Elevator trim for take off

Richard

Richard

Final Approach
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It is better to have trim set to higher airspeed than Vy* because in the event of engine failure on departure it will be easier to get the nose down.

For purpose of this discussion, forget best glide.

Agree or disagree?

*or what ever V speed you normally use.
 
Disagree. Elevator trim should be set for takeoff when taking off. This will make it much easier to rotate and fly the speed you want to fly on initial climbout. Also, with the trim set for normal takeoff, the stick force needed to put the nose down to best glide is nominal, and anyway, the nose will fall naturally if the engine quits. If you set the trim to a higher speed than Vy, you will probably have it set much higher than best glide speed (which in most light planes is at or below Vy). In that case, if the engine does fail, you'd have a lot more trimming to do than from the normal takeoff position, and would be fighting the plane to avoid losing more altitude than necessary.
 
Ron Levy said:
Disagree. Elevator trim should be set for takeoff when taking off. This will make it much easier to rotate and fly the speed you want to fly on initial climbout. Also, with the trim set for normal takeoff, the stick force needed to put the nose down to best glide is nominal, and anyway, the nose will fall naturally if the engine quits. If you set the trim to a higher speed than Vy, you will probably have it set much higher than best glide speed (which in most light planes is at or below Vy). In that case, if the engine does fail, you'd have a lot more trimming to do than from the normal takeoff position, and would be fighting the plane to avoid losing more altitude than necessary.
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Worse yet, if this became habit it (trimming nose low on takeoff) could be fatal if you were taking off into low IMC and got the least bit distracted.
 
lancefisher said:
Worse yet, if this became habit it (trimming nose low on takeoff) could be fatal if you were taking off into low IMC and got the least bit distracted.
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More worse yet, if this became a habit, it could be fatal if you transitioned from something like an Archer to Lance's Baron, where out-of-trim-elevator forces get quite high quite quickly.

Fly safe!

David
 
It just goes to show ya, ya can't get better than following the POH... for good reason - it's tried and tested to be best!
 
MauleSkinner said:
More worse yet, if this became a habit, it could be fatal if you transitioned from something like an Archer to Lance's Baron, where out-of-trim-elevator forces get quite high quite quickly.
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You got that right. Trim is one of the things I double or triple check before takeoff and also one of the reasons I don't ever do T&G in the Baron.
 
Richard said:
It is better to have trim set to higher airspeed than Vy* because in the event of engine failure on departure it will be easier to get the nose down.

For purpose of this discussion, forget best glide.

Agree or disagree?
Click to expand...

Strenuously disagree.

In the 182, Vx=Vs0. Lots of your climb is provided by thrust and propwash, obviously. Also, if your engine goes on a max-performance takeoff, you'd best get that nose down NOW lest you stall.

That said, I've found that with power off (idle), trimming for best glide puts the trim all the way nose up. So in the scenario you describe, you'd want to trim further nose UP, not down.
 
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