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my crash debriefing

cgeyman

Well Known Member
sorry to be a debbie downer, but attached is the slide show I presented to our local EAA chapter about the NTSB investigation that I was part of, as a survivor of my self-induced crash during phase 1 testing of my RV-9a this June. I am embarrassed to be “the pilot” that crashed his perfectly good plane, but oh well.

I do think there are some good ideas for panel design and best practices.

Cal

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1hBMikFdqinAP9IPx25YXEJbTahC_AxD8b9fyFrgK2iQ/edit
 
Thank you for posting this. I have just started my phase 1 in my 9A that just flew last month for the first time.
 
I am glad you are ok. Sorry about the plane and the injury from the crash landing.

The lesson learn page should be read by all the pilots. This hits home since I am at the finishing/assembly stage for AWC
 
Hi Cal, thanks for sharing. I hope you have a full recovery!

One question - I didn't understand your photos of the boost pump switches - can you clarify what you learned? The photos seem to show reasonable switch placement.

Your crash is a good reminder to run the boost pump any time you are near the ground. I also run mine when switching tanks - just in case there's a bit of air in the line somewhere between the valve and the tank.
 
Thank you for sharing and really happy that are OK and getting back in the saddle.

There is a lot of good lessons to be learned here.
 
Mickey, the first take-away I had was to move the boost pump switch out of the switch panel and over to the throttle quadrant. I'll think about it but it would have a couple benefits there. Besides the obvious one from the slide show, it would free up some space for something else that I need to install.

Dave
RV-3B working on cowl and baffles now.
 
Great discussion on switch placement. My boost switch is right above the mixture, both of which are above the fuel selector valve. All fuel control in one area.

My flap switch (with a paddle) is above the throttle, so I can activate flaps up with my knuckles while my hand is on the throttle in the case of a go-around.

Back in Navy flight school, pilots had to pass a "blind cockpit" test by their instructors. A blindfolded student would be quizzed by their instructor to touch the correct switch or lever. Might not be a bad idea to incorporate this into Flight "0" of a Phase 1 flight test regime.
 
I do think there are some good ideas for panel design and best practices.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1hBMikFdqinAP9IPx25YXEJbTahC_AxD8b9fyFrgK2iQ/edit

Excellent presentation and lessons learned! Well done!

Few think about their switchology, and you pointed out some good ideas. It looks like you original panel was set up to optimize engine start -- but that's when you have the most time to find switches.

FAR23 has good ideas on standard switch placement -- like flaps -- and sure, there's the old lame excuse that you can do what you want, it's experimental -- but standard placement of gear (yes, I know) and flaps can reduce errors for pilots transitioning to/from an experimental.

I had a fuel starvation event in my old RV-4 due to a broken fuel line, way back when, and I realized after the fact that I had not considered any emergency procedures for my new-to-me plane.

I've written a bunch on the subject over the years, but panels and checklists should be designed together, with emergency procedures at the top of the list.

Excellent presentation, and thanks for sharing it. If you're going to Oshkosh, I can introduce/recommend you to the right people (if you don't know them already) to share your valuable experience more widely.

Ed
 
Thank you for sharing, its entirely possible I'll be starting phase I later this year, and things like this certainly help me prepare. Glad you are safe, and thanks again for sharing
 
Boost pump switch color coded and closest switch to throttle:

IMG_0148.jpg
 
I am modifying the checklist I used on the Cherokee for my RV8. On the rental Cherokee, the boost pump is all grouped together with all the other switches. When I was doing my PPL training on it, we students know the boost pump by memory when approaching to land and switching tank. I think the key for me is to hangar fly with my panel setup so to imprint the sequences to memory.

With regard to forgetting the tank switching in post accident
write-up. I made a habit of writing down the times in 30 mins increments on the board and they get crossed out after I switched tank so that I don't forget. I think the OP has the same lesson learn on his list.

Anyone wearing helmet? I am getting one after seeing the pilot at WHP getting badly cutup after crash landed his Cessna on the railroad track. The OP had similar head injuries.
 
Any idea where the head injury (cut) came from? Glareshield?

