Europa XS N741JH has completed its build and 40 hour fly-off in sunny Florida
and recently took up residence in chilly Cheyenne, WY. The assembly,
fly-off, and trouble-free flight home was testimony to the wonderful help of
a variety of folks. Special thanks to Russell Lepr of Flight Crafters in
Valrico, FL, for helping finish up the project and getting the airplane
reliable. Lee Omernik performed the non-event first flight and then checked
me out and got me sufficiently competent (and lucky) to handle the 30 kt.
surface winds of Kansas and Wyoming on the long flight home. John, Bob, and
Nigel at Europa Lakeland; Bob and Ted at Flight Crafters; Glenn of Rotax in
Ft. Lauderdale, FL; and Shane and Kerry at Lockwood Aviation in Sebring, FL,
also provided invaluable assistance answering questions and making
adjustments getting me through the fly-off. Thanks to you all.
N741JH weighed in at 885 lbs. with near perfect balance. Power is by Rotax
914 with Airmaster variable pitch prop. GPS is showing about 135 kts. ground
speed at 5400rpm at 8500'. Stalls are straight forward and recreational
aerobatics very pleasing. A faster roll rate would be nice. The only
annoying flight characteristic is the requirement for a little left rudder
above 120 KIAS - right wing is a little heavy even with small electric
aileron trim tab on left side. Gotta work on that. Any suggestions will be
appreciated. Also, has anyone installed a block heater on the 914? Or, do
you have any other suggestions for preparing the engine for starting in very
cold weather (-20C) where there is no electricity available?
Thanks to all of you for the Q&A on this bulletin board over that past few
years. It has really helped ease my entry into the Europa community. It's
good to be flying with you.
John Hanna - N741JH
A128
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