Failed Climb Out

[facthunter]

Carb heat check.

 

Bigglesworth, your instructor wasn't doing you any favours, was he? On your first solo as well! Leaving the carb heat on , Hmmmm.

 

However, I know you are busy on take-off or go- around, but what about a power check? You should KNOW that you are getting full power, and if you are not you should abort the take-off, not drag it into the air and THEN realise that you don't have enough ergs. Common sense & AIRMANSHIP surely! I'm not directing this at you Bigglesworth, It's a common fault, and possibly your instructor didn't emphasise it.

 

I would even recommend, when the runway is not too long( it has to be long enough, doesn't it?) that full power be applied and checked with the brakes on, on the runway, prior to rolling, ( where the runway surface & traffic allow it) & the brakes released then.

 

As for the carb. heat control, if you make a habit of just confirming it is IN every time you apply large amounts of power, you cover ALL possibilities.. Nev..

 

 

[Yenn]

How good is a full power check? Many years ago I hired a C172, did the daily inspection and before take off I ran up full power. I got the required revs and assumed the engine was OK. It took about 20 mins to climb to 5000' and I told the owner it was sick. She sent it to the LAME at Rocky and it came back with the comment that it was perfectly sound. Someone else hired it and had the same experience as I did. Once again it went to Rocky, was pronounced sound and then had an engine failure on take off at Rocky. The problem was 2 burnt exhaust valves.

 

Maybe if I had been a regular user of the plane I would have seen it was sick pre take off but I wonder how a LAME could have missed the problem. maybe incompetence would be the word.