Ever been hit by your own plane? It could happen to YOU! Read On!

Example No. 1:
I became aware of a minor incident that occurred recently, some of you may have been there.  An upstanding member of our club by the name of Charles Sully had finished flying backwards (for those who don't know, he loves canard designs) and was at the flight line beginning a new flight with a different plane. As he advanced the throttle, his plane took off as expected.  At that moment something unexpected hit him in the back of the legs.  It was the plane that he had just completed flying!  As you may guess, he left the plane he had just flown turned on, so he was controlling two planes with one transmitter.  There was no harm done. He dealt with the situation and all turned out well.

Now you're probably thinking that will never happen to me,  I fly glow and they can't start themselves.  OK you got me on that one. They can't start themselves.  Keep reading and I'll make my point:

Example No. 2:
Another incident that I've experienced first-hand and have seen many times from afar:

A pilot is very wisely getting help with his plane and the helper is carrying the plane to the flight line. The helper is startled when the engine advances to full throttle without warning!!!  If you've had this happen to you, then you know that this can be a dangerous situation. The same is true about throttling down unexpectedly.  The plane moves backward and if you're not ready, you may get a part of you in the way. I've had this happen during needle valve adjustments.

Example No. 3:
AILERONS ARE BACKWARD!

OK, OK Wiley so make your point already!

Here goes: it is important to develop and perform your own pre-flight AND post-flight regiments the same way every time. When you have help, make sure your helper knows what to expect and when to expect it.  There is a direct relationship between the quality/consistency of your regiment, and the probability of an accident occurring.

Here are just a few ideas:
You charged your plane, but what does the battery read?  Don't have a meter with you?  Borrow one!  Ask around. There's probably a used one among the club members you can buy cheaper than rebuilding your plane.

Have you range checked lately?
Checked your linkages for slop?
Checked that screws are tight?
Hinges secure?  I pulled someone's elevator off with little effort. 
Tugged on your control surfaces lately? 
Landing gear?  Heather and I checked the landing gear on our Rascal right before a flight and the gear came off in our hands! 
You're walking to the flight line holding the oily plane with one hand, the transmitter in the other. What if you dropped either one...can you spell DANJUR?
Did you turn your transmitter off after that last flight? The guy you're sharing that channel with will really appreciate it.
Do you wait until you actually have the frequency pin before turning on your transmitter?  What if you're there by yourself? What if cars pull in while you're in the air and they don't see your card on the board and they forget to ask you what frequency you are on?...could be bad for you.
Ever thought about a pre-crash checklist? think I'm kidding?  Is there nothing you should do if you know you are going down?

I could go on and on. If you want some more ideas feel free to ask me by e-mail, phone or at the field.  Another suggestion: talk to the guys that seem to almost NEVER crash or have major problems/accidents.  Pick their brains.

That's all for now.  Fly smart & SAFE!

Smooth landings,
Wiley Cain