Heli-Davidson
Old Fart
- Joined
- May 24, 2007
- Messages
- 29
- Location
- San Jose, CA
- Aircraft
- Helicycle, 1995 RAF 2000GTX-2.2L
- Total Flight Time
- 2,000+
Hi everyone,
For those suffering from Attention Deficit Dis... Oh, look, a butterfly! ... I've added a Reader's Digest version at the bottom. Enjoy!
For those who like to curl up with a good murder/mystery novel for an evening (or weekend), please read on ...
I've been dreaming of owning and flying an autogyro ever since I saw Sean Connery, as James Bond, "fly" one in "You Only Live Twice", when the movie was first released and I was a much thinner/younger kid (I did get to live near Atsugi Air Base in Japan and at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, for a total of over five years, and loved every second of living in Japan, though). A few days ago, I had the immense fortune to acquire a 1995 2000GTX 2.2 with about 120 hours on it, just for agreeing to haul it off the owner/builder's property. That's the Good part, and before you start hating me (probably too late, already), you need to read The Rest of the Story.
Paaaage Two: The kit was completed in 1996 and, many months later, after an uneventful landing, when the builder started taxiing in a little bit of a hurry to clear the runway for an incoming fixed-wing airplane behind him, his GTX started to buck fore-and-aft, to the point where the engine got up over the main gear. You can probably see where this was going - a rotor blade struck the tarmac in front, and immediately transferred the torque to the rotor hub, which proceeded to tip the aircraft over on its side, whereupon the prop got chewed down to the nubs instantaneously, of course. Fortunately, no one was hurt, and the engine was idling at the point when the prop self-destructed, but, obviously, the rotor blade system was also complete toast. When well-meaning folks ran over to help right the aircraft, they inadvertently caused some mostly cosmetic damage to a door, a strut, and the cabin finish in a few places. To rub salt in that very fresh wound, when the owner got home that day, in the mail was an AD from RAF advising that, under certain circumstances, the 2000GTX could suffer longitudinal instability when taxiing, and provided instructions on how to modify the landing gear to eliminate the potential problem (DOH! Needless to say, his opinion of RAF isn't highly stellar). So, that's the Bad part, and the aircraft wound up spending the next 11 years in its enclosed trailer at the builder's home. He now realizes that, as he enters full retirement, he's never going to have the motivation to repair the aircraft, assuming it's even safe to try to make it airworthy again, and isn't particularly interested in pouring any more money down the rat-hole (especially if RAF would be getting any of it). He doesn't even want to make the effort to undo a lot of his emotionally-attached assembly hours to part out the many things that should be perfectly serviceable, not to mention the time needed to list, process, and ship each item to the four winds over a period of probably months, if not years, to get rid of everything. Even then, most of it would likely go for bargain-basement prices, given the unknown state of everything after the accident. That's the Ugly part, beyond my own ability to scare small children and animals by my mere hulking presence, of course.
Paaage Three: The owner is going to have me sign a disclosure and release from liability on his part, which will state that he considers everything non-airworthy, and that nothing from the aircraft should ever be used in any aircraft again (to cover his butt, of course, which is exactly what I would do). There's a pretty good likelihood that the vast majority of the aircraft is perfectly fine, as it was barely moving when it tipped over, and the engine was at idle when the prop bit the dust, literally. I'm not a complete newbie idiot (just an old idiot) when it comes to aircraft and mechanical and electronic devices, as I've been flying fixed-wing aircraft
lane: and helicopters for over 30 years, I'm a mechanical engineer and computer scientist, and I'm most of the way through building a gas-turbine-powered, single-seat Helicycle kit (that was another good deal I fell into, as I bought it from another builder who was part-way done, for the original price of the parts, without having to wait three years to receive everything from the factory, which is the current waiting time for new contracts signed this year - as Joe Walsh sings, "Life's Been Good to Me, So Far").
