Handicap Flight
Date: Tuesday,
April 23, 2013
Location: Winnemucca
Airport
Pilots: Heather McCoy and Eric Bradley
In order to have many different types of aircraft compete
against each other in the Air Race Classic, every airplane must be assigned a
handicap speed. By establishing a handicap speed, airplanes that fly at
different maximum speeds can compete against each other in the same race. The
goal is to try and fly your plane faster than your handicap speed by taking
advantage of winds aloft, routing, and other strategic maneuvers that will be
kept secret at this time.
In order to be fair, all handicap flights must be flown with
certain conditions met. The airplane must be flown at full power in race
configuration at a density altitude of 6,000 feet , and the plane must be
flown in a square pattern with each leg being flown for five minutes each. A data logger supplied by ARC officials is used to accurately record flight data.
An unbiased handicap pilot must be in the co-pilots seat for
this flight to record airspeed every 20 seconds, ensure that all requirements are met, and to
submit the data collected from the in-flight data logger to the ARC officials for
review. The handicap pilot must be of roughly the same size as the pilot that
will be sitting in that seat during the race – which is Moe. This will probably
the only time that Moe wishes she weighed more. Finding a small enough pilot
within 10 pounds
of Moe’s weight was not easy, but luckily Eric Bradley, Assistant Chief Pilot
for Ameriflight met the requirements and flies into Winnemucca frequently.
 |
| Heather and Eric prepare for the handicap flight |
