What The Heck Is That Noise!?!

I flew over to Apple Valley (APV) to put in a little cross country time
with a GPS MAP 196 in a Cessna 150 - and to indulge in a $150 diet-Pepsi.
This particular airplane is the only available rental at my home patch at
IYK, which we locals lovingly refer to as Inyokern International. (If you
have a couple airplanes and want to be your own boss, there's an empty FBO
facility there begging for occupation. I'm sure the airport management
district will give you a good deal. But that's, as they say, another story.
Back to Apple Valley.
After dumping my waste water, replacing it with the diet soda, and
getting the kinks out of my knee and back, I wandered back to the airplane.
It had been in plain sight all the time, just across the tarmac from a pilot
friendly little cafe. So I did a cursory walk-around, wiggling a few things
here and there and checked the oil. The trip over only burned an hour's fuel
out of full tanks so I was good to go.
Mind you, I have less than ten hours in this airplane so I'm not
intimately familiar with all its quirks. I know it is well maintained and
the owner is the CFI that brought me back into flying after a 25-year
layoff. This morning, the airmass over the Antelope Valley was rock solid.
My airspeed was within two knots going and coming. The airplane trimmed out
and flew with only an occasional nudge to keep the altitude within ±40 feet.
My only gripe is an out of trim condition that requires a tiny bit of
pressure on the right rudder pedal to keep the ball in the cage.
The engine started without priming. I taxied to the end of R-18, the
favored calm wind runway, did the complete "Before Takeoff" checklist and
waited for Cessna in front of me to depart. When they lifted off. I
announced my intentions (non-towered field) rolled onto the runway, shoved
the throttle in and started the takeoff roll.
The owner likes us to hold a little back pressure on the takeoff to ease
wear and tear on the nose gear, so it takes a bit longer to gather speed and
lift off. No sweat, APV R-18 is 6,498 feet.
The plane lifted off just as it had before, then....
WHAT THE HECK IS THAT NOISE!?!
Something was rattling and thumping hard enough and loud enough to
be heard over the muffling of my passive headset. It sounded mechanical, but
didn't ding like metal. Engine was smooth. Carb heat was off. Controls felt
fine. Hmmm, did I screw the dip-stick in after I checked the oil? Oil
pressure was good. No streaks on the side windows.
Actually, I'd had an inkling something amiss about halfway through
the takeoff roll, but it didn't register as anything serious. I dropped the
nose, ready to cut the throttle and land straight ahead but didn't like the
perspective. I rejected the notion to land on the crossing runway at the
end. My choice was a shallow left turn at 500 AGL into a close-aboard
downwind. I pulled full carb heat and brought the power back to hold 80K and
altitude.
The Cessna that departed in front of me stayed in the pattern for a
normal downwind to shoot T&Gs. I called on the CTAF and told him I had a
sick airplane and asked him to extend downwind and let me have the runway.
He graciously obliged, as did the airplane ready to take the runway. Just
past midfield, I dropped ten-degrees of flaps. No change in the rattle,
thump.
I did a shallow 180 just past the approach end, feeling confident that I
had plenty of energy in case the fan should stop spinning. Lined up, I
dropped another 10 degrees of flaps. The landing was a kisser. I should do
that every time. I turned off the runway at the first available
intersection. By that time I had the carb-heat off but didn't mess with the
flaps. Instead of turning onto the taxiway, I drove straight ahead into a
resident hangar area. While the plane was still rolling, I pulled the
moisture to lean-off, switched off the mags, and opened the master switch.
Here's the embarrassing part. The noise? When I'd shut the door, I'd
left the tail end of the seat belt strap hanging outside-just about two-,
maybe three-inches of it. It was apparent, because the door was wedged shut
and required a bit of shoulder pressure to open.
That didn't stop me from going over the airplane with a preflight as
extensive as I'd do knowing that someone else had flown it.
Thirty minutes later, with a rehydrated mouth and the puckers
smoothed out of the other orifice, I took off again. As soon and the plane
was off the ground, I dropped the nose and let it accelerate flying just a
few feet off the surface, imminently ready to cut power and land if the
noise came back.
The flight home was great. I got to watch Torch-27 shoot an ILS
approach into Palmdale. Torch-27 is an F-117. I learned enough about the GPS
MAP 196 to be confident of using it cross-country.
...and I added one tiny detail to the Before Taxi checklist.

On 12/14/04 8:16 PM, in article XfMvd.4651$Z%1.9@trnddc03, "Casey Wilson"
wrote:

Here's the embarrassing part. The noise? When I'd shut the door, I'd
left the tail end of the seat belt strap hanging outside-just about two-,
maybe three-inches of it. It was apparent, because the door was wedged shut
and required a bit of shoulder pressure to open.
That didn't stop me from going over the airplane with a preflight as
extensive as I'd do knowing that someone else had flown it.
Thirty minutes later, with a rehydrated mouth and the puckers
smoothed out of the other orifice, I took off again. As soon and the plane
was off the ground, I dropped the nose and let it accelerate flying just a
few feet off the surface, imminently ready to cut power and land if the
noise came back.
The flight home was great. I got to watch Torch-27 shoot an ILS
approach into Palmdale. Torch-27 is an F-117. I learned enough about the GPS
MAP 196 to be confident of using it cross-country.
...and I added one tiny detail to the Before Taxi checklist.


