Saw an article in NASA Tech Briefs (article in R/C Modeler at same time)
which described a wing leveler which used static voltage differences as
plane rolled to bring wings back to level. Kinda cute, simple and easily
applicable to ANY aircraft whether bathtub Heath or C-5A.
Robert L. Nuckolls, III wrote:
>
> >So I guess each pilot has to evaluate their own abilities/needs.
> >I know it is easy for us to get to reliant on a lot of gadgets to where
> >we get rusty with the basics, but my vote is that an RV has more of a
> >need for an Auto pilot for IFR than a lot of other airplanes that they
> >are typically used in
>
> Years ago, Mooney (the hot-rod of the period) had a standard
> offering in their airplanes called "PC" or "positive control".
> It was nothing more than a pneumatic wing leveler (Brittian
> as I recall) that tied the turn coordinator to the ailerons
> via very simple, "juice can" actuators. The whole thing ran
> off of vacuum pump (except turn coordinator which was electric).
>
> This system was always on. It could be momentarily diabled by
> punching a button on the wheel but if one chose to simply
> override it and put the airplane back on course, there were
> no smoking motors, squealing clutches or sweating pilots.
>
> I've always had a soft spot in my heart for those actuators.
> While bulky, they were light. They had only two moving parts.
> With modern materials, they could be built to expect extremely
> long service life . . . probably never touched over lifetime
> of an airplane. If the volumes were high enough, there's no
> reason a modern incarnation of that system should sell for
> more than 5-600 dollars.
>
> IMHO the basic wing-leveler is as important as your VOR/ILS
> system in any suite of IFR equipment.
>
> Bob . . .
> AeroElectric Connection
>
> ////
> (o o)
> | |
> | Go ahead, make my day . . . . |
> | Show me where I'm wrong. |
> <http://www.aeroelectric.com>
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