After the additional two cylinders had been replaced, earlier in 2010, I had about 10 engine hours on the plane. Everything seemed to be good. Michael had done a great job of finding an oil leak and now the engine was behaving smooth and even keeping it’s oil in the engine.

I was due to fly my girlfriend and some friends as part of a fly-out to Half Moon Bay. I had preflighted the plane, people and baggage were loaded – and it was a beautiful day to fly.

The run-up was good, however, shortly after takeoff, cylinder #6 decided to go offline. The engine ran rough, and I made a small circuit, and landed back on the runway. Obviously confidence in the engine was now lost – but no-one was hurt, the emergency services were not called, and after a quick regroup – we were off in a rental Cherokee to enjoy the day.