I don't want to speculate per Doug's rules, but I was at the airport when it happened. PM if you want more details but it was all over the news.

One lucky dude that day.

Now back to your regularly scheduled program....
 
Cal, I'm glad you're okay. But to your lessons learned, you should add:
1. Physically look into the tanks before ever pulling the airplane out of the hangar or tie down. Every time.
2. Use a written check list before takeoff. Every time. And that checklist should say, "gas on fullest tank", and "boost pump on". (As others have noted, use the boost pump every time you're below a comfortable mechanical pump failure altitude (I use 1500' agl).)
 
Thanks for sharing your story. It creates an opportunity to discuss boost pump usage.

SOP for me is that the boost pump is on in at least the following situations:

1) Takeoff to substantially higher than pattern altitude, on-course, and out of the airport environment.
2) Any time I'm below 2,000'.
3) Inbound for landing, my practice is to turn it on when I make my first radio call to the field. Probably 5-10 miles out and several thousand feet AGL.
4) Whenever I'm switching tanks.

I figure the boost pump is one of the longest lasting mechanisms in the airplane. It is doubtful that I'll wear one out from over-use, considering they operate continuously in the automotive world and last for decades in that application.
 
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helmet and head protection

for my next phase 1 I will use this helmet- see attached photo- it is 55$ and has bicycle like front padding/protection. it can be modified to allow your nice headset use as well (bicycle helmets can’t accommodate headsets). i couldn’t find online a place to rent a pilot helmet, which often cost 3 to 4 thousand dollars. ? maybe something EAA would be willing to make available. my head went sideways and hit the side longeron/reinforcement bar I am pretty sure. in anycase, it hurt. thanks for all the comments.
 
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There is a supply chain issue and many of the civilian flight helmets are out of stock.

However, if you are looking to use the military HGU helmet, there are a lot of the surplus on sale right now on Ebay

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=gentex+halo&_sacat=0&_sop=12

I am converting a Gentex HALO helmet to include the ANR capability. It's not a full-blown fighter helmet with oxygen and the fancy visors but it meets all the HGU crash specs of the fighter helmet at 1/4 of the price.
 
However, if you are looking to use the military HGU helmet, there are a lot of the surplus on sale right now on Ebay

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=gentex+halo&_sacat=0&_sop=12

I am converting a Gentex HALO helmet to include the ANR capability. It's not a full-blown fighter helmet with oxygen and the fancy visors but it meets all the HGU crash specs of the fighter helmet at 1/4 of the price.
Yep! Personally, I'd skip the $55 helmet, do some scrounging and find a decent flight helmet.

I found my HGU-55 helmet on the shelf at a downtown Seattle Army-Navy store; it was in great shape with civilian comms and XL shell for my big fat melon, 300 bucks. Bought a new visor for $65, visor cover for $20, new Zeta liner for $74 and I was in business for only $459. But then I realized, RVs, T-6s and T-28s are NOISY! So, I upgraded the comms to both ANR and CEP earplugs. Sent it to Headsets Inc to have it all done; grand total on the helmet is now up to almost $1000, but it's still less than half the price of a fancy new one from Gibson & Barnes. A buddy of mine has a shiny red one from G&B, think he's got close to $2500 in it, ouch. I really like my helmet, very comfy and quiet.
 
Thankyou for sharing.

I think everyone needs to do the blindfold test sitting in the airplane. I see a lot of panels that are designed by builders and not active flyers. Or they want to have as many switches as a 747 has.

I like to keep things simple and as mentioned by someone else, both my flaps and boost pump can be activated without removing my hand from the throttle or looking.

You will also like proper switch placement if you plan to do any formation flying, as looking inside the cookpit is a big no go while in formation.
 
I might have missed something but I am not sure I understand all the discussion on being able to find the boost pump instantly. I agree it should be quickly accessible but on a Lycoming the boost pump is required to be on for takeoff and landing. That’s the only flight regime that might require a instant turn on hence the requirement to have it running.
 
I might have missed something but I am not sure I understand all the discussion on being able to find the boost pump instantly. I agree it should be quickly accessible but on a Lycoming the boost pump is required to be on for takeoff and landing. That’s the only flight regime that might require a instant turn on hence the requirement to have it running.

