Posted Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 09:01 AM
ZS-UEZ history s/n 4150
Its former owner, Peter Goldin told me:
I first saw a Fournier in 1970 at the old Baragwanath Flying Club (also home of the Witwatersrand Gliding Trust) and thought it a very pretty plane that I would like to fly one day. It looked so graceful. I said I would get myself one one day.
Later, I used to fly out of Grand Central and on my way past one of the hangars, I used to see this RF4 through a crack in the door. At that time I had a clipped wing modified J3 Cub. Elevation here is 5500ft, and on a hot no wind day on it would only get off the ground due to the curvature of the earth, it had a 45-degree glide angle with full flaps and a bit of sideslip. Good fun but terrible at aeros and climbing.
Anyway, I tracked down the Fournier’s owner and swopped it for a piece of land. Turns out that the plane was built in 1969 and came into South Africa in 1969/70, was flown up from Durban to Grand Central where it sat for 5 years and never flew again. So when I got it, it had an inch of dust and gunk on it, still had fuel and oil and about 18 hours on the tach.
I cleaned it up, checked all the nuts and bolts, which needed tightening due to wood shrinkage in the dry Highveld air and standing all that time, topped up the fuel, checked the oil and flew it. And I have been flying it ever since, except for the past 4 years as I decided it needed a complete refurbish after all this time as the fabric was really dicky, the only trouble being the guy who was going to do it never did. My cellphone calls have contributed substantiallly to the cost. Anyway I took it away from him about a year ago.
I once considered selling my Fournier and a very sage airline buddy of mine asked if I was OK in the head. He pointed out that its one of the sweetest flying planes, it can do aerobatics (about 50% of my flying), it will go cross-country at a reasonable rate, it sips fuel, and it will glide a long way. I once climbed to 18,300ft on the back of a large cu nim, flew under the anvil (lots of ‘down’ there) and it snowed in the cockpit out of the vents. I cut the motor and glided (glid?) home - about 30 miles I think.
At the Springs 50th I met the guy who test flew my plane after it was assembled which puts another piece to the puzzle. From what I understand it was assembled 1969/70 in Durban, test flown, sold and flown to Grand Central where it sat for 5 years until I bought it. It had 18 hrs total time. There are no entries in the log book, just what was on the hobbs meter.
And as I said before, under about 1 inch of solid dust.
Peter Goldin
Peter died a couple of years ago (heart attack in the gym) so I wonder what heppend to his Fournier.
I do hope it is still flying.
Yours, Bob
[Edit by Bob Grimstead on Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 09:02 AM]
[Edit by Bob Grimstead on Wednesday, September 21, 2011 @ 02:20 PM]
--------------------
Flying and displaying Fournier RF4Ds VH-HDO and G-AWGN, building replica RF6B G-RFGB and custodian of RF6B prototype F-BPXV