EAA Sport Aviation - January 2012

that back around the roll. The twisted part grabs the air better. I’ve found that the cheapest skypaper seems to unroll the best. It’s necessary to give it a good spin as it is thrown. It is not necessary to throw it downward—gravity will take over for you—and you can even throw it upward, but it is definitely required that you fling it well clear of wires and struts.

You then need to fly on and wait for a
moment or two before turning. If you throw
it and immediately turn, you will wind up
merely circling the streamer as it descends,
unable to reach it, like Sisyphus endlessly
rolling that boulder up the mountain. So you
have to give it a few seconds before turning
back. This forced wait is actually a good
thing, because it gives you a chance to exam-
ine the sky for other aircraft before the turn
back. For some reason, when you do turn, it
always seems to take more than 180 degrees,
and the streamer of skypaper always seems
to have fallen farther than one would expect.
This is important: Do not dive steeply to go
after the skypaper streamer, unless you
happen to be flying an aerobatic aircraft and
are trained in unusual attitudes and know
what you are doing. I know as much as I need
to—that is, I know that I have to stay within
the airplane’s normal flight envelope. There
have been lots of streamers that I’ve had to
let go because they were just too far below to
reach. Never overspeed any airplane.

Dave Matheny, EAA 184186, is a private pilot and an FAA ground instructor. He has been flying light aircraft, including ultralights, for 30 years. He accepts commissions for his art and can be reached at DaveMatheny3000@yahoo.com.