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German CT crash


josjonkers

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Keeping the ball centered will prevent a spin entry in a Cessna or a Lancair.  Rotation is a big part of spin entry and a centered ball is confirming a lack of rotation.

 

In fact an out-of-coordination condition is a prerequisite for a spin, provided the airplane is rigged properly and nothing is bent.  I have no doubt a CT will spin every bit as quick and hard as a Cessna in a stall with pro-spin inputs.  The Cessnas are known for gentle stall/spin characteristics.  Usually if you pull the power and release the controls, a high-wing Cessna will recover itself from a spin.  I bet a CT won't.

 

While I can get my CT to simply descend level at 800fpm in a stall by approaching the break slowly and holding aft stick into it, I can also get it to snap pretty hard with -6° flaps and entering the break more aggressively.

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It's been about 40 years, so the details may be fuzzy, and I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this before, but...

 

I recall on one of my first solos I went to do a departure stall. Apparently I had neglected to raise the flaps from my last approach to landing stall, and probably had a lazy right foot, but...

 

...when the stall broke it looked a lot like that video - and scared me quite profoundly.

 

Later, as an instructor, one of my pre-solo drills was to have the student do a departure stall with feet off the rudders. That would generally lead to something like the video - what I called an incipient spin. I would make sure the student's reaction was to neutralize aileron, release back pressure and opposite rudder. Some students were enthused and wanted to see a full spin, and if the plane was capable we'd look at one.

 

In any case, I just did NOT want them to see any of this for the first time by themselves.

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CT,

 

Here is a video of a guy in a Cessna 172 practicing a power on stall.  He entered an INADVERTENT spin.  Can you tell if he had the ball centered?  The yoke was centered....

 

 

Yoke centered?  Look what happens when the left wing starts dropping.  He immediately adds full right aileron (yoke to right), which is at best a useless input, and at worst a pro-spin input.  The correct resolution to the incipient spin is right rudder.  You can't really tell, but I'd bet his feet didn't move, but if he did have in right rudder with the right aileron input he's skidding -- a pro-spin input.

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CT,

 

Here is a video of a guy in a Cessna 172 practicing a power on stall.  He entered an INADVERTENT spin.  Can you tell if he had the ball centered?  The yoke was centered....

 

 

The yoke being centered means little or nothing.  Actually he uses right aileron when he needed right rudder and that's why he entered the spin.

 

Yes I can tell that the ball is off center to the right because he needs right rudder to avoid the left spin entry.

 

My CT would do the same.

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How does a CT behave when entering and recovering from spins?  How does it behave approaching a stall when pitched up 60*?

 

First let me say that these types of maneuvers where common in the part 103 world where I learned to fly and after I got a PPL I somehow got the impression that 'safety maneuvers' such as canyon exit maneuvers (wing overs) and spin recovery practice were permissible and even a really good idea.   Eventually Fast Eddie showed up and set me strait so I don't do these any more in my CT.

 

The answer is my CT behaved much like a 152 aerobat or my old 180hp 172.  It spins to the left if you cross the controls and stall it but not easy to do to the right.  I bet it would snap roll easily but haven't tried.  

 

If you run out of energy while pitched up steeply you can swap ends and roll over and get a 180* change in heading easily and gracefully but to exit before entry altitude you have to chop the throttle and pull back before it accelerates much.

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If you run out of energy while pitched up steeply you can swap ends and roll over and get a 180* change in heading easily and gracefully but to exit before entry altitude you have to chop the throttle and pull back before it accelerates much.

 

I'd pay money to watch that...

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It's been about 40 years, so the details may be fuzzy, and I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this before, but...

 

I recall on one of my first solos I went to do a departure stall. Apparently I had neglected to raise the flaps from my last approach to landing stall, and probably had a lazy right foot, but...

 

...when the stall broke it looked a lot like that video - and scared me quite profoundly.

 

Later, as an instructor, one of my pre-solo drills was to have the student do a departure stall with feet off the rudders. That would generally lead to something like the video - what I called an incipient spin. I would make sure the student's reaction was to neutralize aileron, release back pressure and opposite rudder. Some students were enthused and wanted to see a full spin, and if the plane was capable we'd look at one.

 

In any case, I just did NOT want them to see any of this for the first time by themselves.

 

I find that excellent.

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