I had the same thing happen to me on one of my x-c's during training. It
sounded like it was overhead and I thought I had left the gas cap loose.
Lesson learned.
--
Jeff 'The Wizard of Draws' Bucchino
Cartoons with a Touch of Magic�
http://www.wizardofdraws.com
http://www.cartoonclipart.com

The Wizard's 2004 Christmas newsletter
http://www.wizardofdraws.com/main/xmas04.html

"Casey Wilson" wrote in message
news:XfMvd.4651$Z%1.9@trnddc03...

I flew over to Apple Valley (APV) to put in a little cross country
time with a GPS MAP 196 in a Cessna 150 - and to indulge in a $150
diet-Pepsi.

Casey,

Thanks for sharing this and for doing so honestly...and congrats on keeping
your cool.

I just love how people are willing to help each other even if it through the
occasional oops.

Regards,

Jay Beckman
PP-ASEL
Chandler, AZ
(I'm taking my CFI with me tomorrow on a little XC jaunt as a recurring
training exercise)

"Wizard of Draws" wrote in message
news:BDE5017D.3C5DE%jeffbTAKEOUTALLCAPS@wizardofdr aws.com...
On 12/14/04 8:16 PM, in article XfMvd.4651$Z%1.9@trnddc03, "Casey Wilson"
wrote:

Here's the embarrassing part. The noise? When I'd shut the door,
I'd
left the tail end of the seat belt strap hanging outside-just about
two-,

I had the same thing happen to me on one of my x-c's during training. It
sounded like it was overhead and I thought I had left the gas cap loose.
Lesson learned.
--

I did leave the gas cap off my 172 once, after I dipped the tanks during
preflight. I had a funny radio problem and I called my CFI on his mobile,
turned out he was hanging around at another ramp so I taxied it over to show
it to him. He couldn't figure anything out so I went to taxi back. I noticed
a smell of fuel, much stronger than usual, and then I saw the trickle coming
down the window. My penance was to spend 3 hours scrubbing fuel off every
inch of the plane. In the roughly ten minutes the engines were running I
think it sucked half the tank out. Hate to think what would happen in
flight.

-cwk.

. . . While the plane was still rolling, I pulled the
moisture to lean-off, switched off the mags, and opened the master switch.

What is the purpose of the moisture control?
Just wonderin'

Tony

--

Tony Roberts
PP-ASEL
VFR OTT
Night
Cessna 172H C-GICE

I left the dipstick door open on a Cessna 182RG once. Flying from the left
seat I never noticed it. I was back taxing down the runway to the run up
area when I passed another plane holding short on an adjoining taxiway. He
called me on the radio to tell me (and the rest of the world) about the oil
door. I shut down in the run up area and closed it while the other pilot
did his runup and took off. We both exchanged a wave and a smile.... an
embarrassed one on my part. Funny how it became a habit of checking that
door when I was in the right seat and a student was in the left.

Oh, and I've also done the seatbelt thing, but never actually took off in
that condition.... because it is part of my after run up, pre takeoff check.

The captain is ready for take off, so please fasten your seat belts and
return your flight attendant to her upright position.

Jim



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On Wed, 15 Dec 2004 03:03:23 GMT, "Colin W Kingsbury"
wrote:

In the roughly ten minutes the engines were running I
think it sucked half the tank out. Hate to think what would happen in
flight.


The one time I saw this, a guy left BOTH caps off his 185. On climb
out you could see a significant spray (more like running water
upwards) out of each gas tank. Unicom notified him of the problem and
he flew the pattern and came back. He ended up with about 1/4 tanks
on each side after one hop around the patch! Not a good thing. He
refueled, triple checked the caps and went on his way.

z

"tony roberts" wrote in message
news:nospam-25E000.22090514122004@shawnews...
. . . While the plane was still rolling, I pulled the
moisture to lean-off, switched off the mags, and opened the master
switch.

What is the purpose of the moisture control?
Just wonderin'

Tony

If it were me in that instance, I'd want a "moisture control" to dry the
seat under me!!

;O)

Jay Beckman
PP-ASEL
Chandler, AZ

"zatatime" wrote in message news:
On Wed, 15 Dec 2004 03:03:23 GMT, "Colin W Kingsbury"
wrote:

In the roughly ten minutes the engines were running I
think it sucked half the tank out. Hate to think what would happen in
flight.


The one time I saw this, a guy left BOTH caps off his 185. On climb
out you could see a significant spray (more like running water
upwards) out of each gas tank. Unicom notified him of the problem and
he flew the pattern and came back. He ended up with about 1/4 tanks
on each side after one hop around the patch!

Sure.

moo

On Wed, 15 Dec 2004 01:16:39 GMT, "Casey Wilson"
wrote:

Here's the embarrassing part. The noise? When I'd shut the door, I'd
left the tail end of the seat belt strap hanging outside-just about two-,
maybe three-inches of it.

You haven't been truly embarrassed until you've joined the earth-towing
society; or done the maneuver termed "turns around a tie-down point",
especially if there are a number of observers around. :-) I have done
both.

A friend did a variation on that. He taxi'd to the runway, took off, and
noted his Warrior felt very right wing heavy. Careful examination revealed
that he was towing a concrete filled tire from the tiedown ring!

He flew a normal pattern, in full view of many of the town folk, and landed
uneventfully.

We painted a pair of wings on the tire!


Ron (EPM) (N5843Q, Mooney M20E) (CP, ASEL, ASES, IA)