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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Possibly everything just started with elevator
flutter, possibly from a broken hinge. If it was violent enough, and it
there was some common mounting platform to the throttle servo, maybe that tray
broke loose and started thrashing the throttle. Last failure on the
ailerons, maybe a stressed elevator/rudderthrottle servo overloaded the power
bus enough to cause the receiver decoder to not be able to send a decent quality
signal, or maybe the voltage was just pulled too low to allow the aileron servos
to process a good signal properly. All speculation, but it's a possibility.
Tough loss no matter what happened.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Ed</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=tkeithblack@gmail.com href="mailto:tkeithblack@gmail.com">Keith
Black</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A
title=nsrca-discussion@lists.nsrca.org
href="mailto:nsrca-discussion@lists.nsrca.org">General pattern discussion</A>
</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Tuesday, September 02, 2008 11:24
AM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: [NSRCA-discussion] Ideas on
radio beserkness-cause of crash??</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I was standing next to Gray when this occurred.
What I observed didn't look like a battery failure because the plane began
violently oscillating in what appeared to me to be in pitch. This oscillation
was so severe that I thought the plane was experiencing flutter. I told Gray
to cut the throttle, at which point he said he already had. I looked at his
transmitter and the throttle stick was indeed all the way down, however, the
engine continued oscillating from high to low. I also looked at his battery
meter on his TX and it was well into the black. A couple of times I thought
the plane was going to fly off into the distance in this out of control manner
but thankfully Gray was able to keep it close to the field.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>What's puzzling are the following:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>1. If it were interference the PCM would have
gone into lockout.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>2. A combination of in and out of lockout
fluctuations would not cause the throttle to go up and down since the throttle
stick was down and the lockout was set to idle.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>3. If it were RX battery related I would not
expect it to oscillate the control surfaces and the throttle, unless the RX
freaks out at low voltage.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Therefore, I believe this was some type of radio
related failure either on the TX or RX side, most likely the RX. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>One last thought, I have heard people report a
bad servos in the system making all the other servos behave badly. Maybe
someone has some feedback on this.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Keith Black</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV>----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
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<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=gfowler@raytheon.com href="mailto:gfowler@raytheon.com">Gray E
Fowler</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A
title=nsrca-discussion@lists.nsrca.org
href="mailto:nsrca-discussion@lists.nsrca.org">General pattern
discussion</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Tuesday, September 02, 2008 9:24
AM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: [NSRCA-discussion] Ideas
on radio beserkness-cause of crash??</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV><BR><FONT face=sans-serif size=2>Hey Anthony</FONT>
<BR><BR><FONT face=sans-serif size=2>Never set up that warning function.
Several people have indicated a low battery. Lance thinks fractured
crystal...10 years old, stored in my garage at 105F to 25F or so. Every
battery failure I have seen (none were mine) the radio flat out quit. Lance
and I are going back out today, better equipped (long pants-machetes!!!) If
I find it I can re-test the battery..It tested about 150 MAH of its rated
capacity, but I do not have the tester drain the crap out of the
volatge.</FONT> <BR><FONT face=sans-serif size=2>Man that plane flew
good....9 lbs 15 oz...My skills are so deteriorated.</FONT> <BR><BR><FONT
face=sans-serif size=2><BR></FONT><BR><FONT face=sans-serif
size=2><BR><BR><BR>Gray Fowler<BR>Senior Principal Chemical
Engineer<BR>Radomes and Specialty Apertures<BR>Technical Staff Composites
Engineering<BR>Raytheon</FONT> <BR><BR><BR>
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<TD width="40%"><FONT face=sans-serif size=1><B>Anthony Romano
<anthonyr105@hotmail.com></B> </FONT><BR><FONT face=sans-serif
size=1>Sent by: nsrca-discussion-bounces@lists.nsrca.org</FONT>
<P><FONT face=sans-serif size=1>09/02/2008 09:18 AM</FONT>
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<DIV align=center><FONT face=sans-serif size=1>Please respond
to<BR>General pattern discussion
<nsrca-discussion@lists.nsrca.org></FONT></DIV></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><BR></P>
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<DIV align=right><FONT face=sans-serif size=1>To</FONT></DIV>
<TD><FONT face=sans-serif size=1>General pattern discussion
<nsrca-discussion@lists.nsrca.org></FONT>
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<TD>
<DIV align=right><FONT face=sans-serif size=1>cc</FONT></DIV>
<TD>
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<TD>
<DIV align=right><FONT face=sans-serif
size=1>Subject</FONT></DIV>
<TD><FONT face=sans-serif size=1>Re: [NSRCA-discussion] Ideas on
radio beserkness-cause of crash??</FONT></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><BR>
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<TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><BR></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><BR><BR><BR><FONT
face=Tahoma size=2>Hi Gray,<BR>What a huge bummer. Did you have the low rx
alarm function turned on? On the Stylus that is a switchable function that
will drop the throttle to alert you to a low rx voltage. Now I am paranoid
and have to go check mine.<BR>Have heard of similiar "brown out" type of
behavior with a Nimh rx battery failure. Hope you can recover the aircraft.