I agree with this observation. The only flight scenario I can think of that would require quickly using the boost pump switch would be inflight failure of the mechanical fuel pump. I've had this happen when a failing engine fuel pump was intermittently losing pressure during cruise but this didn't require an "instantaneous" activation of the boost pump.

Put the boost pump switch in a location that is easily reached and after flying the plane a few times its location will become second nature as it is used prior to startup, takeoff, fuel tank switching, and landing.

As an aside for those who may not be accustomed to using a boost pump, turn it off after engine start otherwise you won't be able to confirm the engine pump is functioning as it should. Common sense prevails. :)
 
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As noted in the crash report... too many distractions. The good thing is Cal is still with us and able to post the report for the education of future responses to this situation.

I do have to question this emergency list because there are two things to do RIGHT NOW in a situation like this. (First let me say, it takes three basic things for the motor to keep running. 1 air, 2 spark, and 3 fuel. Always expect fuel first.) If your engine quits on take-off, 1 push the nose over now. 2 switch tanks.

I tested this situation over the airport and found that it only took 2 seconds after switching from a dry tank (engine out) to fully restored power with no use of boost pump. Use of a gascolator will take longer. So test your a/c.
View attachment 37051

1. Act now by pushing the nose over. Don't waste time on trim, your adrenaline rush will hold position as you switch tanks.
Then jump to #4 and make it #2. Switch tanks.

Boost pump and carb heat can come later.

From Lycoming Service Instruction No. 1148C... Take-Off – Set the carburetor heat in full cold position. For take-off and full throttle operation the possibility of expansion or throttle icing at wide throttle openings is very remote.
 
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I might have missed something but I am not sure I understand all the discussion on being able to find the boost pump instantly. I agree it should be quickly accessible but on a Lycoming the boost pump is required to be on for takeoff and landing. That’s the only flight regime that might require a instant turn on hence the requirement to have it running.

I've seen lots of panels where the FP SW is randomly placed amongst all the other switches, easily accessible-yes, but not easily identified, you would likely have trouble locating it in an emergency.

Different color caps on switches probably won't help you in an emergency nor will a long row of rocker switches (which I hate).

(all the panels I build, like the example shown in the report which is one of mine, are laid out logically/ergonomically, and grouped by function).
 
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i had never considered the aux. fuel pump switch an emergency go to switch when landing.
my checklist was always switch to fullest tank and aux. pump on before i entered the pattern.
you shouldn't be going for this switch at an altitude of 700 feet.
maybe i am misunderstanding something.
 
I've seen lots of panels where the FP SW is randomly placed amongst all the other switches, easily accessible-yes, but not easily identified, you would likely have trouble locating it in an emergency.

I am usually in favor of anything that seems like it would promote safety but this is one I am having a hard time understanding everyone zeroing in on the location of the switch being a factor. Every airplane is different, and if we are going to fly any specific one safely, we need to have enough familiarization with the one we are flying at a given moment, and operate it in such a way, that a switch not being position within 2 inches of our hand when it is on the throttle, is not going to be a factor in an emergency.

As has already been mentioned.... the safest operation in relation to the electric back up fuel pump is for it to always be on below a specific altitude.
What that altitude is is for you to decide, but it for sure should be such that you are never having to reach for it while in the pattern, let alone when lower than pattern altitude.
 
Agree with Scott

Yes, the boost switch should always be on below 1500 feet or so, I think one commentator mentioned at the 5 mile GUMPS check and call in to the tower. I had NOT been routinely turning it on with every approach as I had never ran a tank dry and had heard how most of the time switching tanks “works in seconds”. I did not know that unporting the tank with air ingestion can make your engine pump malfunction, and in my case switching tanks right away was not enough. The surging occurred at 1,000 feet descending, the 450 feet was after I was losing altitude due to the loss. I agree also pushing the nose over, especially taking off is priority one. You lose energy very quick. Thanks for the responses and May each pilot never unport a fuel tank. And credit Walt for his great panel design and fabrication- It is a photo from one of his panels. This talk was not really for a large audience- sorry Walt.
Cal
 
To be totally serious#1 problem you stalled. Never stall. As you know stall speed increases with bank angle and load factor. Airspeed is life. Accept a control landing anywhere Vs. stalling trying to get to runway.

