I’LL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN
BETTER PILOT
Carb Ice
Know before you go
BY ALBERT L. DYER , EAA 561653
I WAS AT 400 FEET on a 3/4 mile right base leg about a minute away
from announcing on CTAF that I would be making a right turn
onto a short final for Runway 09. Flying my Air Command gyro-
plane behind a Rotax 503 engine, my cruise speed was 45 mph at
6400 rpm with a fuel burn rate of 5. 3 gph. I carried 6 gallons of
fuel. A fixed-wing aircraft had just called his position as entering a
3-mile left base for the same runway. It is the practice at the airport
where I am based that rotorcraft fly opposite to the published
traffic pattern that fixed-wing aircraft fly. It
is a safety issue for both fixed-wing and
rotorcraft. I had plenty of time and had the
traffic in sight.
