it is my sad duty (well, glad - I am reporting it myself) that N81EU was
lost tonight on a take-off failure with me and Kim Prout aboard.,
The Rotax 912 failed on take-off and running out of options I had to put her
down at the end of the runway with a droop and fence ahead.
Plane came to a rest in a quarry after shearing off the landing gear
(trigear) and tearing off the firewall foward.
It is a miracle that Kim and me walked away and I fully attribute it to the
design of the central tunnel and the wheel attachment that we're not only
alive but walked away unharmed from a complete crash,
The flying surfaces seem unhamarmed as well as the fuselelage except the
firewall foward (which broke off 1oo %) and the gears which were lost about
2oo feet short off the crash site.
It is very early to say anything - the engine was fine - we worked on it the
entire afternoon and found it to be very smooth - I fear I installed as new
fuel filter which should not have been there - more later.
Anyway - we're alive (and having our share of Whiskey) and I promise you ...
you will hear again of N81EU.
Thanks to the designer who made her this crashworthy - N18EU now has 890 hrs
under her belly and never missed a beat (Rotax 912).
more later
<Thomas N81EU>
PS: the only pain we can report of is on our feet - after the firewall
sheared off our feet were in the void and got hurt on the last impact. She
was flying right to the end. Europa rulez !
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