Anybody fly a Grumman?

FlySooner9 said:
Just wondering if anybody here flys a Grumman AA-1? If so are they as hard to land as they sound?
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No but they don't float and as I remember from a LONG time ago, the diff between full flaps and no flaps is about 5kts. big deal.

They are quick and responsive but again, no big challenge. Just pay attention and use the numbers. Have your instructor fly a few landings while you just sit there and look for 'the picture'. And enjoy them. Nice flying little machine.
 
I've got a few hours in one. They're nice planes.

My impression is that they're a bit less forgiving than the typical Cessnas and Pipers, but nothing extremely difficult to handle. The controls are lighter and more responsive at cruise speeds. It has sort of a fighter/sports car feel in the practice area. For landing, the touchdown speed is a bit higher, and there is less of a "mushing" range of airspeed compared to Cessnas. What I mean is, in a Cessna as the plane slows down it feels like, "Flying, flying, mushy, mushier, mushier, mushing, wallowing, stalled." In the AA-1 it's more along the lines of, "Flying, flying, flying, mushy, really mushy, stalled." The progression happens faster.

Does that make sense?

Definitely different, but you should be fine with a few hours of practice.
 
I haven't flown the AA1 variety but I've got some time in a Tiger. I found it very easy to land with no bad manners at all.
 
Not hard to fly, but not a stellar performer either. If it were not for the curve of the earth, that thing would never get airborne. :)
 
<---- The wingtip of my favorite airplane: my 1973 AA-1B

I owned a Grumman TR-2 for 6 yrs and taught my wife to fly in it. It's a little more sensitive in pitch but it's easy to get the feel for it. The AA-1 Clippers had a "hot wing" which gave them an abrupt stall tendency, but later models improved the stall characteristics (somewhat). Once you get a feel for the approach to stall and pitch sensitivity it lands just like other low wing airplanes.

Personally, I loved my Yankee. It was cheap to fly (about $20/hr) and a joy to own. I'd still have it if I hadn't moved to Japan.
 
granlistillo said:
MJG407 owns a Grumman or at least did.
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That's correct, I've owned two AA-5A's in my life. Great airplane, not many mass produced airplanes will do 125KTAS with the gear hanging out at 8 GPH. Go to www.grumman.net for some information as well or subscribe to the grumman gang for lots of info on any of the Grumman series.
 
I owned a straight AA-1 for about a heartbeat back in the day. As others have said, not a stellar performer, but fun as the dickens. I don't remember it being unusually difficult to land, except for the aforementioned un-cessnalike tendency to just suddenly stop flying. It's a great plane because you only really need to remember one number. Rotate at 100, climb at 100, cruise at 100, approach at 100, 100 over the fence...

Legal disclaimer: I'm exaggerating. Don't look to me when you go rolling in to the weeds because you followed my advice ;)

PS. It's glued together. Think about that often when you're flying, and enjoy the thrilling sensation.
 
I did all my training in a Grumman AA in Phila PA- I absolutly love those airplanes. I am grateful that I was able to fly and train in that type of aircraft now that my training is done in Cessnas
 
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