Looking at the after Pics of your RV12, I am so surprised and very happy your injuries were not more serious or worse.

Second you were lined up with Rwy 8 and say you were at 400' AGL, just about to turn downwind midfield for Rwy 30 for Left traffic. Personally Rwy 8 looked doable. The other option was turn early to land midfield or more down Rwy 30. That runway is 9,500 feet long. You don't have to land on the numbers engine out.

You say the engine failed at 700 AGL on the 45 entry? I thought 1000 agl is standard pattern? Yes. Field is 3206' MSL. I would be at 4200' MSL, until abeam the numbers on the downwind, then starting descent, then turning base to final. .

Last is fuel. When taking off and landing select or check you are on the most full tank. If you fly coordinated flight this is not super critical, but you state you had 2 gallons? Did you ever ground test min usable fuel? If you can put MAIN Gear on riser so the nose can be lower. This would be a good attitude to check for MIN usable fuel. If you SKID and SLIP you need to make sure you are on fullest tan and that tank is the higher wing in a slip.

My engine-out is FLY PLANE, TRIMMING to best glide, while simultaneously LOOKING for landing place and get started towards it, while simultaneously selecting BOOST ON, SWITCH to FULLEST TANK, MIXTURE SET (Rich or Check), Check MAG L & R (if applicable). Don't focus on one thing and always be maneuvering toward landing aim point. CALL ATC declare emergency, and say to myself repeating DON'T STALL, DON'T STALL....
 
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Helmet

for my next phase 1 I will use this helmet- see attached photo- it is 55$ and has bicycle like front padding/protection. it can be modified to allow your nice headset use as well (bicycle helmets can’t accommodate headsets). i couldn’t find online a place to rent a pilot helmet, which often cost 3 to 4 thousand dollars. ? maybe something EAA would be willing to make available. my head went sideways and hit the side longeron/reinforcement bar I am pretty sure. in anycase, it hurt. thanks for all the comments.

Thank you for sharing . Glad you are ok

Ive thought of the helmet idea also , i have a full face shield motorcycle helmet ill be using in phase 1 will at least have it readily available , i also wear arc 8 cat 2 fire retardant clothing at work that I will wear also in case and have gloves ready , basically try to wear what the nascar guys have during races . You can never be to safe and never stop saying “ what if “
 
I did not know that unporting the tank with air ingestion can make your engine pump malfunction, and in my case switching tanks right away was not enough. The surging occurred at 1,000 feet descending, the 450 feet was after I was losing altitude due to the loss.l

First a big thanks for sharing your experience so others can learn from it.

I don't believe that the mech pump malfunctions when running a tank dry. However, when the tank ran dry, the pump sucked all of the fuel out of the lines. Therefore, after switching to the full tank the pump has to suck out all of that air and it is much less efficient when pumping air. Unfortunately, after the engine stops producing power, you are left with whatever RPM is a avialable solely from windmilling and your slow speed probably made this fairly low. Pressing the starter would have helped, as would turning on the boost pump.

The scenario you outlined is pretty much the rationale for using the boost pump as redundancy on TO and landing, as there is just not enough time for the mech pump to get going after a fuel purge without the BP. If this happens at altitude and cruise speed, the mech pump will get things going in plenty of time to be safe, as the prop is windmilling MUCH faster and therefore so is the pump.

The mech pump is basically identical to what was used in carb'ed cars for decades before EFI. MANY folks sucked their tanks dry and were able to get going again with just the starter generated engine spinning to reprime the system.

My speculation is that if the boost pump had been on during the TO, the engine would have started again within a few seconds after selecting the other tank. The SOP of BP ON helps to eliminate a step that can be hard to remember under stress (can't think of too many more stressfull situations than engine stop after TO) and is why it is on most every checklist for GA planes, in addition to seamlessly taking over for a failed mech pump.

