TFR for Illinois..RAF going wild

[StanFoster]

I was going to announce a TFR for central Illinois today with my now working ICOM A200....thanks to my question being answered yesterday.

[StanFoster]

checking out some bottom ground for deer and turkeys. The color is coming back into my photos finally. The corn is all planted and some is just peeking through.

[StanFoster]

just cruising the countryside

[StanFoster]

Tom was right....my radio is smoking... :D

[mcbirdman]

Stan I see in your last photo you must have tossed it out the window just in time......

[StanFoster]

bridge work

[StanFoster]

practicing an engine out.....down to 10 feet over this empty road.

[StanFoster]

just enjoying the feel....

[StanFoster]

The first picture is my wood lot created by the demonic tornado last July 13th. There will be 140 logs going to the sawmill. That would be more than a lifetime supply of wood for my stairshop which is just to the right.


The second picture was interesting to me. I was flying 500 feet alongside
I-57 when I spotted an Air Command being towed behing that red truck. I broke the 500 foot rule but had to get closer to check it out and take a picture.


These are the last pictures from a 1.7 hour flight. TFR has been lifted. :D
Stan

[StanFoster]

James: Yep...I chucked the smoking radio and caught the field on fire... :eek:

Stan

[Timchick]

Does anyone know who was towing the Air Command?

[KenSandyEggo]

"practicing an engine out.....down to 10 feet over this empty road."

ooooooh, Stan. be careful on those. :eek:

[birdy]

Stan, wot do your rotors spin at when cruis'n??
It reads only 325 rrpm when your banck'n, or is it a diving bank??

[scottessex]

Nice pics Stan, always like to see the midwest, looks like you've been having fun!

[StanFoster]

Paul: My rotors are usuually 325 -330. In banks they can wind up to the upper 300's. You can look back in the archives and verify the numbers.


Ken: I practice those all the time. I just am trying to prepare myself for my next engine out. My RAF hasnt let me down yet...but I fly like its going to quit the next second. I do these all the time and think that my 18 engine outs in my othwer two gyros have been uneventful having practiced these all the time. I never had an instructor....so I am "drilling" myself constantly.

I occasionally chop the throttle on a "whim" .....and then see how I react. Sometimes I dont like how I reacted and I chastise myself and learn from it. Better learning these while I have power to get me out of harms way. :)

At the least I feel I am learning something.

Stan

[birdy]

Paul???
It's birdy.
And I just noticed your rrpm was round 325 in the high bank angle shots.If its not a partialy unloaded div'n bank, then your cruise rrpm would be much lower than 300.

Well, mine cruise at bout 335, and excelerate to close to 400 in a high power, high angle bank anyway.

[Just quiz'n why your RRPM was so low at a high bank angle Stan???, nuthn inteligent from me.]

[WindRyder06]

Try and find an empty road to shoot engine outs around here.... GOOD LUCK


Great Pictures Stan, Like always :D

Fly Safe,
Chris

[Harry_S.]

Stan...I wonder if the person in that truck got a picture of you?! Did you loiter long enough for that to happen? :D

All those pics and not one of your radio?! :confused:

Have fun!!!


.

[Udi]

...I occasionally chop the throttle on a "whim" .....and then see how I react. Sometimes I dont like how I reacted and I chastise myself and learn from it...
Sounds like a typical case of schizophrenia, Stan :eek:

jk :)

Udi

[cgmg]

Stan,

I'm going to hijack your thread and try to post a couple of flying pics. Would have taken more, but forget to check camera battery as part of the preflight. The first pic is flying just west of Eureka over Route 24. The second shot is my dash view as the next shot, before the battery died. As you can see, I was in a little bit of a thermal at the time.

Hope this works.

[animal]

The first picture is my wood lot created by the demonic tornado last July 13th. There will be 140 logs going to the sawmill. That would be more than a lifetime supply of wood for my stairshop which is just to the right.


The second picture was interesting to me. I was flying 500 feet alongside
I-57 when I spotted an Air Command being towed behing that red truck. I broke the 500 foot rule but had to get closer to check it out and take a picture.


These are the last pictures from a 1.7 hour flight. TFR has been lifted. :D
Stan
I can't help but wonder if they saw you cruzing above them,you know they probably heard you as low as you where,plus that shadow in front of them is a dead giveaway of what is above them.
Btw I was not aware the 500 foot rule applyed to rotorcraft.
I don't think it use to.

Tim H.
keep those pic comeing stan,love seeing your fliights.

[pwendell]

Here's the rule:

§ 91.119 Minimum safe altitudes: General.

Except when necessary for takeoff or landing, no person may operate an aircraft below the following altitudes:

(a) Anywhere. An altitude allowing, if a power unit fails, an emergency landing without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface.

