Is 'John '
a pseudonym for Mario Gladsky ?

Geir


At 21:30 15 March 2004, John wrote:
Here is another idea for discussion:

Noticed a few cosmetic cracks in the fiberglass surface
near the
canopy's hinge area.

Will monitor this area and repair when needed as, of
course, if the
hinges fail, the canopy will open at best; fall off
at worse.

My particular plane has been flown with open and removed
canopy, so
aerodynamically, it does not become unstable. Was
thinking, what if
there was a secondary system that kept the canopy closed
if the hinges
failed?

Obviously, something simple such as attaching bungees
(after you get
in of course) from the canopy rails to the seat might
work...but might
also just create a plexiglass parachute when the latch
fails and the
bungees do not!

A slightly better idea would be to use four small 'c'
clamps to clamp
the four corners of the canopy rail once you get in.
Maybe those high
tech pistol grip clamps to speed the process. Maybe
not convenient,
and also have to check your are clamping to something
strutural, but
should work very well in keeping the canopy in place.

This would make it harder to jettison the canopy if
you have to bail
out. So, what two independent canopy latching systems?

Keep the current latch (rod pivots and goes thru two
posts on my
plane). Add a secondary latch that is closed based
on position...like
your car door. In effect, we have automatic canopy
latching just like
we have automatic control connects. Shut the canopy,
it is latched
automatically, then push the rods thru the posts just
like you do now
for a redundant, secondary lock. Add a bailout lever
that disengages
both latches and you do not effect egress in emergencies.

When you shut your car door, it is latched shut automatically.
To
open, you have to pull the door handle. How hard would
it be to
design a canopy that would latch shut automatically
each time you
close the canopy?