Dear Readers of this forum.........Eish........the angels must be working overtime to look after microlight pilots taking off around SA..............
But, on a more serious note, you all seem to still have the ability to type, so I gues you still have the use of your arms and fingers, which means that you are all still able to fly again this coming week-end
No, man, but really, on a more serious note,
O.K. O.K, Herwith my humble thoughts on this issue.
1. Face the trike into wind
2. Gee vet
3. Close your eyes
4. Open them when the rumbling stops
Hang on now, let me just dry my eyes............
Right!!
There are many ways to accelerate until rotation, both in a trike and fixed wing. (by the way, the fella that takes off with his fixed wing with the stick in his guts, is lifting off 'behind the power curve" Please check your owners manual for procedures required for short field take-off. Note that there should be procedures for different ground surfaces)
I am ashamed of my fellow instructors who only teach one method. Maybe they teach different methods, but the students forget? I don't know anymore.
For students who are in initial training, we teach the take-off roll as follows:
runway of sufficient length, nil crosswind, nil to moderate headwind, sea-level or altitude
1. Line up on centreline and stop
2. Point your feet straight ahead
3. Position the bar approximately 'one fist-length' from the aerofoil. Lean forward with your shoulders if necessary - DO NOT LOCK YOUR ARMS
4. Gradually accelerate to full power (over about 3 secs)
5. Follow centreline by gentle 'left/right' banking movements of the bar
6. Immediately the trike rotates, check the bar to achieve climb attitude.This will prevent you from flying to slowly and climbing to steeply. It will result in the 'perfect' speed for your configuration.
7. If speed gets excessive, gently check power as required.
Toward the end of dual training, just before solo, we introduce"solo-power". For this we get the student used to reducing power ever so slightly at the same time that they check the bar for climb attitude. This prevents the climb rate and attitude from being any different to what the student has become accustomed to while the instructor was on board. (Note that this is at sea level.)
The reason we teach the above rolling technique, is so that on first solo, the student does not get into the situation whereby they accelerate just a little too much before rotation, then pushing the bar forward, they go into 'heavenly' mode, get the fright of their lives, come off the power, haul the bar back in, and crash into the ground. The other scenario is where the student on first solo pushes the bar forward too soon, and just pops off the ground into a stall. Also resulting in ground strike.... The above technique which we teach, prevents both unwanted scenarios. The trike gets airborne when she is ready, and behaves with good manners.
This is by no means the only way to take off. But it is a damn good way of teaching a student. If this is all the student knows, then this is how he is going to rotate. This way, the aircraft gets airborne as soon as it has flying speed, and there is minimum undercarriage 'thrust rotation' and minimal 'heavenly zooming'.
The other techniques of ground rolling, leading up to rotation, all have their place. There are techniques for short field, soft field, and especially cross-wind.
WATCH THE PRESS. LA MERCY WILL SOON BE OFFERING THE 'TRIKE MASTERS ADVANCED FLYING CAMP'.
Please guys, let the Angels get off for a week-end
