver. I will be sending those to JR to get fixed. The turbine spins free and sounds the same as before the crash but I am sending it in to Todd to get fully checked out. The only part of the pipe that was hurt was the bellmouth, after I took that off the lip can right back into shape. It is sad to see a bench only half full of parts as the only things left from the plane that I can use.
I am 90% sure I will build another Euro just for the Fun factor and if I don't I have a $400 half built scale cockpit that will go to waist. ;-)
Well I had better get going; I have a F18 to get flying.

Here are some pictures of before and after.

CFII1974

My Feedback: (5)

Here are a few shots of the pipe turbine and in the end what all was left out of the plane

danny03

Sorry to hear of your loss, is this by chance the Eurojet that flew hat Hatbox in Muskogee,Ok. a couple of years back? If it is I sure did enjoy seeing it fly.

schroedm

My Feedback: (1)

Aw man, I'm sorry! You'd made a sweet job of her too!!

Rgds,
Mark

Comp-ARF Rep
www.composite-arf.co.uk

Delta Mike

My Feedback: (18)

MAN Dave, I am so sorry to hear about your Euro, Sounds like you were getting some kind of weird interferance. I thought PCM stopped all that eratic control behavior... That's weird for sure... Your radio was always solid at Turf......... I hate to hear this kind of stuff.....

Sorry for the loss... I guess we know what engine the 18 will have now, That thing will be balistic!

Dennis

Delta Mike

My Feedback: (18)

Dave, Did you by chance check the feq with a scanner before you flew?

SAP_2000

So sorry about the loss of your beautiful Eurofighter[]
It's the worst feeling when you realize that you have no control over the aircraft... [link=http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=1134680]Been there...[/link][:'(]

Glad to see that most of the equipment and the Merlin seem OK[sm=thumbup.gif]
Hope you build another Euro! IMO one of the best handling jet there is

Don Perry

My Feedback: (51)

Well here are a few more pic's of Dave's plane that fate full day.


I made him a smokin deal on my unbuilt euro so he should be back in the air soon!!

If you look closely you can see the turbine smoking on the ground

Don Perry

My Feedback: (51)

more carnage

vicman

My Feedback: (10)

Was that an empty beer in the pilots hand?[X(]

CFII1974

My Feedback: (5)

Vic,
The empty beers were about an hour after this at a local sports bar.

Danny, Yes that was the Euro that I test flew out at Hat Box

DM, NO we did not run a scanner before flying (it was not standard practice but it will be at any new fields I fly at from now on) As for PCM, it did just what it was supposed to, There were no erratic control behaviors, The first hit locked me out for just a second and the second put the whole plane in fail safe, shutting down the turbine and lowering the gear.

Don, thanks for the extra shots and the deal on the Euro.

Thanks to all for the kind words.
Dave