Rolling a cessna

RoscoeT said:
Nothing about the process ensures only pilots with world class skills and judgment end up flying in front of crowds. The actual evaluation maneuvers are quite simple for any decent aerobatic pilot, even weekend warriors who have have had good training and who have above average dedication to the art and safety of aerobatics. YouTube is littered with videos of "airshow pilots" drilling holes in the ground because their skills were inadequate for what they were attempting.
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This has long been an issue for me. I had two good friends in IAC who died flying acro. Both were mediocre intermediate competitors who bought unlimited-class monoplanes and tried to become airshow pilots. One died practicing for an airshow. The other died giving a demo flight. Both would have been better off continuing to climb the competitive ladder.
 
He did a bit more than just roll a non-aerobatic airplane. :D

But I agree that there are a lot of aerobatically trained pilots that could safely roll a Cessna. But even those people can screw up and run into problems.
 
You have probably also crashed an R/C plane at least once, so doubly GTG. :D
 
I learned acro in a Cessna 150 Aerobat. It didn't have inverted fuel or oil, so the engine quit when doing slow rolls, and at the top of a loop if you pushed on the yoke to keep the loop round. A properly executed barrel roll kept the engine running though (positive Gs all the way around). It was slow, so it taught me how to use top rudder. My next acro bird was a Citabria. It handled like the Aerobat, but it did have an inverted fuel system. That made a BIG difference. Still lots of stick pressure trying to do an aileron roll. A Decathlon with spades on the ailerons was easier and a Pitts S2A with spades was like having power steering. Any plane will do simple acro. Only planes designed for it will survive when you blow a maneuver and tumble towards earth. A normal category airplane is not the place for a complete novice to practice acro.
 
I learned Acro on a C152 Aerobat and Citabria. Cessna rolls decent for what it is. Citabria rolled way slower and heavy on the stick. My Dad used to own a C150 Aerobat. It was sold to the US and later crashed in the Atlantic Ocean by Florida IIRC.
 
Years ago I had an instructor who told me his first job was flying a fire-spotting gig in 150/152s. Hours of boredom flying up and down the west coast mountains at 100mph led to some shenanigans to pass the time. So, being 20-something and as dumb as most of us are at that age, he decided he wanted to see if he could roll a 150…

Apparently he was “successful” initially. No word on how good the rolls were … but he didn’t die.

But he came close. After a few of those “successful” rolls he gave it another go. Speed was too low and he fell out of the top of the roll, panicked and shoved forward … hard. Solid negative G. Solid enough he said it “flew funny” on the way home to clean out his shorts.

Mechanic could tell from across the ramp that something wasn’t right. Bent the main spar in the wing. Plane got shoved into the back of a hangar for forever … and my CFI got a good story about being young and dumb.

I’m 46 and I’m less dumb than I was at 20. But not gonna lie, I’ve still always wanted to try too. :p I mean, they’ll barrel roll just fine. It’s just an airplane and it’s just physics. :-)

and yes, physics cuts both ways. I have no illusions about my skills relative to Bob Hoover in a Shrike.
 
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