What GA aircraft are at least mildly aerobatic?

SixPapaCharlie

SixPapaCharlie

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@Cpt_Kirk posted that commercial for the Viking.
I noticed a lot of rolls and loops in that video clip.

What other planes are allowed to legally be rolled?
 
Certified airplanes I can think of offhand ... Pitts, Citabrias and Decathlons (obviously), Beech E33C and F33C Bonanzas, aerobatic versions of the Beech Musketeer, Sport and Sundowner, Cessna A150 and A152 Aerobats ...
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
@Cpt_Kirk posted that commercial for the Viking.
I noticed a lot of rolls and loops in that video clip.

What other planes are allowed to legally be rolled?
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Legally? Not many you're looking at aerobatic category. Practically? Grumman tiger/cheetah/yankee are good. I've heard Comanche's are good. I've seen a picture of a 180 being rolled... just keep it positive G and everything will be OK. Just dont let it be negative G or you might have problems fast.
 
I saw a cub do some acro at the DTO airshow one year
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
Would not have guessed that in a million years
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Aerobatic Musketeer pilot report from 1970 here: http://www.airbum.com/pireps/PirepBeechAkroMusketeer.html

be_a23_aerobatic_1969.jpg
 
Luscombe.
 
The Waco YMF-5D is listed on their website as +5.2 / -2.1.
Is that sufficient to be considered "mildly aerobatic" or are greater capabilities needed?
 
Cap, Edge, Extra, MXS-R... Lots of mildly and wildly aerobatic airplanes out there.
 
Mtns2Skies said:
Legally? Not many you're looking at aerobatic category. Practically? Grumman tiger/cheetah/yankee are good. I've heard Comanche's are good. I've seen a picture of a 180 being rolled... just keep it positive G and everything will be OK. Just dont let it be negative G or you might have problems fast.
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From a practical perspective, Bob Hoover did some great aerobatic shows with a Shrike Commander, and we all know about rolling the 707. However I wouldn't suggest that the average pilot (who is definitely not as good as Bob Hoover) go try it...

simtech said:
Most of the RV line is.
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Not certified.
 
Ted DuPuis said:
From a practical perspective, Bob Hoover did some great aerobatic shows with a Shrike Commander, and we all know about rolling the 707. However I wouldn't suggest that the average pilot (who is definitely not as good as Bob Hoover) go try it...
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Yeah just look at what Matt Younkin can do with a Beech 18. I want to see @Fearless Tower do that in his :D
 
Mtns2Skies said:
Yeah just look at what Matt Younkin can do with a Beech 18. I want to see @Fearless Tower do that in his :D
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I saw Younkin at Osh a few years back with his 18. It was, perhaps, the most beautiful and graceful aerobatic show I've seen.

I also remember Jim LeRoy's show that he put on for us when I worked at the leaky grey engine factory. I said "He's going to kill himself one day." I hate being right sometimes. :(
 
GeorgeC said:
Luscombe.
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YES! Luscombes are tough little airplanes and many were rolled and looped. Provided they have been taken care of, hangared , etc. (many were not) mine was an F model in nice shape. . I looped my T craft many times ,stalled it, spun it, it was totally rebuilt, Stearman naturally, again, if taken care of, Citabria 150 hp does nice basic acro most of which is above my ability, champ , on and on. ( my Stearman I was very gentle with as it was an unknown quantity regarding the wings. As it turned out it had a cracked spar which a good mechanic found and repaired. ( It had a prebuy by the former owners AI which I foolishly allowed.) dumb. Emotion is costly.
 
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It all depends upon when and under what regs it was certified. CAR 3 and 4 are significantly different than Part 23. Most the older airplanes, unless specifically prohibited from a maneuver are okay. Swifts and Luscombes come to mind. The Swift was CAR 3 and only intentional spins are prohibited (unintentional are okay, I guess :) ). I've done countless loops, rolls, hammerheads and such in mine, though I've pretty much retired it from acro given it is now 70 years old. I never snapped mine, but I understand they do snap well, but it can lead to cracks in horizontal stabilizer spar. I don't have enough experience with Luscombe to recall details, but know they are considered aerobatic for generic purposes and many folks used to do acro in them for fun. Once Part 23 came along, an a/c had to specifically approved for acro.

Now, legalities aside...I know a Mooney M-18 will roll nicely. Champs loop okay if you get up enough steam. Most anything will do a barrel roll without issue, assuming one knows what they are doing.
 
The Super D is an absolute blast to do acro in. More than 'mildly' aerobatic, but if you get a chance for it, take it!
 
A Partinavia P.68, right up until you pull the wings off of it.
 
We used to dogfight in the PA-11s and PA-18s.
I don't imagine that's allowed any longer.
 
what about aircraft certified in the 40s under the "utility" category. some champs were i think
 
In the 70's and 80's, NASA used a bunch of aircraft in spin tests. https://spinoff.nasa.gov/Spinoff2013/t_1.html One of them, a Sundower, is at the NASA Visitors Center near Chincoteague. It even had small rocket motors on the end of the wings to "encourage" the Sundowner to spin. I'm not sure I would want to do something like that. Kind of a different vomit comet!
 
Just about all of them will spin; unfortunately, a slightly smaller sub-set can be consistently recovered.

172s roll like pigs. Can't speak to looping, as the roll attempts were terribl discouraging. Not me, a guy I know. In Ullanbatar. . .long ago.

SF-260s are great. . .I hear RVs are sweet, but have no experience with them.
 
I can't post a link under the rules because I'm a noob, but Google or YouTube search Sean Tucker in his Columbia
 
Mason said:
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Bob Hoover performed some incredible feats with airplanes.

I am not as good as Bob Hoover. Neither is anyone else on this forum (unless Bob Hoover is actually on this forum, in which case, he is as good as Bob Hoover).
 
EVERYBODY should learn how to do an aileron roll. Will make you much more comfortable with the sight picture and the general handling of the aircraft. ANYTHING, except weird crap, can aileron roll at positive 1 G very comfortably. Have done it in a full 172 and, of course, the 707 rolls were famous as have been many others! If you think a 172 rolls poorly Sundancer, you do it poorly. It's not the plane.
 
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