Aerobatics

[severniae]

Hi All,

I'm looking to perfect my aerobatic routines - but to be honest my knowledge and skills in Aeros are rather lacking. I'm able to perform a passable barrel roll, and a (untidy) loop or two - but other than that I suspect I'm looking a bit like the drunken pilot in the cockpit! I've done a few Aerobatic manoeuvres in the real world before in gliders, under instruction - but it was so many years ago I've forgotten how to do it properly!

I'd like to hear from you guys some advice on a, what manoeuvres I can and should be performing, and b, how are they performed? what control inputs should I be using and with what power settings? I know there are a few real world Air show vets here so to hear from you chaps what you did in the real thing would be awesome too!

Many thanks in advance,
James

[JoeS475]

Hey James,

I've never flown aerobatics in real life, and even my sim aerobatic experience is limited. That said, one of my favorite things to do in the Mustang is something I see them do at air shows: the four point and eight point hesitation rolls. They are tricky to get the hang of, but after lots of practice I'm pretty good at them. I'll leave the "how to" to someone else, as I'm probably not doing them by the book, and would love to hear from a pro if I'm doing them right. The loops and standard rolls are fun too, as are dangerously low high speed passes, but there's really not too many true aerobatics a P-51 will do if I understand correctly.

One of the coolest things I've seen a Mustang do I'm finding almost impossible to get right in the sim: the CAF's P-51 Red Nose was getting ready to land after it's demo, and it came in low, pitched up into a slow roll and dropped the landing gear at the top of the roll, with it being extended by the time it was straight and level again. I'm finding that the max gear extension speed is already slow enough that going into a slow roll and adding a ton of drag by dropping the gear is nearly lethal.

If Dudley is reading this do you have any advice?

I also saw the CAF Mustang exit the runway, gun the throttle, and then shut down the engine immediately and roll silently down the taxiway all the way to his parking spot. As he was giving rides he did this several times. It got annoying listing to the people next to us saying "omg, did his engine just break!?" This Mustang also did high power mid-field takeoffs running up the motor before letting the brakes go... Cool stuff.

I hope this is somewhat helpful!

Joe

[severniae]

Hi Joe,

Thanks for the reply - yes I too have been trying the hesitation rolls too, after watching a few videos on youtube. However I suspect mine are somewhat sloppy! I'm able to begin the roll and then roll out at the desired degree of bank, however, when coming the right way up again my nose is usually pointed at the floor - Been trying to negate this with rudder/elevator combination but always end up either doing a big side slip or just not having any effect!

James

[JoeS475]

I've found a constant, gentle increase in down elevator throughout the maneuver until the last piont or two (depending on 4 or 8 ) will keep my nose on the horizon, or close. My big concern is that no matter how much I try, the move doesn't have as much 'precision snap' to it as the Mustangs I see at air shows. But this could simply be that when viewed in the cockpit it is not as crisp looking as it is from the ground...

Any input would be appreciated.

Joe

[dvm]

Here is a tutorial on how to do a snap roll. You will of course have to fine tune your control inputs. The A2A P51 will snap to the right and recovery is pretty easy. A snap to the left is more difficult as recovery takes a whole lot more finesse.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2R8a-dzYhk

[Eric.]

According to the old video of the P51B, the Mustang is prohibited from snap rolls, inverted spins, and outside loops. I don't think the wings will break off though, so we can get away with snap rolls in the sim.

[Pistonpilot]

Isn't the "snap roll" described in the video an intentionally stalled roll, as opposed to the "hesitating" roll described above?

My understanding was that a snap roll was a departed flight maneuver that could over stress an aircraft by exceeding its aerodynamic roll rate.

-Ian

[dvm]

The manual states that a P51 won't snap for aerodynamic reasons not structural limitations. Remember this a simulation so death and destruction is not an issue. I have also tried this maneuver in the A2A P 40. Just another challenge to master.

http://aviationshoppe.com/manuals/p-51/p-51.html page 78 & 79

[dvm]

The pages in the manual that discuss the snap roll are pages 80 & 81. I stand corrected.

http://aviationshoppe.com/manuals/p-51/p-51.html

[wrkempson]

I took my P-51 to Andrews AFB for an airshow and this is the resulting video. It's not much and the playback a bit choppy, but it does give an idea of what happened. If you have 10 minutes to waste you might be interested. The maneuvers begin at around 2:00 and the landing at around 7:00.

https://youtu.be/74dwBgf4Pzc

Wayne