After 14 years of flying my second homebuilt, preceded by nine years in my first, I wish I could say that most things that can go wrong already have, but the gods might think me insolent. By now, however, I can at least say with some confidence what has worked and what has not.
Technicalities: What Worked and What Didn’t
Key Takeaways:
- The author shares over two decades of experience building and flying two experimental aircraft (Melmoth and Melmoth 2), detailing practical lessons learned from various design choices and operational challenges.
- Key design features, such as retractable landing gear, airbrake/flap configurations, and especially increased wingspan, significantly impacted aircraft performance, practicality, and maintenance requirements.
- Melmoth 2 achieved superior speed and climb performance over its predecessor, not through a more powerful engine, but primarily due to improved aerodynamic efficiency and a substantially larger wingspan.
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