Hands off?

Some gee-whizzery I'll throw in: pretty much all fighters now have different flight control laws with the gear down than with the gear up. With the gear down and at a high airspeed (say... after a cat shot), a little control input may go a very long way.
 
hook_dupin said:
Some gee-whizzery I'll throw in: pretty much all fighters now have different flight control laws with the gear down than with the gear up. With the gear down and at a high airspeed (say... after a cat shot), a little control input may go a very long way.
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Absolutely. The gains are different with the flaps down (for the Hornet most of the FCC stuff has to do with flap switch position), and also, the flaps (leading edge and trailing edge) will schedule differently than in flaps "auto"...ie the switch position above 250 kts/normal flight with gear up.
 
///AMG said:
Absolutely. The gains are different with the flaps down (for the Hornet most of the FCC stuff has to do with flap switch position), and also, the flaps (leading edge and trailing edge) will schedule differently than in flaps "auto"...ie the switch position above 250 kts/normal flight with gear up.
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You guys have an auto position for the flaps? Really? Navy guys have all the luck! Do you have to do ANYTHING in that aircraft?

:)
 
jtrain609 said:
You guys have an auto position for the flaps? Really? Navy guys have all the luck! Do you have to do ANYTHING in that aircraft?

:)
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I know you are busting my balls but to seriously answer your question, they are either FULL, HALF, or AUTO. In auto, the FCC's schedule the flaps accordingly during maneuvering flight for the most efficient lift. You still have to put them down to HALF or FULL for landing, and they will work like normal flaps. Difference being that our FCS uses them as extra flight control surfaces in normal maneuvering flight. As an example, if you are pulling G's, the leading and trailing edge flaps will eventually start to dig in as you bleed off airspeed to keep the lifties happy underneath the wings and give us a better turn rate. They also work differentially at slow speed to aid the ailerons and stabilators for roll control. Yes, the jet absolutely makes what you do with the stick "prettier" and more to the pilot's liking (and it is no doubt easy as hell to fly from a purely stick and rudder perspective)......but I would also say that the level of overall "automation" present would probably make most modern civilian jet guys think they were hopping back into a Cessna. I'm almost always hand flying, short of going straight and level just transiting somewhere, in which case I will throw on baro alt hold and autothrottles for max range.
 
///AMG said:
I know you are busting my balls but to seriously answer your question, they are either FULL, HALF, or AUTO. In auto, the FCC's schedule the flaps accordingly during maneuvering flight for the most efficient lift. You still have to put them down to HALF or FULL for landing, and they will work like normal flaps. Difference being that our FCS uses them as extra flight control surfaces in normal maneuvering flight. As an example, if you are pulling G's, the leading and trailing edge flaps will eventually start to dig in as you bleed off airspeed to keep the lifties happy underneath the wings and give us a better turn rate. They also work differentially at slow speed to aid the ailerons and stabilators for roll control. Yes, the jet absolutely makes what you do with the stick "prettier" and more to the pilot's liking (and it is no doubt easy as hell to fly from a purely stick and rudder perspective)......but I would also say that the level of overall "automation" present would probably make most modern civilian jet guys think they were hopping back into a Cessna. I'm almost always hand flying, short of going straight and level just transiting somewhere, in which case I will throw on baro alt hold and autothrottles for max range.
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That's awesome! Must be a hell of a fun aircraft to toss around.
 
Somatogravic illusion avoidance is the reason. Best not to forget to put the hands back on once in the air...
 
Crop Duster said:
Somatogravic illusion avoidance is the reason. Best not to forget to put the hands back on once in the air...
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There is just about no darker place on earth than the front of the boat at night....especially when you get off the front of it after the cat shot. I trust nothing but the instruments in that environment. That said, you are pretty much at the end of the cat stroke before you can really see clearly.
 
///AMG said:
There is just about no darker place on earth than the front of the boat at night....especially when you get off the front of it after the cat shot. I trust nothing but the instruments in that environment. That said, you are pretty much at the end of the cat stroke before you can really see clearly.
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If you're in any kind of rough sea are cat launches timed to arrive at the front of the ship when the bow is pitched up or are you so high off the water that that isn't a factor?
 
TallFlyer said:
If you're in any kind of rough sea are cat launches timed to arrive at the front of the ship when the bow is pitched up or are you so high off the water that that isn't a factor?
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Yes, though unless it is really rough you probably don't really notice from our perspective. I'm not sure what sort of sea state actually warrants those considerations, not being a shooter
 
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