So, I know that the entire airframe and engine are going to need to go through close inspection, if not complete non-destructive testing, to determine what else may be bent, cracked, or otherwise mangled, and need to be repaired/replaced before the aircraft can even be considered potentially airworthy. I'm assuming that there's no breakaway built into the drive system between the crankshaft and the prop hub to prevent back-torque from being transmitted to the engine in the event of a prop strike, although it may be possible that the way that carbon-fiber fails (i.e., it turns into a cloud of very expensive splinters and dust), and the belt/pulley system may have absorbed enough energy to have saved the engine. On the other hand, everything has been sitting in a trailer for 11 years, and that can't be good for anything with a seal, including the engine and the altitude/airspeed instrumentation (e.g., bellows and diaphragms could dry out, etc.), not to mention the potential for corrosion (the trailer has been within a couple of miles of the Pacific coast where the marine layer rolls in regularly at night, although it's pretty well sealed-up when closed). However, the tires reportedly are still holding some air, so, perhaps there is hope, after all, that other sealed items, and exposed metal parts, are intact. Obviously, a significant level of disassembly will be in order, and I'm going to have to consult with :hail: expert A&Ps to make a full determination of the state of everything.
I've seen the recent letter from RAF about their exiting the kit manufacturing and sales business (another major factor in the owner's decision). The indications that they're still selling parts until stock is exhausted, and that they're apparently unofficially providing support to the couple of hundred builders still toiling away on their kits, is a silver lining, though. Obviously, I'll need to buy some parts, but, not unless I can verify that the aircraft is in good enough shape to warrant putting any more money into it (although, considering that I'm getting it for the cost of gas to drive about 75 miles each way to pick it up and bring it home, I can afford to spend a significant amount that would still be way short of the cost of a used operational aircraft, and would have an essentially new aircraft, when all is said and done).
I'm also aware of the still-raging debates about autogyros potentially needing a horizontal stabilizer, reduction/elimination of the high-thrust line on the GTX by lowering the engine/prop and raising the cabin, and the effects of moving the empennage more up into the prop wash. Since I'm potentially going to be doing major surgery, if my GTX can be made airworthy again, this would be the perfect opportunity to make those kinds of changes, but, I'd want to fly both stock and modified models before making any decisions. I know about the RAF Pilots WWW site, but, other than the factory web site (which still acts as if you can order a 2000GTX - hmmm) and this forum, I haven't found much else in the way of authoritative information and activity about the 2000GTX, and any other useful links would be greatly appreciated.
If anyone knows if/how it's feasible to start over the airworthiness process on an experimental aircraft kit, I'm also interested in that. The owner is going to remove the builder's plate and his N number, but, unfortunately, he applied for, and received, the Repairman's Certificate for this aircraft. The FAA only issues one RC for a given experimental aircraft, forever, so, I most likely can't get one, as I understand the process. I assume there is some kind of paperwork that the factory provides that the FAA uses as a basis for the Airworthiness and Repairman's Certificates, which would obviously include things like a kit model/serial numbers, engine serial number, date of manufacture, compliance with the 51% rule, etc. I don't want to do anything illegal, but, particularly since RAF is now officially no longer in business as a manufacturer, I'm wondering if the disassembly, inspection, and reassembly process will provide an opportunity to reset the odometer, so to speak. From what I've heard, FAA airworthiness inspections on rotorcraft are more of a formality, than anything else, as the inspectors generally have little experience with anything other than airplanes, and most have never heard of a 2000GTX, much less inspected one, before. Since I will be providing my own builder's plate, and my experience with the Helicycle is that you can make up whatever aircraft serial number you want (since your last name is officially the manufacturer's name on the plate and the paperwork), it appears that there will be no way for the inspector to know what the actual history of the aircraft is, unless they have to see paperwork from the kit manufacturer (which, I'm guessing is the case).
