HZ SC Mid-air Collision
Went flying with friends this morning. We had three planes in the air. As usual, things degenerated into us chasing each other's plane and generally just trying to mess with the other guy. Grandi was flying his Sky Surfer and Vince had his brushless, 4 channel modded HZ Mini-SC in the air. They were tangled up in a furball with each other, totally oblivious to my lurking HZ SC.
I came in low and pulled up, climbing toward both of them. Grandi's Sky Surfer hit my Cubby sending parts fluttering. I laughed at my success in partially dismembering Grandi's plane. My merriment was misplaced. A moment later I realized the parts falling to Earth were mine. Drat!
After the collision, the Cub continued flying. I began a gentle 180 degree right turn to bring her in and inspect the damage. I had to use full rudder and ailerons to keep it under control as it wanted to roll. As she turned, silhouetted against the sky, I saw the extent of the damage.
The left horizontal stabilizer and elevator surface were completely gone. And, there was an obvious chunk missing from the left wing. Yet, she was still flying! I had enough control to bring her back to the asphalt and land safely! It was a rough landing and she nosed over when she hit the grass median in the parking lot (thankfully, no curb). But, I was able to land her!
As I walked back to the others with my damaged Cub, I didn't feel like they were adequately appreciative of the gravity of the situation I had overcome. So, I made sure to tell them how impressive my flying skills were. I'm not sure it sunk in completely, though. Genius and talent are often lost on others.