(b) Over congested areas. Over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement, or over any open air assembly of persons, an altitude of 1,000 feet above the highest obstacle within a horizontal radius of 2,000 feet of the aircraft.

(c) Over other than congested areas. An altitude of 500 feet above the surface, except over open water or sparsely populated areas. In those cases, the aircraft may not be operated closer than 500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure.

(d) Helicopters. Helicopters may be operated at less than the minimums prescribed in paragraph (b) or (c) of this section if the operation is conducted without hazard to persons or property on the surface. In addition, each person operating a helicopter shall comply with any routes or altitudes specifically prescribed for helicopters by the Administrator.

[StanFoster]

Peter: Thanks for the regs you posted. Question....would the lesser minimums that helicopters have also be applied to gyrocopters? My gut feeling is that it isnt.


Mark: Excellent photos you posted. Got to get up your way.

Birdy....sorry...I had a brain fart and called you Paul. My rotor rpms are fine. They run 320 plus on the average. I was in a descending spiral and thats why the rpm's were lower. I can easily wind them up to 375 in a level tight turn.

Harry: The very corner of my Icom radio was just visible in one of the photos. I will be flying and catch it next time.

Stan

[pwendell]

Peter: Thanks for the regs you posted. Question....would the lesser minimums that helicopters have also be applied to gyrocopters? My gut feeling is that it isnt.

Stan

Stan,

With the FAA, I think what you see is what you get. It says 'Helicopters' and not 'Rotorcraft', so we're probably out of luck. I wouldn't want to test it. You could always call your local FSDO and ask, but, then again, maybe not ;)

[Harry_S.]

Let sleeping dogs lie.

We fly gyroPLANES not Helicopters. The feds 'splained this to us over 40 yrs. ago.


.

[Chuck Roberg]

When the FAA says "Rotorcraft" it applies to both helicopters and gyroplanes. If it applies to only gyroplanes or helicopters then the specific wording, such as "Helicopter" or "Gyroplane" is used.

You have to be carefull when reading the FAR's and read the whole part. By the way they are no longer refered to as FAR's. It is now refered to as 14 CFR part 61, 91 etc.

[StanFoster]

Chuck: Your post is how I would take it when reading it. Just out of curiosity...I am going to call them Monday just to see what they say.

Stan

[animal]

The second picture was interesting to me. I was flying 500 feet alongside
I-57 when I spotted an Air Command being towed
Stan

I think we been had, any one else notice one day Stan just happens upon a air command being towed and gets pics of it, the the same week he has a new air command. me thinks he was waiting for it to be deleivered,and it is the same one.
am I right Stan?

keep the pics comeing Stan.

Tim H.

[StanFoster]

Tim: Finally.....very observant.....yes... :D


Stan

[animal]

Tim: Finally.....very observant.....yes... :D


Stan

something just told me the odds where stacked,not every day you are out just flying and happen upon a gyro being towed. and I got looking at the pic and thought strange,that one looks just like Stan's new one.

Tim H.

[StanFoster]

Tim: The total story is I was expecting delivery that evening and I just happened to be out flying. About 3 miles down I-57 I see a car flashing his lights on and off.....many times. I got curious and it was the truck pulling my trailor with my gyro on it. Its a nice little machine....all I did was touch up the red on the tail and put some Air Command decals on it. I would love to keep it but I want to keep my wife too. :D

Stan

[gyroplanes]

Our local FAA FSDO rotorcraft specialist told me that gyroplanes could use the refereces to helicopter as applicable to gyroplanes as well. I questioned him on this regarding minimums and landing on the ramp instead of the runway (which I had hoped to avoid using).

He was an old timer with the FAA and said when they wrote many of the regs they never thought about gyroplanes.

We put this to the test at a local airport in Indiana. The airport manager wanted all aircraft to fly the same pattern, at the same altitude. This was a fairly large uncontrolled airport with a 6,000 foot runway and some jet traffic.

I wanted to "Avoid the flow of fixed wing traffic" he wanted me to land on the numbers and taxi a mile to the ramp.

As many offices and employees the FAA has, they equal that with interpretations. Good luck!

[KenSandyEggo]

If you "act" like you know what you're doing, most people won't argue with you because they know diddly about gyros. Quote the traffic pattern advisory, or better yet, carry a copy with you and show it to them. Hard for them to argue with an official FAA Advisory. I also am of the school of "don't ask so many stupid questions." What are they going to do, put you in jail? Unless you almost kill someone, you'll almost always get a free pass the first time. Just "act" dumb in that case. I've seen more people get their flying restricted by going to the FSDO and asking about stuff that is really not important. Give a bureaucrat something to decide, and it'll almost always go against you. Bureaucrats love power.