Whistling noise in IMC?

DavidWhite

DavidWhite

Final Approach
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DW
Today I was flying along and when I got into a cloud I noticed a whistling noise, but when I left the cloud I didnt hear it anymore.....back into another cloud and I started hearing it again. Does anyone know what this is? Am I going crazy?
 
DavidWhite said:
Today I was flying along and when I got into a cloud I noticed a whistling noise, but when I left the cloud I didnt hear it anymore.....back into another cloud and I started hearing it again. Does anyone know what this is? Am I going crazy?
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Probably related to "automatic rough":D.

Seriously, the only thing I could thin of was a small formation of ice on something sharp or moisture altering the flow of air slightly.
 
Cessna's are famous for the cloud-whistle. I've never known for sure where it originates, but many planes produce it. It usually sounds to me like it's coming from somewhere around the wing root or cabin window area, but your guess is as good as mine.
 
wabower said:
Cessna's are famous for the cloud-whistle. I've never known for sure where it originates, but many planes produce it. It usually sounds to me like it's coming from somewhere around the wing root or cabin window area, but your guess is as good as mine.
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We had that problem in the 182 - Resealed the windscreen, haven't heard it since.

I don't recall it being strictly restricted to IMC, but it was certainly not a constant noise, and the timbre of the sound didn't give any clues as to where it was coming from. Looked all over for it, but never "found" it, just noticed that it stopped after resealing the windscreen. So give that a shot.
 
I think that is what is generally known as the "puckered-sphincter effect."
 
SCCutler said:
I think that is what is generally known as the "puckered-sphincter effect."
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Naw, it is the effect you get when you purse your lips and sort of blow through them. It is a common effect when you get to exercise your instrument privileges after you worked so hard to get them. It is USUALLY not noticeable to the person involved, but occasionally it seeps past the subconscious into the conscious mind. :rofl:
 
Wouldn't surprise me if you hear some kind of noise - it's not like your 172 is air tight. I seem to recall it snowing inside the cabin one night.
 
Here's how it was explained to me. It whistles because it doesn't know the words. :rolleyes:
 
The Q was famous for doing that. Even clipping the top of a cloud it would whistle. It was normally a fairly quiet cockpit, but if you spent a fair bit of time in IMC you had to turn the volume up on your headset, it was whistling so loud. It was even worse in snow or moderate icing.

I think it has something to do with the water particles and the boundary layer and...some other sciency stuff.
 
I've never heard the whistle, but most Cessnas I've flown start sounding rough when flown at night.
 
I've gotten it in plenty of differnent airplane types. I assume it has something to do with the water content of the air inside a cloud compared to outside.
 
Our 182 does it as well, but only in IMC. I asked my CFII what it was and he told me the airplane was haunted :eek: He also mentioned it might have something to do with moisture buildup in parts of the air vents, but that was just a best guess.

I have to admit, it's the most disorienting part of flying our airplane in IMC. The first time I heard it, my initial reaction was we had somehow picked up a lot of airspeed quickly (e.g. wind sheer, etc).
 
No, no, no, no no.......

That's a safety device that Cessna and Airbus installs to warn birds of the presence of an approaching aircraft in the clouds.
 
The Canadian Reset Jet is a whistle pig as well..
 
I remember hearing this in Cessnas. I always thought it was just the increased moisture levels/air vent design of Cessna high wings.
 
Inverted said:
I remember hearing this in Cessnas. I always thought it was just the increased moisture levels/air vent design of Cessna high wings.
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That's where I've been told it comes from as well.
 
ice will always make some noise.
 
my 182Q definitely does- not all the time, but I do notice it occasionally
 
Just whistling past the grave yard . . .
 
I have heard a low whistle sound in the C-206/7 when in icing conditions.
 
That's the ghost of your long lost great grandfather & civil war veteran calling to you from the other side.
 
It always happens on forums. Someone new to posting visits the forum, uses the search function, finds something interesting, and then posts a reply without noticing the date.

It's perfectly harmless, and sometimes adds some value by bringing attention to something interesting that I had forgotten about.
 
Hello old thread. My TR182 whistles in clouds too. Has nothing to do with ice and it's not precip static either. Just a thing that happens. :dunno:
 
steingar said:
I thought everything was VFR in Alaska due to poor radar coverage.
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In Alaska when the weather is good we fly VFR.

When the weather is bad we fly IFR. Most places no radar contact but ATC will request position reports.

If the weather is really bad. We fly PVFR.















That is we pretend its VFR and fly anyway.....:lol:
 
Funny…I was out just yesterday doing an IPC with my CFII and every time I went in a cloud my Q would start whistling. I looked at my CFII and he seemed unmoved so I just let it whistle.
As he was endorsing my log I said to him “was I hearing things or did 5FZ whistle every time I entered a cloud?” He said “every time!! What makes it do that?”
 
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