It might be too obvious that it most likely was a kit, so I probably couldn't weasel-word my way around that fact, and leave the impression that I built it from close observation of very, very, very similar aircraft (as I understand it, RAF never provided engineering-quality drawings to prevent knock-offs from being built, as well as thwart competition - I wonder if that's still true, given the change in the company's status). I strongly doubt that RAF would issue new paperwork with a different kit number (especially without inspecting the parts at a complete NDT level), but, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to ask. However, I can see how a sharp lawyer could open that up as a liability problem for them, in the event of a future accident where people/property were lost, not to mention potential grief from the FAA for me and them, if it were proven that my aircraft is substantially based on a kit that had been built, registered, and flown by someone else. Then, there's the issue that, if I make the extensive mods like adding a horizontal stabilizer, lower the engine/prop, raise the cabin and empennage, etc., how much of a substantially different aircraft would I have, then? There is also the precedent that, when a commercially-built, certified aircraft is extensively overhauled/modified to qualify as an experimental aircraft, an AC and RC can be issued to the owner/modifier. Like I said above, I'm just thinking out loud (oh, brother, isn't _that_ always a mistake?!), and if there were a way to legally get an RC, that would be great, but, given the initial cost of the aircraft to me, it wouldn't be the end of the world if I couldn't (you can bet your sweet bippy that my tune will change if I invest in a new rotor system, prop, whatever airframe and engine repairs might be required, and replacement of other miscellaneous and always-too-expensive parts, though! :rant: ). There's always the possibility that it just won't be worth trying to make the aircraft airworthy again, in which case I have received all the instruments I need for my Helicycle's cockpit for the price of the gas, temporary storage, and time to remove them, minus whatever I might be able to make by disassembling and selling the remaing parts to other 2000GTX owners (particularly given the former factory's status).
I'm in San Jose, CA, and would love to meet any, and all, 2000GTX owners in the SF Bay area (and, if and when the aircraft is flyable again, pretty much everywhere else, as I love long-distance cross-country flying). I'd also like to meet any instructors and A&Ps with direct experience in/on 2000GTXs, for their professional opinions. I recently joined the PRA-affiliated Sierra Rotorcraft Club in Livermore, since I'm building the Helicycle, and any rotorhead is a good head, in my book (and, like the Maytag repairman, it can get lonely, sometimes, in a world dominated by fixed-wing aircraft, some flown by jerks who seem to go out of their way to diss those whose wings can, and do, rotate). So, I should probably start my search there, even though they started out as a Rotorway group decades ago, and that's what most members have. If anyone else has had a similar accident and was able to get their aircraft back into the air safely, I would be extremely interested in talking/typing with them (my friends say I suffer from diarrhea of the fingertips, when it comes to my Hawthorne-noveleque posts and e-mails, and they have to put aside entire weekends to read them - you can imagine what my enemies must say - but, as I learned from an admiral I used to brief in the Navy, "If you can't be informative, at least be entertaining, damn it!"). I'll try to be informative and entertaining here, but, above all, civil, as I don't do flame-fests. I'll have a level-headed, rational, pleasant discourse on just about any topic with anyone willing to do likewise (but, I do have a wicked sense of humor, and thoroughly enjoy exchanging merciless witty repartee with great friends who know we're just having fun). In the interest of full disclosure, I should tell you that I'm also a member of the Intelligence Community :spy:, with a strong background in both black bag ops :rip: :usa2: and computer security :typing:. It can be mighty tempting sometimes to use my powers to "reach out and touch someone" in a way they'll never forget :twitch:, but, so far, I've managed to restrain myself to remain street legal (boy, is that ever frustrating!), and only exercise my professional talents against the real-world Evil-doers.
