FlyingIsFun
Junior Member
I'm an avid watcher of FT, and a long time ago, I built a flying wing called a Gremlin. The first time I flew it, the CG was way too aft, and the results were a crash. Once the CG was dead on, it was blast to fly - very fast and maneuverable.
I'd like to see a build/program where the battery is on a track to move it forward and aft, just to show viewers the effects of a forward, aft and centered CG. I suspect that this would require quite a long throw on the servo to accentuate the effects, but for the newbie builder, it would be a great demo of why center of gravity placement is such an important aspect of the hobby. With the battery on a servo, a recovery is possible by moving it forward after tumbling towards earth with an aft CG.
I learned to fly full scale from a CFI that who later became a bush pilot in Alaska. He has a tale to tell, about watching a friend landing a Cessna 206 with a barrel of Av Gas in the back of the C206. When he set up his landing, the barrel broke loose and rolled aft. The aircraft descended tail first, from several 100 feet. Just before hitting terrafirma, the craft rotated to land on all three wheels, with enough force to cause the wing tips to slap the ground (high wing airplane!). Needless to say, no one could survive the impact and ensuing fire.
A few years ago, Cessna issued a safety directive, to correct an issue where C172 seat rails had no aft seat rail stops. Apparently someone didn't set the seat latches properly in adjusting the position of the seat, after they climbed in. Upon take off, the seat and pilot rolled aft because of the pitch attitude, pulling on the yoke as they went aft, resulting in a near vertical accent - (for a short time) making a bad situation worse. In the C172, you cannot get in without moving the seat around. This is not quite an aft CG issue, but I'm sure it made for a memorable ride, if you lived long enough to tell the tale.
I'd like to see a build/program where the battery is on a track to move it forward and aft, just to show viewers the effects of a forward, aft and centered CG. I suspect that this would require quite a long throw on the servo to accentuate the effects, but for the newbie builder, it would be a great demo of why center of gravity placement is such an important aspect of the hobby. With the battery on a servo, a recovery is possible by moving it forward after tumbling towards earth with an aft CG.
I learned to fly full scale from a CFI that who later became a bush pilot in Alaska. He has a tale to tell, about watching a friend landing a Cessna 206 with a barrel of Av Gas in the back of the C206. When he set up his landing, the barrel broke loose and rolled aft. The aircraft descended tail first, from several 100 feet. Just before hitting terrafirma, the craft rotated to land on all three wheels, with enough force to cause the wing tips to slap the ground (high wing airplane!). Needless to say, no one could survive the impact and ensuing fire.
A few years ago, Cessna issued a safety directive, to correct an issue where C172 seat rails had no aft seat rail stops. Apparently someone didn't set the seat latches properly in adjusting the position of the seat, after they climbed in. Upon take off, the seat and pilot rolled aft because of the pitch attitude, pulling on the yoke as they went aft, resulting in a near vertical accent - (for a short time) making a bad situation worse. In the C172, you cannot get in without moving the seat around. This is not quite an aft CG issue, but I'm sure it made for a memorable ride, if you lived long enough to tell the tale.
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