Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Pilot's logbook

Last week: C-172

16T Bob:
Startup procedure:
Full throttle, full mixture. Fuel pump on, master switch on, when fuel gauge jumps, turn fuel pump off.
Mixture Idle, Throttle 1/2", turn key. As soon as it starts, put the mixture full rich and adjust throttle to 1000 RPM.
Check Oil temp and pressure.

Landings.
Bob flies one perfect one. "Standard" turns, one-finger everything.

JC N66198
Adventure in electronics: Alternator wire came loose and fused itself to the exhaust something. That's the punch line, the finish. It was a long story getting to that.
The moral of the story is: The electrical system is NOT an on and off thing. Our first clue something was amiss was transponder being flaky (not surprised at that). GPS cycled off and on. Funny recurring noise, probably the radio, but we thought it was an engine noise. Ammeter? We both checked it. Oil pressure in the green, oil temperature cold. Fuel gauges registered low, but not all the way down until much later. Radios worked between us, but JVY didn't hear us at all. Once we stopped, the battery was dead.
Dane & Tony: Always bring the plane home.

Yesterday:
C172 is a new plane, but same issues for me. + TRIM! More right rudder required.
Vr=55, Vx=65, Vy=78, Va=99!, V 10ºflaps=110, 20º=85,

Slow flight--include flaps
JYV DO midfield 45º to downwind entrance ALWAYS.

Flare: I was consistently too high. "Wait 'til the runway starts to flatten out, then roundout."

Approach speeds: 85-75-65. TRIM!
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Softfield takeoff, don't forget 10º flaps. These flaps can come up once the obstacle (if any) is past. TRIM!
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Landings: CH, flaps, trim.
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Steep turns: Establish airspeed below 100 (Va on this plane is 99). Roll into full 45º bank. Bump up power 100RPM. Use trim.
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Electrical system same as C-152. 28-volt battery, 24-volt system, 60-amp alternator.
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Compare to water in a hose. Volts = "pressure," Amps = "amt of flow."

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