Larry
 
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nice write up, glad you're okay.

Suggestion/thought for POH. Add paragraph/warning "do not attempt take off with fuel at xx gallons or less" You can use gallons or what the gauge says (don't trust gauges).

My 182 has that statement, and it makes sense. Although a high wing and gravity fed system, low fuel and high angle of attack can cause some fuel starvation.
 
I'm not advocating hard and fast rules, especially for RVers who have enough time in their aircraft to establish reasonable operating practices, but I do suggest very conservative limits for early flights and those with limited experience in their RV.

I am hesitant to begin a flight with less than eight gallons in each tank. The rationale for this conservative approach is to allow adequate airtime in case one tank becomes unavailable due to vent obstruction or fuel valve failure. Eight gallons is one hour of flight until dry tank but much less time if any safety margin is desired.

I'm not suggesting this guideline be written into every POH but I do think it prudent for low-time RV pilots and aircraft. Offered for consideration after living with a RV for twenty-three years.
 
I'm not advocating hard and fast rules, especially for RVers who have enough time in their aircraft to establish reasonable operating practices, but I do suggest very conservative limits for early flights and those with limited experience in their RV.

I am hesitant to begin a flight with less than eight gallons in each tank. The rationale for this conservative approach is to allow adequate airtime in case one tank becomes unavailable due to vent obstruction or fuel valve failure. Eight gallons is one hour of flight until dry tank but much less time if any safety margin is desired.

I'm not suggesting this guideline be written into every POH but I do think it prudent for low-time RV pilots and aircraft. Offered for consideration after living with a RV for twenty-three years.

Good advice, I start seriously looking for fuel if I have less than 5-6 gal/side.
 
Pattern entry

My pattern entry was at a 45 degree at 1000 feet but I lost altitude quickly with no power. I felt I was too fast and high to make Rwy 8 but in retrospect dumping flaps and slipping likely would have worked. It happens pretty fast, and the jumbo jet was still taxing to the terminal in my mind.

The garmin g3x showed fuel flow surges from 3 gph to 30 gph spikes, consistent with air passing the red cube impeller. I totally agree that poor pilot habits are to blame. 60 seconds and no engine restart after switching to a tank with about 7 gallons as surprising. It is hard to tell propeller speed on engine out, but I guess I could have referenced rpm to decide if the starter needed switching on. I was really just trying not to run into the terminal or many jumbo jets parked on the north side of the runway. I did fuel up before the hour flight. About 12 gallons per tank. But like everyone has said, I got distracted by running quite rich and trying to fly full rpm and keep CHTs below 430.

This is an example of what NOT do. That is the spirit of the article. For the pilots always using their boost pumps, I totally applaud you. I was at fault. And I was not trying to stall, and had Bob Hoover’s mantra in mind. I appreciate that airlock may not have occurred, but then I am flummoxed why the engine did not restart. The official NTSB report likely won’t be out for several more months. I was a participant to the investigation as the builder. I do think renting a helmet is a good idea.
Cal
 
I suspect that most folks could point at a few things that in retrospect could have been done differently to avoid all this. But you know what? You could say that about literally every accident.

As for me, I know I've done some real bone headed things over the years and it's just by the grace of God that I don't have my own slide show up and running.

Good on you for owning this and sharing it so that we can all learn something.
 
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fuel system carb, engine combo?

Could you tell me what make and model Carb was on the airplane. I am guessing it was an O-320 since it was on a -9. Thank you!
 
engine

it is was new thunderbolt Y0-360 so it was “out of spec” and burning 12.5 gph during engine break-in. rich due to new engine high CHTs. another reason to stay within the bumpers and Vans recs.
 
