- Thu Sep 15, 2016 5:25 pm
#391282
Looks like there's a Mill for sale in the classifieds. I have no association with the seller, but 15 years after selling mine, still feel some nostalgia for flying it. After 3 years of flying the Mill exclusively I decided it wasn't for me and went back to flex wings, but it remains probably the most controllable foot-launched wing I've ever (or will ever) fly.
That said, I never could really get comfortable with the extra couple of steps it required on launch - particularly on the short, high altitude ramps of my favorite sites. Also, though the tip rudders allowed for spot landing with as much precision as I could ever manage in a flex wing, landing the wing on anything other than reasonably smooth terrain was something I never became comfortable with - a significant problem in the heavily brush strewn LZs I frequent.
I don't mean to denigrate the Mill at all. On tow it was far superior to any flex wing I ever flew. Even in turbulent conditions I never had a problem maintaining control either on aerotow or "bumper towing" from a static line on a ground vehicle. If I was a flatland pilot I'd probably still fly one (or perhaps have moved up to a SWIFT-lite). For the sort of flying I like to do, though, it just didn't quite work me.
I know Steve Morris, the designer of the Millennium, frequents this site and can offer all sorts of counter-examples (and cool videos) showing the Mill can do all the things with which I felt uncomfortable. Steve's a fine pilot, a brilliant designer (and an old friend) so I don't want to contradict him. I just wanted to offer a more "typical flex wing pilot's" impression of his baby.
That said, I never could really get comfortable with the extra couple of steps it required on launch - particularly on the short, high altitude ramps of my favorite sites. Also, though the tip rudders allowed for spot landing with as much precision as I could ever manage in a flex wing, landing the wing on anything other than reasonably smooth terrain was something I never became comfortable with - a significant problem in the heavily brush strewn LZs I frequent.
I don't mean to denigrate the Mill at all. On tow it was far superior to any flex wing I ever flew. Even in turbulent conditions I never had a problem maintaining control either on aerotow or "bumper towing" from a static line on a ground vehicle. If I was a flatland pilot I'd probably still fly one (or perhaps have moved up to a SWIFT-lite). For the sort of flying I like to do, though, it just didn't quite work me.
I know Steve Morris, the designer of the Millennium, frequents this site and can offer all sorts of counter-examples (and cool videos) showing the Mill can do all the things with which I felt uncomfortable. Steve's a fine pilot, a brilliant designer (and an old friend) so I don't want to contradict him. I just wanted to offer a more "typical flex wing pilot's" impression of his baby.