motorgliders as towplanes

Paul

There is a large scale vortex dimer operating behind any aircraft, and
particularly behind high wing loading, heavy short winged things like
Pawnees.

The wake we fly above in high tow is the turbulent propeller wake, but
we would have to be impossibly high and/or far back to avoid the
downward moving centre section of the dimer.

I saw a picture using smoke trails that demonstrates the scale and power
of this some years back -
http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstud...ry/Vortex.html

There is a more impressive video at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uy0hgG2pkUs&NR=1

So - given that you are flying in a field of air that has a significant
downward component, maybe you do have a higher angle of attack on the
wings.


Bottom line is that even in the smooth air above the propwash you are
still in air affected by the tug.

Bruce


sisu1a wrote:
Agreed. My money is on the towplane wake.


I put my monies on the elevator authority/AoA ratio. We fly above
the wing wake (USA...) in most cases, in relatively clean air, but
sometimes in the clean air below it. Box the wake, it will tell you
where it is and where it isn't...

But typically glider's noses, on tow, are unnaturally high (and thus
AoA is higher...) for a given airspeed, in addition to being more
forcefully held there, both effects of course due to the rope's
pull. The elevator is the same size whether on tow or free flight
though, so the authority it can exert against the countering forces is
proportionately lower than in free flight...

The fix is the same regardless of why though- more speed... please!
(wings rocking in vain...)

-Paul