July 25, 2013

Another test flight to check the stabilization settings. Note that the takeoffs on the desert ground are rough and vibrate items loose.

Right after takeoff to the South I was in a left turn about 270º to the West.  The altitude was about 50' and travelling around 50 MPH when the Penguin rolled over and went straight into the ground. I examined the wreckage and found the left aileron and servo completely separated from the wing. Apparently the double stick tape holding the servo in place had failed forcing the aileron into a straight up position effectively stalling the left wing. The impact was about 27g's which was absorbed by the nose of the aircraft, destroying both batteries, shearing off both antenna mounts on the receiver and breaking the connector off of the EagleTree OSD module. The GoPro camera recorded the event and continued running even after impact. The frames are displayed at .2 second intervals.