Procedures

Sorry about your accident and happy you are doing well.
George has by far the most pertinent comments.
But first lets look at this from a chain of events perspective.
Procedures: you apparently did not understand that boost pump on for take off and landing is standard on virtually every Lycoming powered airplane that is not gravity feed.
The chain: Probably not a good idea to fly without fuel gages for at least one tank. I would have wanted more fuel for that situation.
Self briefing: turnback altitude for takeoff, what to do near the airport at pattern altitude or above, etc.
With the exception of self induced issues such as pulling the mixture instead of carb heat, 90% of the time pilot induced engine stoppages are fuel related. In this case IF the boost pump had been on, switching tanks would have quickly restored power.
Years ago I watched an airline pilot in a Pitts with no starter deadstick two days in a row during an aerobatic contest. He was very low when the engine quit. He flew a base leg at a 90 degree angle to the single runway with an aim point about 1000' from the approach end. He was flareing and rolling wings level all at the same time. Probably banked 45 degrees until about 50'. All about angle of attack and know the airplane. The second event was like watching a video of the first event.
The high CHT's concern me and I would guess that was a significant distraction. For the next guy- At five hours they should be dropping at least slightly and climbing at high airspeeds and reduced power should keep them well below 425, below 400 in cruise.
A base leg to runway 8 or aim for the middle of the long runway probably would have worked.
I have a lot of time in a wide variety of low wing airplanes with Lycoming engines and multi tank systems. I have run aux tanks dry intentionally hundred's maybe thousands of times. Never had to use the starter and never failed to get a quick restart.
 
As a low-time pilot who is very early in Phase I of his homebuilt, this debrief really hits close to home. Thank you for being willing to open up to the Internet and share. I ran both tanks down to 6 gal each (as indicated on the untrustworthy fuel quantity gauges) on my second flight. Was that a good idea? Probably not. As a result of reading this, I will definitely be defaulting to fuller tanks during my own Phase 1, unless the weight/CG required by the test mission prevents it.

I'm also questioning the location of my boost pump switch. As with many RVs, it's buried in the "row of undifferentiated switches".
 
it is was new thunderbolt Y0-360 so it was “out of spec” and burning 12.5 gph during engine break-in. rich due to new engine high CHTs. another reason to stay within the bumpers and Vans recs.

FYI, a 360 should be closer to 16 -17 GPH at full throttle.
 
I suspect that most folks could point at a few things that in retrospect could have been done differently to avoid all this. But you know what? You could say that about literally every accident.

As for me, I know I've done some real bone headed things over the years and it's just by the grace of God that I don't have my own slide show up and running.

Took the words right out of my mouth...

Any of us are just one day away from having our very own slideshow on VAF. It takes surprisingly little.

cgeyman - Not sure if you saved anyone else from having an accident, but maybe you did. But for sure, you have given everyone a reminder that a little bit of sloppiness is all it takes to have a very bad day. Thank you for your contribution, it's one of the best I've seen on VAF.
 
Post 31

Post 31 by GMC is the best post yet. First off, I applaud you for posting the whole thing to be used as a learning tool, hopefully someone may use some of this “Monday morning quarterbacking” to prevent their own accident. I had some input that it seems others didn’t address..some were already mentioned..

1. Typical Pattern ops is either 800 agl or 1000 feet agl. At the accident airport, none is specified, I would have chosen 1000 feet. The op claims entering at 700agl when the engine quit, but then later said he was at 1000, it quit then he lost altitude to 700 almost immediately while on the 45 entry. Slightly confused, as losing the engine at pattern speeds, say 100 or 110 knots shouldn’t result in immediate altitude loss, actually he should have been able to hold altitude or even climb slightly, which brings me to the next point.

2. All of us should be able to land power off from the traffic pattern. If you can’t, you should either get more experience though instruction. This is especially true while doing test flights. If you can’t land power off from the pattern (or 45 degree point) perhaps more experience or find someone who can.

3. Op mentions fuel flow numbers while the transducer was flowing air.. eyes should have been outside the whole time with only a quick glance to check airspeed, change tanks, boost pump on, then back outside.

4. Looks like runway 8 was perfectly lined up with his downwind, It just seems inconsistent to say he was too high and fast to make one runway, then some up short and stall it a few seconds later. Comes back to proficiency. A RV-9 with a fixed pitch prop is about the easiest to land power off. They glide really well.

