Ken: I got a ride in the "SparrowHawk prototype" at Arlington. (I believe
it was a Groen modified RAF) I was told that the real SparrowHawk would
have a bigger fuselage and more room. I couldn't tell if my feet were on
the rudders or not. The bird seemed to get in the air nice enough and when
I got the controls, I still couldn't feel the pedals so I just flew it
around with the stick. Boy!! I've got time in a few stick control
aircraft, Benson, Aeronca, T-34,T38, Safari, Bell 47, Brantly B2B, and flown
the Carter Copter simulator, but I've never felt a stick control like that.
It felt like the coil springs from a car were in series with the cyclic.
The ship responded but it felt like I had put an order into a massive
weighty servo system. I didn't have much feel of the stick causing the bank
rates. The Bell 47 with a crusty hydraulic cyclic boost has better control
feel. We did encounter a good thermal and the ship just rose smoothly like
an elevator without any interference from the pilot. Also power changes
didn't seem to cause any pitch disturbance. But boy!! what a stiff control
feeling. I got on the ground and crawled into a stock RAF and the pedals on
that thing setting on the ground required more pressure than anything I've
ever flown. I don't understand the requirement for such high control forces
in such a small aircraft. If the RAFs are all like this I can understand
why it was causing some students problems. With or without the HS and
center line thrust.

Stu Fields

"Ken Sandyeggo" wrote in message
om...
(Badwater Bill) wrote in message
. ..

True. If you have to fly rotary-wing, a gyro is simpler. However there
have been an absolutely amazing panoply of fatals in those. Most of
them totally preventable.

It's mostly due to the tucking since the center of thrust is above the
CG and the drag component of the rotor system is way above the CG.
When you do a negative g pushover or even hit a bump that does the
same thing, you take away the drag. The thrust dumps you over in a
tuck.

Bill, hope you didn't mean ALL gyros. My Groen converted gyro is
centerline thrust and their new kit will also be CLT. Air Command
also has a CLT ship. You are correct if you meant almost all gyro
fatalities are in those gyros with a high thrustline. RAF is one of
the worse and they still don't see the need for a horizontal stab....a
"contraption" according to Don LaFleur.

Ken J. - SDCA