"Roger (K8RI)" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 01 Sep 2007 00:49:10 -0400, NoneYa
wrote:

Many if not most Bonanzas don't use flaps even for short field and
this didn't look short. As some one from there mentioned it's 4000
feet at 1200 MSL. There is no take off maneuver even short field at
high altitude in mine that calls for any use of the flaps.

As to gas, the capacity varies over a wide range. With a newer plane
it varies from 75 to 100 or so depending on the tanks installed and
the size of the Aux tanks.. I can put 600# of fuel in mine and with
1000# useful load it's at best a 3 passenger plane if they are skinny
and no baggage. The F33s reached 1400# useful load so depending on
lots of variables It may or may not be a 4 passenger plane.

They reported it to be a 4 seat, but it sure looked like an A36. Try
as I might I could not come up with a valid N number to check. Nor
could I find anything listed for a Walter Norwood.

Even on a hot day at 1200 feet it should have had the ability to get
in and out of a 4000 foot strip with only moderately rising terrain
and a *light* tail wind.

I can only guess, but two guys I know flew a Cherokee 180 into a grass
strip in the UP of Michigan for a fishing trip. On the day they came
home it was HOT and humid. Basically they were high, hot, humid, and
heavy. The pilot was trying to give the trees at the end of the
runway a wide berth, but they had neither the speed nor power. The
right seater kept telling him to keep the nose now as he was easing it
up. The almost cleared the trees. OTOH they didn't go down, but they
did leave the position lights from both wing tips in the trees and
they still had brush in the landing gear when they got home. Actually
they had a 6" dent just inside the last rib. The pilot once made the
statement, had the right seater kept forcing him to keep the nose
down, they'd never have made it.

I wonder if this wasn't a similar situation but without some one
reminding the pilot to keep the nose down.

Roger

Taking the last item first; yes, it is very possible. One day, about 25
years ago, I was out with an instructor practicing in a Cessna 150M. The
wind was nearly 20KTS and he, being a bit of a "good ol' boy", elected to
demonstrate a downwind touch and go. The terrain is southeastern Florida is
*very* flat, with the usual urban ground clutter sticking up, so it is
fairly easy to have a fairly sharp gradient in the wind as you climb out of
ground effect--which works in your favor when you go the right direction,
but... He had been away for about a month, and flying only twins which have
almost no p-factor with all engines running. As we reached the top of
ground effect, rapidly losiing airspeed and in a wings-level left turn, he
announced: "We're in trouble!" To which I responded: "We're also in a
hell of a right slip!" He then got his right boot down firmly on the rudder
pedal, and we flew away without further incident--although there were no
more downwing touch and goes!

The temperature and humidity appear to have been sufficient to give plenty
of importance to a DA calculation--I know that it is always required--and
probably enough to suggest a fudge factor for the effect of humidity on
available power and required mixture.

The same Fox station had historical weather in Sacremento available, so here
is the range of weather for yesterday, August 31, 2007:

Temperature
Mean Temperature 85 °F 74 °F
Max Temperature 99 °F 90 °F 104 °F (1998)
Min Temperature 71 °F 57 °F 50 °F (1957)
Degree Days
Heating Degree Days 0 0
Month to date heating degree days 0 0
Since 1 July heating degree days 0 0
Cooling Degree Days 20 9
Month to date cooling degree days 329 303
Year to date cooling degree days 979 967
Growing Degree Days 36 (Base - )
Moisture
Dew Point 56 °F
Average Humidity 43
Maximum Humidity 61
Minimum Humidity 24
Precipitation
Precipitation 0.00 in 0.01 in 0.11 in (1964)
Month to date precipitation 0.00 0.06
Year to date precipitation 6.60 12.04
Since 1 July precipitation 0.01 0.11
Snow
Snow 0.00 in - - ()
Month to date snowfall 0.0
Since 1 July snowfall 0.0
Snow Depth 0.00 in
Wind
Wind Speed 5 mph
Max Wind Speed 15 mph
Max Gust Speed 18 mph
Visibility 10 miles
Key: T is trace of precipitation, MM is missing value
Source: NWS Daily Summary

Peter