Anywaaaay, for those still awake this far down (you might want to dial down the caffeine and/or meth! :flame, thanks for your attention, and we now return you to your life, already in progress. I'll be looking forward to hearing from anyone with useful information, or even a good joke, as I'm going to need lots of both as I wade into the pile o' parts I'm inheriting. I don't know all of the details about the aircraft just yet, as I won't be picking it up for probably a few weeks, after I've snagged/built an appropriate trailer, and found a place nearby to store and work on it (the Helicycle kit is in its own enclosed trailer that I built for storage, transportation, and construction work, and I can only have one trailer where it's stored for a very reasonable cost, especially by SillyCon Valley standards). If you're in, or will be in, my area, please let me know, and I hope we can get together soon. I'll be more than happy to help anyone when it comes to aircraft construction and general kibbitzing, to the limits of my expertise (my strengths tend more toward the structural and electrical - infernal-combustion engines are apparently going to be an area of intense improvement for me, in the immediate future!). I plan to show my not-quite-ready-for-prime-time Helicycle at Vertical Challenge at the Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos on 16 June, and a couple of the other four Helicycle builders in this area are also planning on bringing theirs, so I hope to see you there.
NEW! READER'S DIGEST VERSION!
- I'm getting a 1995 2000GTX-2.2L, that was completed in 1996 and has 120 flight hours on it, for removing it from a retiree owner/builder's property
- It had rolled over after severely bucking during a taxi off a runway (landing gear longitudinal stability AD received later the same day - DOH!)
- Rotor system and prop destroyed (OUCH!), and no one was hurt, but, well-meaning bystanders caused additional minor damage to a door, a strut, and a few areas on the cabin surface, while righting the aircraft
- It's been in a trailer for the last 11 years, the tires still have air in them, but, the state of the engine, seals, belts, instruments, corrosion, etc., are unknown
- The owner/builder doesn't have the motivation to determine if it's repairable, doesn't want to sink any more money into it to fix it if it can be made airworthy, and doesn't want to undo hundreds of hours of his assembly time to part it out, and spend the rest of his life selling the parts for pennies on the dollar, anyway, given their unknown condition
- He's providing it with a disclosure and release from liability under the condition that none of it should ever be used in any aircraft (legal CYA, basically)
- He does have the Repairman's Certificate for it, so I can't get one for this aircraft, but, I'm wondering if that can be done if I disassemble and modify the aircraft sufficiently (similar to how certified aircraft can be reclassified as experimental, if enough overhaul/mods are done)
- The recent closure of the RAF factory was pretty much the last straw in making the decision, and the owner doesn't want to reward RAF with any more of his business for required repair parts, if it were able to be made airworthy again
- I haven't seen the aircraft or documentation, yet, I just made a snap decision to commit to moving it off his property by the end of June as soon as I heard about it, and I've got to find somewhere to store and work on it in the San Jose area
- I've been flying fixed-wing and helos for over 30 years, I'm a mechanical engineer and computer scientist, I'm almost done building a Helicycle gas-turbine-powered, single-seat helicopter kit, and I have an inkling about the inspections and NDT that will likely be needed to really verify whether this aircraft can be safely brought back into flyable service
- I'm going to need a lot of help and advice, I'd like to meet as many 2000GTX builders/pilots/instructors/A&Ps as possible, especially in California, or even anywhere out West, ASAP, and am looking forward to meeting those elsewhere as soon as I'm flying the Helicycle, the 2000GTX, or both (trips over the Rockies will be via fixed-wing, until I do my North American tour in a rotorcraft ... when I've got the time and nothing else to live for!)
- I'm willing to help others in my areas of strength, aircraft structures and electronics, but, need to learn all about the 2.2L Subaru carbureted infernal-combustion powerplant
- I'll get my gyrocopter add-on rating if/when I get the 2000GTX airworthy again, and will likely pursue certification through CFI in gyrocopters, to go along with those for helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft that I'm currently pursuing
- I'm currently a software engineer with experience in digital video recorders, expert systems, very large databases, telecom protocol troubleshooting test equipment, and computer security, and have been a Naval Intelligence Officer and pilot, nuclear engineer, port facilities manager, and a bunch of other stuff I'd that would require me to kill everyone who reads this, if I told them about it)
Keep on having a Home of the Whopper, and All the Best,
Jim
"Heli-Davidson" Helicycle builder
RAF 2000GTX Auxiliary Spare Parts Department (for now )
(attached photos are of the pre-accident 2000GTX)
For those suffering from Attention Deficit Dis... Oh, look, a butterfly! ... I've added a Reader's Digest version at the bottom. Enjoy!