5. Hour 6 and still no wheel pants? The CHTs are high, yet no one told the OP that finishing the wheel pants would have helped cool them down, removing the distraction that night CHTs were giving him. Same with the fuel gauges. They should have been working by now, but in any case, you have to know where the fuel is. I don’t prescribe to the “change tanks every 30 minutes” thing. Having the alarm is a great reminder, but what I prefer is to know what you are starting with, then burn down down some whole number, say 5 gallons, then go to the remaining tank and burn that as low as you want, then before landing, you know exactly what remains in tank 1.

6. Having a more experienced mentor may have addressed these issues. Having a plan every takeoff that you can react immediately to. I came up with “Fuel-Air-Spark” to address an engine failure. FUEL-three things, fuel valve, fuel pump, mixture. AIR-two things, carb heat, throttle, SPARK one thing, mag switch combination. I do the fuel valve before the pump because running a tank dry is a real possibility, and hitting the pump first on an empty tank won’t help much. At the same time as I’m doing “fuel-air-spark” I do “AVIATE-NAVIGATE-COMMUNICATE”. AVIATE, (glide speed, fly the plane ect..NAVIGATE where am I putting it and COMMUNICATE dead last as the person on the other end of the radio probably can’t do much, but if time allows, broadcast your intentions and location, and possibly get the TXP code set and ELT activated if time allows.

Edit: just listened to the audio.. the OP shouldn’t take an intersection takeoff (Runway 30 at A3) on a new plane or new engine. Take the full length, on upwind, you’ll have runway in front remaking to land, then you offset in the climb to allow a possibility of the 180 turn. Another benefit of the offset is that it creates more flight distance, you’ll be higher at the end of the runway making the impossible turn quite possible, especially with a fixed pitch prop.
 
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One more thing. Maybe I mis-heard, but I thought on the tape you asked for runway X, ATC cleared you for runway Y. And I don’t think I ever heard the ‘E’ word. This is a serious miscommunication. Never be afraid to say ‘emergency’, then use your emergency powers to do what you think is best. Once they hear ‘emergency’, ATC will get the airliners out of your way.
 
BOLDFACE PROCEDURES

The discussion here has been awesome and I am thankful to the OP for sharing his story. There was a mention of BOLDFACE procedures early in this thread and I think that this is worth delving into a little further. I come from a military background. I can tell you that memorized (i.e. BOLDFACE) procedures saved lives and jets routinely in the Air Force. All Air Force pilots accomplished closed book, written BOLDFACE tests every week of the entire list of procedures (8-10 emergency types). You scored 100% from memory or you were grounded until you did. In addition, there were daily tests (again from memory) on at least one procedure during the briefing prior to every flight. In flight, for a BOLDFACE emergency you were required to do the BOLDFACE steps immediately and then the follow up steps from the emergency checklist.
I had very little prop time prior to going into the Air Force...about 120 hours. After 27 years flying jets (mostly A-10) I bought an RV-8 and found the transition from jets to props (especially a taildragger) a lot harder than I was expecting. One of the things I did was to produce a BOLDFACE list for my aircraft. It is attached here for anyone to use, modify, comment on as needed. It is applicable to my aircraft (taildragger with a CS prop and an aural AOA tone) but I imagine most of it is applicable/modifiable to any RV perhaps even most prop aircraft. It is a work in progress and doubtless I will make changes to it. But here it is. The parts in bold type are the BOLDFACE procedures. The rest is follow up.

RV-8 BOLDFACE EMERGENCY PROCEDURES

EMERGENCY ENGINE SHUTDOWN ON THE GROUND
FUEL MIXTURE – CUTOFF
• FUEL VALVE – OFF
• RED AND WHITE -- OFF


ABORT
THROTTLE – IDLE
• TAIL WHEEL – ON THE GROUND
• BRAKES – AS REQUIRED


ENGINE FAILURE IMMEDIATELY AFTER TAKEOFF BELOW 500 AGL
PITCH – REDUCE TO SLIGHTLY NOSE LOW
• SELECT BEST LANDING POINT
• BOOST PUMP – ON
• FUEL SELECTOR – SWITCH TANKS
• MIXTURE – CHECK FULL RICH
• MAGS – CHECK ON


