- Joined
- Oct 30, 2003
- Messages
- 18,363
- Location
- Santa Maria, California
- Aircraft
- Givens Predator
- Total Flight Time
- 2600+ in rotorcraft
Perhaps Leigh.
Just last week I was reviewing this very video at a client’s request and despite playing it on a big screen TV in the hangar I was unable to understand and explain the events leading up to the tip over.
Two things struck me as odd.
1. The pilot comes up hard on the tail wheel and stays there.
In my experience with a similar aircraft when hard on the tail wheel I am not able to steer with the rudder.
2. I see little evidence of pedal work.
As the aircraft became misaligned with the direction of travel to the right I would have had left pedal in to manage the yaw.
It may be that the pilot was trying to control the yaw of the aircraft with the cyclic.
Sometimes I have difficulty communicating the reasons that on the ground I steer either with the nose wheel or the rudder (with The Predator’s free castering nose gear just the rudder) and once in the air I manage the position over the runway with the cyclic while maintaining yaw control with the rudder.
It is not uncommon for a client to try to steer with the cyclic while still on the ground. For example with a crosswind from they would apply right pedal and right cyclic. Because the aircraft wants to weathervane to the left right pedal is needed while left cyclic is needed to maintain the centerline once airborne. This proceeds what I refer to as the “drunken takeoff” where we slide sideways to the right across the runway as soon as we lift off at very low altitude. I feel this is a high risk maneuver and do my best to discourage the drunken takeoff.
Just last week I was reviewing this very video at a client’s request and despite playing it on a big screen TV in the hangar I was unable to understand and explain the events leading up to the tip over.
Two things struck me as odd.
1. The pilot comes up hard on the tail wheel and stays there.
In my experience with a similar aircraft when hard on the tail wheel I am not able to steer with the rudder.
2. I see little evidence of pedal work.
As the aircraft became misaligned with the direction of travel to the right I would have had left pedal in to manage the yaw.
It may be that the pilot was trying to control the yaw of the aircraft with the cyclic.
Sometimes I have difficulty communicating the reasons that on the ground I steer either with the nose wheel or the rudder (with The Predator’s free castering nose gear just the rudder) and once in the air I manage the position over the runway with the cyclic while maintaining yaw control with the rudder.
It is not uncommon for a client to try to steer with the cyclic while still on the ground. For example with a crosswind from they would apply right pedal and right cyclic. Because the aircraft wants to weathervane to the left right pedal is needed while left cyclic is needed to maintain the centerline once airborne. This proceeds what I refer to as the “drunken takeoff” where we slide sideways to the right across the runway as soon as we lift off at very low altitude. I feel this is a high risk maneuver and do my best to discourage the drunken takeoff.