Post by Schmleff on Aug 27, 2012 20:24:33 GMT -6
I got to fly solo in a friend's KR2-S tonight. Here was my write up to the KR guys that gave me pointers on how to fly one. For reference, it is powered by a 2700cc Corvair and has the latest mods including their new airfoil:
Flew it for about a half hour tonight. Everything worked as it should have.
Takeoff was uneventful. Accelerated to about 40, brought the tail up,
lifted off at about 60ish. Leveled off in ground effect and
accelerated to 100. Let it climb out at about 110mph showing about
1200fpm climb.
The site picture is very different than the Sonerai. For reference,
mine is a Sonerai I which is more sensitive than a 2 seat Sonerai.
Back to the KR... The nose sits higher in cruise than I would have
expected, but I was only going about 140mph. I expect that it will be
lower at higher speeds. As far as stability goes, wow... My Sonerai
is completely neutral in all axis which makes it a full time workout
to fly. The KR's yaw stability was great, the ailerons were heavier
than I expected. The pitch sensitivity is much less than my Sonerai.
I was amazed that I could actually take my hands off of the stick! My SI is so sensitive
that I can barely fly it with my left hand.
The first set up for landing I was too close to the runway on downwind
and ended up going around. In the SI, I usually fly the pattern at
145, slow to 120 as I turn base, bleed it down to 100 for the turn to
final and 80 over the numbers. With the KR, I flew the pattern at 120,
reduced to 80 abeam the numbers and put in a the first notch of flaps.
I flew a long wide downwind so I could get set up for the runway
better. On my turn to final, I was going 80 and dropped full flaps,
but was too low. I had a bit of trouble judging my altitude and had no
forward visibility. I put the power back in to clear the trees. After
clearing the trees, I was going 70. I had the pitch trim set to full
up, a trick I used in my Piper Pacer that seemed to make landing
easier. Again, for reference, my Sonerai has no flaps or trim. I held
70 in a gentle descent and flew the plane on with no flare. I was
actually surprised that the mains touched down as soon as they did but
the contact with the ground was smooth so I pushed the stick forward a
bit and let it roll down the runway without braking. Eventually the
speed bled off and I put the tail down and held it there. It tracked
straight down the runway with minimal rudder input.
In summary, it flew great. The mission of the Sonerai I and the KR are
quite different and each has its place but the KR seems to be a much
easier to handle on the ground and in the air. My SI does however have
much better visibility in all aspects of flight even though it is a
mid wing. I really like the way the KR flies and its is much better
suited for cross country than my SI. I have long been an admirer of
the KR and am glad to have gotten the chance to fly it!
One other thing caught my attention and that was how much quieter it
was in the cockpit.
Flew it for about a half hour tonight. Everything worked as it should have.
Takeoff was uneventful. Accelerated to about 40, brought the tail up,
lifted off at about 60ish. Leveled off in ground effect and
accelerated to 100. Let it climb out at about 110mph showing about
1200fpm climb.
The site picture is very different than the Sonerai. For reference,
mine is a Sonerai I which is more sensitive than a 2 seat Sonerai.
Back to the KR... The nose sits higher in cruise than I would have
expected, but I was only going about 140mph. I expect that it will be
lower at higher speeds. As far as stability goes, wow... My Sonerai
is completely neutral in all axis which makes it a full time workout
to fly. The KR's yaw stability was great, the ailerons were heavier
than I expected. The pitch sensitivity is much less than my Sonerai.
I was amazed that I could actually take my hands off of the stick! My SI is so sensitive
that I can barely fly it with my left hand.
The first set up for landing I was too close to the runway on downwind
and ended up going around. In the SI, I usually fly the pattern at
145, slow to 120 as I turn base, bleed it down to 100 for the turn to
final and 80 over the numbers. With the KR, I flew the pattern at 120,
reduced to 80 abeam the numbers and put in a the first notch of flaps.
I flew a long wide downwind so I could get set up for the runway
better. On my turn to final, I was going 80 and dropped full flaps,
but was too low. I had a bit of trouble judging my altitude and had no
forward visibility. I put the power back in to clear the trees. After
clearing the trees, I was going 70. I had the pitch trim set to full
up, a trick I used in my Piper Pacer that seemed to make landing
easier. Again, for reference, my Sonerai has no flaps or trim. I held
70 in a gentle descent and flew the plane on with no flare. I was
actually surprised that the mains touched down as soon as they did but
the contact with the ground was smooth so I pushed the stick forward a
bit and let it roll down the runway without braking. Eventually the
speed bled off and I put the tail down and held it there. It tracked
straight down the runway with minimal rudder input.
In summary, it flew great. The mission of the Sonerai I and the KR are
quite different and each has its place but the KR seems to be a much
easier to handle on the ground and in the air. My SI does however have
much better visibility in all aspects of flight even though it is a
mid wing. I really like the way the KR flies and its is much better
suited for cross country than my SI. I have long been an admirer of
the KR and am glad to have gotten the chance to fly it!
One other thing caught my attention and that was how much quieter it
was in the cockpit.
