Mike Lindsay wrote:
Eric,

Just a short observation. If you had an AOA you would notice an AOA
increase as you open your spoilers while maintaining a constant speed and a
decrease as you closed them.

Wayne


Why not? Surely the glider would be sinking quicker so the AoA would
increase when you open your spoilers?

I agree that, once stabilized at the original airspeed with brakes open
the AOA will be a bit higher to compensate for loss of lift, but the AOA
variation during the transition may depend on the glider type.

Some gliders pitch down automatically and accelerate when the brakes are
opened (G103). Others raise the nose slightly and decelerate as the
brakes are opened, so require a good shove on the stick to hold the
airspeed constant (Puchacz). Ditto an ASW-20 as you select landing flap.
The waggling of the AOA needle may be quite different in these cases.


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martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
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