For those who like to curl up with a good murder/mystery novel for an evening (or weekend), please read on ...
I've been dreaming of owning and flying an autogyro ever since I saw Sean Connery, as James Bond, "fly" one in "You Only Live Twice", when the movie was first released and I was a much thinner/younger kid (I did get to live near Atsugi Air Base in Japan and at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, for a total of over five years, and loved every second of living in Japan, though). A few days ago, I had the immense fortune to acquire a 1995 2000GTX 2.2 with about 120 hours on it, just for agreeing to haul it off the owner/builder's property. That's the Good part, and before you start hating me (probably too late, already), you need to read The Rest of the Story.
Paaaage Two: The kit was completed in 1996 and, many months later, after an uneventful landing, when the builder started taxiing in a little bit of a hurry to clear the runway for an incoming fixed-wing airplane behind him, his GTX started to buck fore-and-aft, to the point where the engine got up over the main gear. You can probably see where this was going - a rotor blade struck the tarmac in front, and immediately transferred the torque to the rotor hub, which proceeded to tip the aircraft over on its side, whereupon the prop got chewed down to the nubs instantaneously, of course. Fortunately, no one was hurt, and the engine was idling at the point when the prop self-destructed, but, obviously, the rotor blade system was also complete toast. When well-meaning folks ran over to help right the aircraft, they inadvertently caused some mostly cosmetic damage to a door, a strut, and the cabin finish in a few places. To rub salt in that very fresh wound, when the owner got home that day, in the mail was an AD from RAF advising that, under certain circumstances, the 2000GTX could suffer longitudinal instability when taxiing, and provided instructions on how to modify the landing gear to eliminate the potential problem (DOH! Needless to say, his opinion of RAF isn't highly stellar). So, that's the Bad part, and the aircraft wound up spending the next 11 years in its enclosed trailer at the builder's home. He now realizes that, as he enters full retirement, he's never going to have the motivation to repair the aircraft, assuming it's even safe to try to make it airworthy again, and isn't particularly interested in pouring any more money down the rat-hole (especially if RAF would be getting any of it). He doesn't even want to make the effort to undo a lot of his emotionally-attached assembly hours to part out the many things that should be perfectly serviceable, not to mention the time needed to list, process, and ship each item to the four winds over a period of probably months, if not years, to get rid of everything. Even then, most of it would likely go for bargain-basement prices, given the unknown state of everything after the accident. That's the Ugly part, beyond my own ability to scare small children and animals by my mere hulking presence, of course.
Paaage Three: The owner is going to have me sign a disclosure and release from liability on his part, which will state that he considers everything non-airworthy, and that nothing from the aircraft should ever be used in any aircraft again (to cover his butt, of course, which is exactly what I would do). There's a pretty good likelihood that the vast majority of the aircraft is perfectly fine, as it was barely moving when it tipped over, and the engine was at idle when the prop bit the dust, literally. I'm not a complete newbie idiot (just an old idiot) when it comes to aircraft and mechanical and electronic devices, as I've been flying fixed-wing aircraft
lane: and helicopters for over 30 years, I'm a mechanical engineer and computer scientist, and I'm most of the way through building a gas-turbine-powered, single-seat Helicycle kit (that was another good deal I fell into, as I bought it from another builder who was part-way done, for the original price of the parts, without having to wait three years to receive everything from the factory, which is the current waiting time for new contracts signed this year - as Joe Walsh sings, "Life's Been Good to Me, So Far").So, I know that the entire airframe and engine are going to need to go through close inspection, if not complete non-destructive testing, to determine what else may be bent, cracked, or otherwise mangled, and need to be repaired/replaced before the aircraft can even be considered potentially airworthy. I'm assuming that there's no breakaway built into the drive system between the crankshaft and the prop hub to prevent back-torque from being transmitted to the engine in the event of a prop strike, although it may be possible that the way that carbon-fiber fails (i.e., it turns into a cloud of very expensive splinters and dust), and the belt/pulley system may have absorbed enough energy to have saved the engine. On the other hand, everything has been sitting in a trailer for 11 years, and that can't be good for anything with a seal, including the engine and the altitude/airspeed instrumentation (e.g., bellows and diaphragms could dry out, etc.), not to mention the potential for corrosion (the trailer has been within a couple of miles of the Pacific coast where the marine layer rolls in regularly at night, although it's pretty well sealed-up when closed). However, the tires reportedly are still holding some air, so, perhaps there is hope, after all, that other sealed items, and exposed metal parts, are intact. Obviously, a significant level of disassembly will be in order, and I'm going to have to consult with :hail: expert A&Ps to make a full determination of the state of everything.
