Flight

First flight was the final flight of Opening Day, 2013 at B6-4 Field.  I like the BT-60 birds at B6-4 Field because when loaded with a B6-4, BT-60 birds fly to the level of the field.  Every bit of the flight is visible, the slow takeoff, the flight to treetop level, ejection, and recovery.  Winds sometimes cause some problems, but if one uses his head, one recovers all of his birds, and gets flight pics to boot.  The Tangent flight on this day was probably one too many, and I almost paid for it.  Winds were coming from the southeast, which was causing some windcocking over toward the school, but nothing in the way of recovery issues with the triple threat of the trees, wires and US 27.  The Tangent left the pad and hardly windcocked at all, but at ejection it raced across the field, first missing the trees, then wires.  I had dropped the controller and started running as soon as the breeze took it, but I could see that one way or another it was going to be in trouble.  I crested the hill just as it passed under the wires, but could tell that I was going to be nowhere fast enough to prevent it from landing in US 27, and I could hear traffic as I ran.  It fell out of my sight for just a moment, just as a Hyundai Accent buzzed past in the right lane.  I waited for the crush sounds, but heard nothing, and as I approached the landing area, one of the Little League dads who was packing up to leave darted out to pick the Tangent up from the left lane.  I thanked him profusely, answered his questions; yes I could fly it again, no the motors aren't expensive, yes I often have them land in the trees around the field.  Damage was relegated to achipped fin tip from the landing.  Considering the alternative, I counted myself fortunate indeed.

The second and possibly final flight was another B6-4 Field flight on a B6-4.  The Tangent was the last flight of the day and the previous seven flights had all followed the same flight pattern, windcocking to the left and ejecting at the edge of the field, then recovering somewhere on the infield.  All but two of the flights even used the same chute.  The Tangent flight was nothing like the others.  It left the pad and flew straight and oddly high until catching the breeze just before the treetops.  Ejection occurred just as it was tipping over, and the rocket immediately caught the breeze and began to drift quickly toward US 27.  It was pretty obviously going to clear the road, but it looked like it was going to hit the parking lot or building directly on the other side.  I was half right.  It hit the roof, where the breeze died and left it stranded.  I considered going home for a ladder to make a quick climb and grab, but the local police have a tendency to show up at inopportune times like this and I wasn't sure the situation would be explainable.  I'm hoping we get a decent storm that blows it down in the next few weeks.  All I need is the nose cone.