Would my AI survive a roll?

hindsight2020 said:
We definitively break that rule in the USAF. We punch through an IMC deck, go rage in the MOA with over the top maneuvers, then shoot not just an approach, but a formation approach in the weather with a mechanical gyro as our only backup. Granted, they're the electric re-cageable kind, but still, those things are tiiired. Oh but for the grace of God go I... :eek:
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What type of aircraft?
 
FlySince9 said:
There's another whole thread going on ref a Pa-28 losing a wing due to stress fractures... How might they have gotten there...mmm I wonder...
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If you are implying that someone was doing stunts in the accident airplane, that is highly unlikely. I know an ERAU graduate who actually has time in that accident airplane. All ERAU uses the Arrows for is dual instruction takeoffs and landings for commercial and CFI students. That is literally all that airplane did for 7000+ hours is bounces. They do the airwork like Chantelle’s, lazy 8s and x-countries in other fixed gear airplanes.
 
  • Fearless Tower said:
    If you are implying that someone was doing stunts in the accident airplane, that is highly unlikely. I know an ERAU graduate who actually has time in that accident airplane. All ERAU uses the Arrows for is dual instruction takeoffs and landings for commercial and CFI students. That is literally all that airplane did for 7000+ hours is bounces. They do the airwork like Chantelle’s, lazy 8s and x-countries in other fixed gear airplanes.
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  • I was not trying to. But now that you brought it up, there is no way anyone can account for every one of those 7000 hours. Yea we know what it' suppose to be used for but....
 
Well sure, the AI should work fine. You'll need it anyway, especially when performing said roll in IMC, which is the natural next step after your first roll. Continue exploring those boundaries! Don't forget to file a flight plan.
 
paramax55 said:
I have a 1972 Arrow II with a Century II autopilot. It has the original AI which, I believe, would make it an Edo-Aire (due to the autopilot). I have some former fighter pilots and a former crop duster living in my neighborhood and a few of them have told me they would take me up and show me how to roll my airplane. One of them brought up a good point though - the AI crashing and becoming a $400.00 roll due to the cost of an AI rebuild. I asked one of the A&Ps in the neighborhood and he said that it might have stops to keep it from crashing and that I shouldn't be too worried. Then I read an article about a banner towing operation that quit fixing their AIs because it got to be a pricey operation - and that was just from steep banks (or was it pitching up after grabbing the banner...).

So... should my AI be OK? Should I be worried? Should I just do another roll in the other direction - just for safety, of course?
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I would be shocked if you could get that AI removed, overhauled, and reinstalled for anywhere near $400.
 
Velocity173 said:
AI will be fine but when you jack up the roll because you didn’t pitch up enough, your wing won’t survive the 4 +G pull out.
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I think the wing will survive ... fluttering by itself to the ground, next to the troll's powered parachute, the only aircraft he really owns.
 
Think ya got bigger problems than your AI.
 
To maximize the visual points of reference to keep the roll straight and symmetrical in the absence of a functioning AI, you should do the roll while flying under a bridge, or perhaps the St. Louis Arch. :eek:
 
The best plan is just to remove the attitude indicator, go and do your aerobatics, then reinstall when you're finished.
 
Hacker said:
The best plan is just to remove the attitude indicator, go and do your aerobatics, then reinstall when you're finished.
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That, or even more simpler, plug up the exhaust port offn the vacuum pump. I know this one guy that did it all the time for his friend. Turned out fine. Pro tip: Don't stall the rudder when inverted...this one guy I know had has a friend that did that once suggests it isn't favorable.
 
flyingron said:
When flying with my architect in the right seat of his Baron, I always tell him I'm pretty sure I could roll this thing...
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Easily done and doesn't even require engine power. ;)

 
Those cropdusters are just wanting to show off to you.
It is an extremely bad idea to roll your Arrow, however if you must then please video and share the link here.
 
flyingron said:
I always think more about this one:
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His girlfriend’s cries are awful from the announcer platform.

That video is a reminder to me to not push aircraft beyond their published limits and purposes without a crap-ton of smart engineers telling me it’s okay, and the skill set of Bob Hoover.
 
OP - if you do it, please film it and arrange to have someone post to youtube. Just please use a camera streaming to an storage site outside the aircraft so the footage isn’t destroyed in the post crash fire, ok?
 
Meh...you non aerobatic dudes don't realize it, but rolling an Arrow is super simple and easy and safe if you have the slightest bit of acro experience and half a brain. Not that doing this should be promoted. It was a troll post anyway.
 
RoscoeT said:
Meh...you non aerobatic dudes don't realize it, but rolling an Arrow is super simple and easy and safe if you have the slightest bit of acro experience and half a brain. Not that doing this should be promoted. It was a troll post anyway.
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I am (was) an “aerobatic dude”.

What I realize is that posts like yours are grossly irresponsible. Someone with an Arrow may read that and just try it one day, remembering it’s “super simple and easy and safe”. And botch it and die.

A natural reflex when finding oneself inverted is to pull back on the stick. It killed at least one Cirrus pilot in FL. Who may have read a post like yours.
 
FastEddieB said:
I am (was) an “aerobatic dude”.

What I realize is that posts like yours are grossly irresponsible. Someone with an Arrow may read that and just try it one day, remembering it’s “super simple and easy and safe”. And botch it and die.

A natural reflex when finding oneself inverted is to pull back on the stick. It killed at least one Cirrus pilot in FL. Who may have read a post like yours.
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I don’t buy any of that. I qualified my statement. I guess you’re also gonna lobby Oshkosh to ban all those acro acts including “non aerobatic” airplanes to avoid sending the wrong message to these Darwin award pilots you speak of.
 
J Frank Montgomery said:
I did a barrel roll in a Cessna 177 once upon a time... the nose basically dropped through the horizon to nearly that of straight down. I briefly accelerated to and visited the redline area on the airspeed indicator....it wasn't very wise of me to try a barrel roll in a Cardinal. Last, yes, I had been trained in acro.
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I tried the same thing once upon a time in a 150, when I was 17 and knew it all. After trying it, and yes, "visiting the redline area", I then knew one more thing... that it would be a really bad idea to try it again.

Yes, it's easy to roll an Arrow or almost any other airplane. With experience it's even quite safe. Without experience doing acro in similar aircraft (a fighter plane is hardly similar!), it's also easy, even likely, to screw it up and find yourself well over Vne or pulling excessive g-loads.

It's also illegal unless the aircraft is approved for acro, which the Arrow is not.

But to the original question, troll or not, the gyro will tumble, but will recover in time. Tumbling a gyro once or twice probably won't hurt it much, but doing it frequently will.
 
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