I've seen the recent letter from RAF about their exiting the kit manufacturing and sales business (another major factor in the owner's decision). The indications that they're still selling parts until stock is exhausted, and that they're apparently unofficially providing support to the couple of hundred builders still toiling away on their kits, is a silver lining, though. Obviously, I'll need to buy some parts, but, not unless I can verify that the aircraft is in good enough shape to warrant putting any more money into it (although, considering that I'm getting it for the cost of gas to drive about 75 miles each way to pick it up and bring it home, I can afford to spend a significant amount that would still be way short of the cost of a used operational aircraft, and would have an essentially new aircraft, when all is said and done).
I'm also aware of the still-raging debates about autogyros potentially needing a horizontal stabilizer, reduction/elimination of the high-thrust line on the GTX by lowering the engine/prop and raising the cabin, and the effects of moving the empennage more up into the prop wash. Since I'm potentially going to be doing major surgery, if my GTX can be made airworthy again, this would be the perfect opportunity to make those kinds of changes, but, I'd want to fly both stock and modified models before making any decisions. I know about the RAF Pilots WWW site, but, other than the factory web site (which still acts as if you can order a 2000GTX - hmmm) and this forum, I haven't found much else in the way of authoritative information and activity about the 2000GTX, and any other useful links would be greatly appreciated.
If anyone knows if/how it's feasible to start over the airworthiness process on an experimental aircraft kit, I'm also interested in that. The owner is going to remove the builder's plate and his N number, but, unfortunately, he applied for, and received, the Repairman's Certificate for this aircraft. The FAA only issues one RC for a given experimental aircraft, forever, so, I most likely can't get one, as I understand the process. I assume there is some kind of paperwork that the factory provides that the FAA uses as a basis for the Airworthiness and Repairman's Certificates, which would obviously include things like a kit model/serial numbers, engine serial number, date of manufacture, compliance with the 51% rule, etc. I don't want to do anything illegal, but, particularly since RAF is now officially no longer in business as a manufacturer, I'm wondering if the disassembly, inspection, and reassembly process will provide an opportunity to reset the odometer, so to speak. From what I've heard, FAA airworthiness inspections on rotorcraft are more of a formality, than anything else, as the inspectors generally have little experience with anything other than airplanes, and most have never heard of a 2000GTX, much less inspected one, before. Since I will be providing my own builder's plate, and my experience with the Helicycle is that you can make up whatever aircraft serial number you want (since your last name is officially the manufacturer's name on the plate and the paperwork), it appears that there will be no way for the inspector to know what the actual history of the aircraft is, unless they have to see paperwork from the kit manufacturer (which, I'm guessing is the case).
