There was an unforecast break in the rain this evening here, looking like it would last an hour or so, so I put the Commander 2 and one of the 'Vulcans' in the station wagon and headed for my flying field. Some folks here were wondering if the skills acquired learning to fly a two-channel thrust-vector setup would transfer to a plane with actual control surfaces. The answer is...yes, very well! The Commander was a little slow to climb, and my very first 'test' came right after hand-launching it: keeping the plane flying at waist level until it acquired enough speed to really climb. I passed.
Once it was aloft, the Commander 2 was nearly perfect. Aside from a slight rightward bias that the trim control didn't always correct, the plane flew wonderfully. Plenty of power aloft; in fact, I spent most of the flight - about 10 minutes - either at low power or with the motor off, gliding and soaring. It wasn't the *same* as flying the pusher gliders, but the skills I acquired with them worked perfectly with this plane. With rain approaching, I tried to get the plane set up for a landing at my feet, facing into the slight NW breeze. I came close, but ended up cutting a little field grass while trying to soften the angle. Still a decent landing, about 20' from me. I ran the motor out, and it only had about 15 seconds of full power left in the battery. Perfect. It's funny how the plane seems very powerful well aloft, but slightly underpowered just above the ground. It won't be a problem, though, and I'm very pleased with the plane.
With the rain not quite there, I took the 'Vulcan' up for a quick fly. This one (aka "Old Yeller") is seriously patched, and a bit quirky, but I had some fun pushing the envelope with aerobatics (no loops or rolls, obviously, but some nice turns and dives) and landed it unscathed after about three minutes.
A great half hour. Now I'm off to order a "night flight module" for the Commander.