September 20, 2012 - Mustang II vs RV-7
Dave Hirchman asked me if I would help out with a fly-off with a Mustang II on Thursday. I took the day off from work and flew over to Frederick. The weather was superb. When I pulled up to the AOPA ramp, there was Essex Skypark pilot Carlo and his newly completed Mustang II.
The RV-7 and Mustang II are similar in many respects. Both are homebuilts, although the RV was built from a kit and the Mustang II from plans. Both are primarily made of aluminum. Both are taildraggers with side by side seating. Both have Lycoming engines putting out 180 horsepower. The two planes weight about the same. The main difference is the wings. The RV-7 has a thick wing while the Mustang II has a thin, laminar flow wing.
The Mustang II getting their picture taken.
After the Bonanza was done taking pictures, we started the competition. Starting from line abreast, we did a speed race at full power. After resetting back to line abrease, we did the same thing but in a climb. Another reset, and we did a slow speed test where the planes reduced power until one of them stalled. We did that with no flaps and then 30 degrees flaps. After that we returned to Frederick and both touched down on the 1000 foot marker to see which plane had the least roll-out.
Rather than give the results now, I'll wait until Dave writes it up in AOPA Magazine.
Where are the Ravens? Guess they must be inside in meetings.