It might be too obvious that it most likely was a kit, so I probably couldn't weasel-word my way around that fact, and leave the impression that I built it from close observation of very, very, very similar aircraft (as I understand it, RAF never provided engineering-quality drawings to prevent knock-offs from being built, as well as thwart competition - I wonder if that's still true, given the change in the company's status). I strongly doubt that RAF would issue new paperwork with a different kit number (especially without inspecting the parts at a complete NDT level), but, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to ask. However, I can see how a sharp lawyer could open that up as a liability problem for them, in the event of a future accident where people/property were lost, not to mention potential grief from the FAA for me and them, if it were proven that my aircraft is substantially based on a kit that had been built, registered, and flown by someone else. Then, there's the issue that, if I make the extensive mods like adding a horizontal stabilizer, lower the engine/prop, raise the cabin and empennage, etc., how much of a substantially different aircraft would I have, then? There is also the precedent that, when a commercially-built, certified aircraft is extensively overhauled/modified to qualify as an experimental aircraft, an AC and RC can be issued to the owner/modifier. Like I said above, I'm just thinking out loud (oh, brother, isn't _that_ always a mistake?!), and if there were a way to legally get an RC, that would be great, but, given the initial cost of the aircraft to me, it wouldn't be the end of the world if I couldn't (you can bet your sweet bippy that my tune will change if I invest in a new rotor system, prop, whatever airframe and engine repairs might be required, and replacement of other miscellaneous and always-too-expensive parts, though! :rant: ). There's always the possibility that it just won't be worth trying to make the aircraft airworthy again, in which case I have received all the instruments I need for my Helicycle's cockpit for the price of the gas, temporary storage, and time to remove them, minus whatever I might be able to make by disassembling and selling the remaing parts to other 2000GTX owners (particularly given the former factory's status).
I'm in San Jose, CA, and would love to meet any, and all, 2000GTX owners in the SF Bay area (and, if and when the aircraft is flyable again, pretty much everywhere else, as I love long-distance cross-country flying). I'd also like to meet any instructors and A&Ps with direct experience in/on 2000GTXs, for their professional opinions. I recently joined the PRA-affiliated Sierra Rotorcraft Club in Livermore, since I'm building the Helicycle, and any rotorhead is a good head, in my book (and, like the Maytag repairman, it can get lonely, sometimes, in a world dominated by fixed-wing aircraft, some flown by jerks who seem to go out of their way to diss those whose wings can, and do, rotate). So, I should probably start my search there, even though they started out as a Rotorway group decades ago, and that's what most members have. If anyone else has had a similar accident and was able to get their aircraft back into the air safely, I would be extremely interested in talking/typing with them (my friends say I suffer from diarrhea of the fingertips, when it comes to my Hawthorne-noveleque posts and e-mails, and they have to put aside entire weekends to read them - you can imagine what my enemies must say - but, as I learned from an admiral I used to brief in the Navy, "If you can't be informative, at least be entertaining, damn it!"). I'll try to be informative and entertaining here, but, above all, civil, as I don't do flame-fests. I'll have a level-headed, rational, pleasant discourse on just about any topic with anyone willing to do likewise (but, I do have a wicked sense of humor, and thoroughly enjoy exchanging merciless witty repartee with great friends who know we're just having fun). In the interest of full disclosure, I should tell you that I'm also a member of the Intelligence Community :spy:, with a strong background in both black bag ops :rip: :usa2: and computer security :typing:. It can be mighty tempting sometimes to use my powers to "reach out and touch someone" in a way they'll never forget :twitch:, but, so far, I've managed to restrain myself to remain street legal (boy, is that ever frustrating!), and only exercise my professional talents against the real-world Evil-doers.
