Flying Schweizer

[Tenacious T]

I have 200 or so hrs. in Robinson only and am flying in a 300cbi tomorrow. Any tips or things I should know about flying Schweizer? Thanks

[ToTall]

Just have fun and remember that you can do a lot more in a 300 then R22. Try a low g pushover

 

Have fun and enjoy.

 

TT

 

I have 200 or so hrs. in Robinson only and am flying in a 300cbi tomorrow. Any tips or things I should know about flying Schweizer? Thanks

[PhotoFlyer]

Just have fun and remember that you can do a lot more in a 300 then R22. Try a low g pushover

 

A low g pushover can be just as dangerous in a 300, and should be avoided just as it should in the Robinson. Although mast bumping isn't possible, a tail strike can still occur in a fully articulated rotor. Even if there is no tail strike, it is possible to severely damage the droop stops in a low g maneuver.

 

I have 200 or so hrs. in Robinson only and am flying in a 300cbi tomorrow. Any tips or things I should know about flying Schweizer? Thanks

 

Using the throttle throughout the flight takes some getting used to. Instead of constantly watching the tachometer for RPM indications, listen to the sound of the engine (low pitched) and the transmission (high pitched whine) for changes. Once you establish what the green arc sounds like, it is fairly easy to manage RPM through the sound.

 

Try to keep a light touch on the controls, and remember the 300 responds to control changes more slowly than a 22. When you move the controls you need to wait a little longer, otherwise you will end up over-controlling.

 

Have fun! The 300 will be a blast to fly after 200 hours in the 22.

Edited June 18, 2008 by PhotoFlyer

[BOATFIXERGUY]

A low g pushover can be just as dangerous in a 300, and should be avoided just as it should in the Robinson. Although mast bumping isn't possible, a tail strike can still occur in a fully articulated rotor. Even if there is no tail strike, it is possible to severely damage the droop stops in a low g maneuver.

 

Exactly! DO NOT do it. Although you'll hear guys all the time say they do it. You're playing russian roulette with your life and the persons flying the bird later.

 

As for anything else, enjoy the flight in the 300!

[joker]

A low g pushover can be just as dangerous in a 300,

 

Not to mention 'Droop Stop Pounding'.

 

http://books.google.com/books?id=Q27ho2szW...2&ct=result

[Tenacious T]

I'm pretty sure he was just joking about the low g pushover, thanks for the tips though. The weather looks good for tomorrow, I am looking forward to going flying.

[copter doctor]

Throttle control will be toughest at first ( was for me anyways ) also the first landing or two remember you sit higher in the 300 and touch down a little sooner, you get used to it pretty quick. I have 115 hours in the 22 and 12 now in the 300. Learning to listen to the sound of the engine and gearbox is a good tip, I am just now getting to where I can hear when to add or reduce throttle. Enjoy!

[mechanic]

Hey T,

Who you flying with lately?? I had to leave HSI for personal reasons and hope to get back into the air this winter, hopefully. I hope I can get a more flexable job and get my daughter settled into college, I'll have to wait and see how it goes. Gotta pay the bills before I can fly, lol....

[Goldy]

Slightly larger control inputs are required. You will recognize immediately how solid a platform it is. Throttle can get ya, but it has a low rpm warning and a very large green arc compared to the 22.

 

Have fun

[Tenacious T]

Flew it today, it was exactly as I was told to expect. I had some difficulty getting used to throttle control, felt like I was too high in a hover, it was very easy to fly and super stable and I like it a lot. Thought it might be weird going from t-bar to normal cyclic but I didn't even notice it. I look forward to flying it again.

 

Thanks

[romanweel]

You've probably already done it by now, but for others reading this thread...

The Schweizer drops like a rock in the auto. You can extend the glide some once you get used to it, but on your first vanilla straight-in, your instructor is going to call the entry half a mile later than you're used to, and you'll feel the floor drop out the bottom. The RPM control was the toughest transition for me, but the autos came a close second.

[Tenacious T]

You've probably already done it by now, but for others reading this thread...

The Schweizer drops like a rock in the auto. You can extend the glide some once you get used to it, but on your first vanilla straight-in, your instructor is going to call the entry half a mile later than you're used to, and you'll feel the floor drop out the bottom. The RPM control was the toughest transition for me, but the autos came a close second.

 

 

I only got to follow along on an auto but it did seem to me that the recovery would be tricky without a governor. Seems easy to over speed.

[rick1128]

I did my CFI in the 300. There is a much wider margin on the autos than the 22. While it seems to drop fast, it is quite controllable and forgiving. None of the 300's I flew had governors, but they had coralators, so it is possible to overspeed. But I found that use of the throttle came quickly to me and most other students. It doesn't take much. Compared with the other helicopters I have flown, it doesn't drop much faster than an R44, The Enstrom, BH47, AS350 and BH212 drop much slower, but then they have a much high rotor inertia.

[Tenacious T]

I did my CFI in the 300. There is a much wider margin on the autos than the 22. While it seems to drop fast, it is quite controllable and forgiving. None of the 300's I flew had governors, but they had coralators, so it is possible to overspeed. But I found that use of the throttle came quickly to me and most other students. It doesn't take much. Compared with the other helicopters I have flown, it doesn't drop much faster than an R44, The Enstrom, BH47, AS350 and BH212 drop much slower, but then they have a much high rotor inertia.

 

Could you describe the recovery process to me with detail on marrying the needles and avoiding over speed? Thank you

[rick1128]

Could you describe the recovery process to me with detail on marrying the needles and avoiding over speed? Thank you

 

First of all, note the power required to hover. On entering the auto, just lowering the collective should split the needles. If not, reducing the throttle just a bit will do so. When you do, DO NOT change your hand position. As long as the needles are split, the engine is not powering the rotor and you are in autorotation. In the flare you will need to check the RPM with a very small increase in the collective. On recovery to the hover, bring the power up to the noted hover power level. If you were required to split the needles, bring your throttle hand back to the comfortable position (while holding on to the throttle) as you bring the power back to hover power. It should be a fairly smooth recovery with a small chance of overspeeding.

 

Hope that helps.

[apiaguy]

Where does it tell you to check the RPM? Now if you're rolling off throttle in the descent to the detent or some level below 2500 rpm and then trying a power recovery you will need to get the rpm up to speed so you don't have the engine die before the flare... (schweizer discourages throttle chops in practice autorotation)

If you establish the descent and the needles split.... as long as the engine rpm stays in the 2500-2700 range all you need to do is flare and start adding collective... the rpm will come right back to where it was before you lowered collective..

Granted.. if you were flying at 22" and 65 knots when you entered the auto this may not be enough power to stabilize in a hover.... so as you pass 22" (or whatever hover power is) you may need to roll on throttle to keep the engine rpm in the green.

 

It's not that hard or complicated once you have someone teach you the technique.