This time of year the growth in most places can swallow anything.<BR>Many
solid flights for almost ten years on my Stylus but it is serviced every
winter.<BR><BR>Anthony<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR></FONT>
<HR>
<FONT face=Tahoma size=2><BR>To: NSRCA-discussion@lists.nsrca.org<BR>From:
gfowler@raytheon.com<BR>Date: Tue, 2 Sep 2008 08:30:17 -0500<BR>Subject:
[NSRCA-discussion] Ideas on radio beserkness-cause of
crash??<BR><BR></FONT><FONT face=sans-serif size=2><BR>Guys</FONT><FONT
face=Tahoma size=2> <BR></FONT><FONT face=sans-serif size=2><BR>Yesterday on
my 4th flight of the day my PCM Stylus went nuts. PCM program was set for
idle throttle and about 5-6 clicks(trim wise) of up elevator-all other
surfaces neutral, and this was tested as such by turning off the
transmitter. As I passed by center I noticed that I could not gain
altitude and the the throttle started going from idle to high...then
ailerons started oscillating small left-right deflections. I cut the
throttle to the kill position but the engine persisted up-down bursts. I was
able to do a 180 degree turn with aileron coming back to center...never
losing altitude, but unable to change the altitude,elevator seemed
unresponsive. As I passed by center again I was losing more and more
control. The plane flew over the wooded area south of the field at about 200
feet high, I could not turn and the ailerons rolled the plane upside down
and it went straight down into the trees. This whole episode last about 45
seconds. Cannot find the plane, and remnants of Gustav are headed my
way.</FONT><FONT face=Tahoma size=2> <BR><BR></FONT><FONT face=sans-serif
size=2><BR>Plane was new had about 10 flights on it.</FONT><FONT face=Tahoma
size=2> <BR></FONT><FONT face=sans-serif size=2><BR>New battery..NiMH 5 cell
pack -no regulator (ran 5 cell packs for years, no regulator)
<BR>Reciever-1999 Stylus PCM-never crashed, wrapped in foam</FONT><FONT
face=Tahoma size=2> </FONT><FONT face=sans-serif size=2><BR>New
switch</FONT><FONT face=Tahoma size=2> </FONT><FONT face=sans-serif
size=2><BR>Transmitter-1999 Stylus, never been serviced, never had
problems</FONT><FONT face=Tahoma size=2> <BR></FONT><FONT face=sans-serif
size=2><B><BR>What would cause a PCM receiver to do such a thing?</B> If I
had and intermittent signal, once the receiver did get a signal the only two
throttle signals should have been idle (PCM hold) and off (transmitter).
I am going to send the transmitter in just to get checked.</FONT><FONT
face=Tahoma size=2> <BR></FONT><FONT face=sans-serif size=2><BR>Thanks
guys....<BR><BR><BR>Gray Fowler<BR>Senior Principal Chemical
Engineer<BR>Radomes and Specialty Apertures<BR>Technical Staff Composites
Engineering<BR>Raytheon</FONT><FONT face=Tahoma size=2><BR><BR></FONT>
<HR>
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