Anywaaaay, for those still awake this far down (you might want to dial down the caffeine and/or meth! :flame
, thanks for your attention, and we now return you to your life, already in progress. I'll be looking forward to hearing from anyone with useful information, or even a good joke, as I'm going to need lots of both as I wade into the pile o' parts I'm inheriting. I don't know all of the details about the aircraft just yet, as I won't be picking it up for probably a few weeks, after I've snagged/built an appropriate trailer, and found a place nearby to store and work on it (the Helicycle kit is in its own enclosed trailer that I built for storage, transportation, and construction work, and I can only have one trailer where it's stored for a very reasonable cost, especially by SillyCon Valley standards). If you're in, or will be in, my area, please let me know, and I hope we can get together soon. I'll be more than happy to help anyone when it comes to aircraft construction and general kibbitzing, to the limits of my expertise (my strengths tend more toward the structural and electrical - infernal-combustion engines are apparently going to be an area of intense improvement for me, in the immediate future!). I plan to show my not-quite-ready-for-prime-time Helicycle at Vertical Challenge at the Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos on 16 June, and a couple of the other four Helicycle builders in this area are also planning on bringing theirs, so I hope to see you there.NEW! READER'S DIGEST VERSION!
- I'm getting a 1995 2000GTX-2.2L, that was completed in 1996 and has 120 flight hours on it, for removing it from a retiree owner/builder's property
- It had rolled over after severely bucking during a taxi off a runway (landing gear longitudinal stability AD received later the same day - DOH!)
- Rotor system and prop destroyed (OUCH!), and no one was hurt, but, well-meaning bystanders caused additional minor damage to a door, a strut, and a few areas on the cabin surface, while righting the aircraft
- It's been in a trailer for the last 11 years, the tires still have air in them, but, the state of the engine, seals, belts, instruments, corrosion, etc., are unknown
- The owner/builder doesn't have the motivation to determine if it's repairable, doesn't want to sink any more money into it to fix it if it can be made airworthy, and doesn't want to undo hundreds of hours of his assembly time to part it out, and spend the rest of his life selling the parts for pennies on the dollar, anyway, given their unknown condition
- He's providing it with a disclosure and release from liability under the condition that none of it should ever be used in any aircraft (legal CYA, basically)
- He does have the Repairman's Certificate for it, so I can't get one for this aircraft, but, I'm wondering if that can be done if I disassemble and modify the aircraft sufficiently (similar to how certified aircraft can be reclassified as experimental, if enough overhaul/mods are done)
- The recent closure of the RAF factory was pretty much the last straw in making the decision, and the owner doesn't want to reward RAF with any more of his business for required repair parts, if it were able to be made airworthy again
- I haven't seen the aircraft or documentation, yet, I just made a snap decision to commit to moving it off his property by the end of June as soon as I heard about it, and I've got to find somewhere to store and work on it in the San Jose area
- I've been flying fixed-wing and helos for over 30 years, I'm a mechanical engineer and computer scientist, I'm almost done building a Helicycle gas-turbine-powered, single-seat helicopter kit, and I have an inkling about the inspections and NDT that will likely be needed to really verify whether this aircraft can be safely brought back into flyable service
- I'm going to need a lot of help and advice, I'd like to meet as many 2000GTX builders/pilots/instructors/A&Ps as possible, especially in California, or even anywhere out West, ASAP, and am looking forward to meeting those elsewhere as soon as I'm flying the Helicycle, the 2000GTX, or both (trips over the Rockies will be via fixed-wing, until I do my North American tour in a rotorcraft ... when I've got the time and nothing else to live for!)
- I'm willing to help others in my areas of strength, aircraft structures and electronics, but, need to learn all about the 2.2L Subaru carbureted infernal-combustion powerplant
- I'll get my gyrocopter add-on rating if/when I get the 2000GTX airworthy again, and will likely pursue certification through CFI in gyrocopters, to go along with those for helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft that I'm currently pursuing
- I'm currently a software engineer with experience in digital video recorders, expert systems, very large databases, telecom protocol troubleshooting test equipment, and computer security, and have been a Naval Intelligence Officer and pilot, nuclear engineer, port facilities manager, and a bunch of other stuff I'd that would require me to kill everyone who reads this, if I told them about it)
Keep on having a Home of the Whopper, and All the Best,
Jim
"Heli-Davidson" Helicycle builder
RAF 2000GTX Auxiliary Spare Parts Department (for now
)(attached photos are of the pre-accident 2000GTX)
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