Flying Aces Inc. Newsletter vol.31 #7 July 2000
The Leading Edge
Orientation: prospective/new members 18:30, before General Meeting
General Meeting: Tuesday, July 6, 19:30 at San Jose Jet Center
Program: Hang Gliding
Board Meeting: Monday July 24, 18:00 at Ken Pheley's in Oakland
June Meeting Summary:
Skip Forster presented an introduction to GPS navigation techniques.
In addition to the basics of the GPS display, menus, and controls, the
differences between GPS versus VOR approaches were explained.
July Birthdays:
27th Prashant Kanhere, 28th Tom Gerkens, 30th Robert Lucca
New Ratings:
1st time Solo - Per Nystrom
1st time Solo - Yuri Litinov
Taildragger - John Nogatch (description on page 2)
Please submit articles and notes for the newsletter to jtn@te-cats.com
Please send ideas or contacts for club activites to Kepfly@aol.com
Club President John Gould is at gould42@aol.com
Club Manager Doug Groom is at ali@cruzio.com
Club Web page is at http://www.applelaneinn.com/flyingaces
Soloing a J-3 Cub:
Tailwheel instruction had been dragging on for 5 months.
I had learned that the rudders need to be constantly punched and counterpunched, not just
for crosswind landings, but also because the Cub doesn't climb very well if the ball is not
centered. On the ground there is no relief, because a taildragger's nose-high attitude prevents
the pilot seeing forward through the windshield, and one must stagger taxi, alternating
peeks out the left and right side windows. A tight clearing turn in the run-up area often
gets the tailwheel out of its detent, disconnected from the rudder, and then
it becomes scary
that the ship wants to keep turning, rather then proceed to the hold line.
An hour of pattern work in the Cub can be exhausting.
After several crosswind takeoffs and landings, a simulated engine out
on the crosswind turn
becoming a teardrop downwind landing on 02, and 2 more times on runway 26, which I had
never used before (because Watsonville almost always favors 20), and the cork/wire float
indicated that it was time for refueling! More stagger taxi between the hangars and parked
aricraft, ever mindful that the Cub's wingtips are canted upward, so that the pilot must allow
for the extra 2 feet, on each side, that are not visible.
The instructor knew that I was tired, and offered to hand prop the engine, but not without
first pulling hard on the fuselage to verify that I was really bearing down hard on the Cub's
puny brakes. After one or 2 more landings, when I was starting to doubt that it was going to
be today, he finally asked if I was feeling up to it, and then climbed out, leaving me to behold
a view of the instrument panel, which is normally 85% obscured by the passenger.
Finally! Standing straight on the numbers of 26, I smoothly advanced the throttle, but before
it was even halfway, the Cub leapt off the pavement, left wing high in the slight crosswind.
Coordinated turn left into a crab, stay in ground effect, Vx 55 mph, and then I was ascending
as if in an elevator. Almost at pattern altitude when I reached the end of the runway, the
Cessna departing behind me called to warn me that he would turn crosswind and pass well
underneath me. Traffic in the pattern is often going twice as fast as the Cub.
Level off and power back in the downwind, and the pitch trim is suddenly much touchier
then it ever was before. What happened to the wind noise? Not much at 45 mph! Nose down,
gently, and cut power for landing. For the first time, the trim was sufficient for glide pitch.
The landing was very short, as usual for the Cub, and I gave it a little throttle in order
to get down to the taxiway. Yikes, it took off again, left wing high; crosswind correction is
not optional when the whole thing only weighs 1,000 pounds!
The second time around the pattern was better, and the landing so short that I elected to
takeoff again, after a fully controlled stop on the runway. One more time around
and I called it a day.
John Nogatch 30-Jun-00