Hello all,
PROBLEM:
The first time I flew the Champ S+ was indoors, in an inflatable dome (not metallic structure). The plane took off from the ground, smoothly and in straight line. It reached an altitude of 2 ft. at approximately 10 yd. of distance. Suddenly, without any input from me, the plane quickly rolled to the right, went inverted and then crashed, nose first. The damage to the plane was considerable.
BACKGROUND:
I bought this RTF (ready-to-fly) Champ S+ second-hand, in a swap meet. The plane was in very good condition and came with all accessories.
Before inspection, I made sure that the transmitter and the plane had fully charged batteries. As part of the pre-flight, I mechanically checked the motor mount and control horns. They were solid and the linkage on the horns were as indicated in the instructions manual that came with the plane.
Did re-bind the transmitter to the plane, checked all control surfaces movement's, ensured that GPS was DISABLED, as per instructions manual directions (plane's system confirmed by waving the rudder four times). Also, put the transmitter Flight Mode Switch in Beginner mode (pos. 0).
NOTES:
QUESTIONS:
I am curios; did anybody have a similar experience and how did you fix it?
Thanks for your time.
PROBLEM:
The first time I flew the Champ S+ was indoors, in an inflatable dome (not metallic structure). The plane took off from the ground, smoothly and in straight line. It reached an altitude of 2 ft. at approximately 10 yd. of distance. Suddenly, without any input from me, the plane quickly rolled to the right, went inverted and then crashed, nose first. The damage to the plane was considerable.
BACKGROUND:
I bought this RTF (ready-to-fly) Champ S+ second-hand, in a swap meet. The plane was in very good condition and came with all accessories.
Before inspection, I made sure that the transmitter and the plane had fully charged batteries. As part of the pre-flight, I mechanically checked the motor mount and control horns. They were solid and the linkage on the horns were as indicated in the instructions manual that came with the plane.
Did re-bind the transmitter to the plane, checked all control surfaces movement's, ensured that GPS was DISABLED, as per instructions manual directions (plane's system confirmed by waving the rudder four times). Also, put the transmitter Flight Mode Switch in Beginner mode (pos. 0).
NOTES:
- To rule-out the Champ S+ transmitter malfunction, I bound it to a new Night Vapor plane, which has AS3X and SAFE and flew it. Everything worked as it should.
- In the Champ S+, if the GPS board is DISCONNECTED from the receiver board, the receiver will NOT bind to the transmitter.
- I also contacted Horizon Hobby Customer Support and the advisor that I spoke with, said that he couldn't offer any explanation on why this problem happened nor any suggestion or recommendation on how to prevent this from happening again.
QUESTIONS:
- As per the instructions manual, If the plane loses GPS signal, the system will indicate that condition by moving both ailerons' up.
If the plane loses COMPASS calibration, the system will indicate that by moving left aileron down and right aileron up.
The COMPASS is part of the GPS system. If I disabled the GPS, as per the Instructions Manual directions, shouldn't the COMPASS input be also disabled? - SAFE was in Beginner Mode (pos. 0). Isn't SAFE pos. 0 supposed to limit the airplane pitch and roll?
- If there was a system issue, why it wasn't it indicated by the ailerons' movement during the receiver initialization?
- Could it be GPS board malfunction? How do I check it?
I am curios; did anybody have a similar experience and how did you fix it?
Thanks for your time.