Control Line: Aerobatics
PROMOTING. I've been involved in two Control Line promotional activities in the last couple of months, both of which exposed Stunt flying to a lot of people. One was local and in front of about 200 spectators, and the other was just two weekends ago down in southern California in front of 500,000-plus spectators. (No typo, guys. That's one-half million rabid aviation fans!) Let's take the last one first. Late last summer, the Comptroller (head bean-counter) at Edwards Air Force Base (the same Edwards Air Force Base where men such as Chuck Yeager gave new meaning to the words "Right Stuff") decided that a few slow spots during their annual Open House and Air Show needed to be filled. Since that head bean-counter is Stunt's own Colonel Keith Trostle, winner of the 1970 National Championship and PAMPA's first president, it was no surprise when he decided to suggest they fill those pauses with a few Control Line Stunt patterns.
Control Line: Aerobatics
STRANGER in a strange land. One of the many advantages of being a pilot for a big airline is that many of my trips take me to cities where I am able to visit friends who share my interest in CL Stunt flying. It occured to me that this capability could allow me to expand my circle of such friends and, in so doing, provide excellent grist for my monthly mill here at Model Aviation. In addition, the column could become a forum whereby Stunters in one part of the country could get a feeling for what's happening elsewhere. It seemed like such a good idea that I decided that I should invite you to invite me to visit you. Here's what I have in mind.
Control Line: Aerobatics
OKAY, group-let's design ourselves a Stunt ship. Remember, we're going to address each of the parameters listed on the trim table (May 1985 column, page 67) as they relate to design. We'll look at each and discuss briefly its effect on aircraft performance and, if appropriate, how that performance is altered by changes in that parameter. Again, let me remind you that I'm dealing in concepts and that my conclusions are for you to consider in developing your own ship. Some of the things I'll be saying will be generally accepted, and a few will, I'm sure, be quite controversial. (Controversial, from Francher? Say it isn't so!) In those cases, I'll clearly label my opinion as such, and you may want to seek further enlightenment from another source. Of course, I'm sure I'm right, however . . .
Control Line: Aerobatics
THIS COLUMN is being written because Ted Fancher has been talking about P-factor and (gyroscopic) precession. I want to lay these topics to rest. I'm addressing this issue one more time because Ted misquoted me in one of his columns. Now, I feel that this is important only insofar as any readers of Ted's column (or this one) actually incorporate some of these ideas into the design and/or construction of their airplanes in the hope of having nicer-flying craft and greater competitive success. For example, a few Stunt fliers have tried such things as shock-absorbing landing gears, significant dihedral, and movable rudders on their airplanes.
Control Line: Aerobatics
LAST MONTH, we were discussing Response Rate and, up to the point where we left off, everything we had spoken of (namely, pitching moment) was in opposition to our desired pitch change. Let's discuss how to make it turn . . . the right way. The prime motivators are the elevators, to make a pun. More correctly, it is the lift produced by the tail (stab and elevator) and its distance from the Center of Gravity (CG). The more efficient the tail at producing lift, and the further that lift is produced from the CG, the more leverage it will apply about the CG. It first overcomes the opposing pitching moment of the wing's lift and then rotates the aircraft about the CG until the pilot neutralizes the controls.
