"normal" aerobatics

Is there any difference between a 152 and a 152 aerobat besides a g-meter?

I think any responsible pilot should never do any maneuvers the plane is not approved for. There are plenty of other ways to get yourself killed. The best pilot in the world will still crash and burn if the wings fall off.
 
The first maneuver I always do with anyone is a simple barrel roll where there's no G and all the mental stimulation is visual. Even after demonstrating the roll, experienced pilots will start the roll and stop or significantly slow the roll just after passing through inverted because they're overwhelmed mentally. If you slow the roll or stop it, now the nose is falling because you're holding positive G on the plane. Then it's all - "holy crap, Vne happened fast" while the airplane's energy is being directed back at the ground.

Most pilots cant tell you the difference in the altimeter and the airspeed after being inverted for 10 seconds because their brains are as frozen solid.

The good news is that it doesn't take any special "right stuff" or skill to make that problem go away. It just takes some experience - the kind you can get for a couple of trips aloft in an aerobatic airplane with a good instructor.

So when someone asks if a 172 can be rolled, the last thing I'm thinking about is airframe stresses and aircraft performance. The mental hurdles are way more daunting to someone that's never done it before.
 
PittsDriver said:
Even after demonstrating the roll, experienced pilots will start the roll and stop or significantly slow the roll just after passing through inverted because they're overwhelmed mentally.
Click to expand...
Yup. Did exactly that. Stopped half way around.

My brother thought it was funny.
 
TripleZ said:
Good to know. I was considering a Citabria in a partnership. The basic aerobatics capability looked intriguing, but since I've never done it.... would have to be trained..... wasn't sure it was something I'd like..... I passed for the moment.

Nice plane otherwise. Gotta love tail draggers, which is next on my list of sign-offs.
Click to expand...

I've had a lot of fun doing basic aerobatics in a 115hp Citabria. What I learned from Kent's post is not that you can't have fun in one, but just don't go fly in an Extra so you are continually comparing the two.
:wink2:
A lot of confidence develops when you are taught to manage the available energy. And it is fun being taught how to get out of the inevitable screw-ups.

Tim
 
dell30rb said:
Is there any difference between a 152 and a 152 aerobat besides a g-meter?

I think any responsible pilot should never do any maneuvers the plane is not approved for. There are plenty of other ways to get yourself killed. The best pilot in the world will still crash and burn if the wings fall off.
Click to expand...


Yes, there is some structural difference as well.
 
Just don't do it. There's no good reason to roll a Cessna or a Piper or whatever else you might be flying that isn't rated for aerobatics. Risk vs. reward. Oh yeah, and it's illegal. Go find a decathalon and a qualified instructor and roll the bajeesus out of it until you're happy.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top