IF ENGINE DOES NOT RECOVER
• MAINTAIN SOLID AURAL TONE AOA
• PROP LEVER – PULL AFT (TO REDUCE DRAG)
• THROTTLE – IDLE (TO REDUCE DRAG)
• FLAPS – AS REQUIRED ONCE LANDING POINT IS MADE
• TOUCH DOWN AT MINIMUM SPEED ABOVE STALL

ENGINE FAILURE IMMEDIATLEY AFTER TAKEOFF ABOVE 500 AGL
PITCH – REDUCE TO SLIGHTLY NOSE LOW
• TURN AT 45-60 DEGREE BANK TOWARD NEAREST RUNWAY
• FLAPS – 10 DEGREES
• MAINTAIN SOLID AURAL TONE AOA
• BOOST PUMP – ON
• FUEL SELECTOR – SWITCH TANKS


IF ENGINE DOES NOT RECOVER
• MIXTURE – CHECK FULL RICH
• MAGS – CHECK ON
• PROP LEVER – AFT (TO REDUCE DRAG)
• THROTTLE – IDLE (TO REDUCE DRAG)
• SELECT BEST LANDING SITE
• FLAPS – AS REQUIRED ONCE LANDING POINT IS MADE
• TOUCH DOWN AT MINUMUM SPEED ABOVE STALL

ENGINE FAILURE/LOSS OF POWER DURING FLIGHT
ZOOM/GLIDE – BROKEN AURAL TONE (IF REQUIRED)
• BOOST PUMP – ON
• FUEL SELECTOR – SWITCH TANKS
• MIXTURE – FULL RICH
• CARB HEAT -- ON


ENGINE FIRE IN FLIGHT
FUEL SELECTOR – OFF
• BOOST PUMP – OFF
• SPEED – INCREASE TO EXTINGUISH FIRE


ELECTRICAL FIRE/SMOKE/FUMES IN THE COCKPIT IN FLIGHT
• RED AND WHITE – OFF
• ALL SWITCHES – OFF
• COCKPIT – VENTILATE

ONCE FIRE/FUMES STOP
• RED AND WHITE – ON
• TURN ON NEEDED SYSTEMS ONE AT A TIME

NOTE: “RED AND WHITE” MEANS BATT/ALT SWITCH (RED) AND AVIONICS MASTER SWITCH (WHITE). THIS IS MY TERMINOLOGY SPECIFIC TO MY AIRCRAFT
 
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Boldface

“…ENGINE FAILURE IMMEDIATLEY AFTER TAKEOFF ABOVE 500 AGL
• PITCH – REDUCE TO SLIGHTLY NOSE LOW
• TURN AT 45-60 DEGREE BANK TOWARD NEAREST RUNWAY
• FLAPS – 10 DEGREES
• MAINTAIN SOLID AURAL TONE AOA
• BOOST PUMP – ON
• FUEL SELECTOR – SWITCH TANKS…”

I’m going to disagree with this section. In my experience, this procedure will fail a majority of the time, and actually precipitate a stall/spin/secondary stall situation.

When instructing, I will set this up using a hard deck as a minimum altitude. A large percentage of students do not have the experience or Aircraft familiarity to make that turn successfully, especially at 500’. This would be especially true of a test flight in a new aircraft.
 
Having a more experienced mentor may have addressed these issues.

This is a major contributor as I read the accident account. The pilot apparently didn't know what he didn't know. Some time spent with either a bona fide EAA Flight Adviser or an experienced RV pilot most likely would have moved this accident into the "never happened" category. There were many operation flaws that could be been prevented with a good ground briefing. There is no excuse for initial Phase 1 flights without consulting with an experienced pilot with time in type first.

I'm very grateful this extremely fortunate RVer will have an opportunity to better prepare himself for his next foray into Phase 1!
 
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Turn Around

Sunrise Aviation teaches turn around on takeoff to student pilots. The attitude about the turnaround has changed 180 degrees in the last few years. Barry Schiff and his son do forums on this. AOPA recently did a feature article on this recently as well as EAA.
The RV4 guy in FL who has an aural angle of attack system is doing turnarounds with the RV4 from 400'. Videos available.
 
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