Wed Nov 10, 2010 12:44 pm
#910957
The Engines' Beat
Richard Boswell tells the tale of young Pilot X and his first solo-flight with paying passengers on board – an important point in his career – but an hour’s delay and a passenger’s nervousness lead him to forget some basic rules...
The first engine kicked into life with the second rotation of the propeller. X watched the oil pressure rise before selecting 1,200rpm and bringing the generator online. He reached up above his head and flicked the magneto switches on for the second engine. He was hoping that the six passengers in the rear of the Islander would not be able to sense his nervousness, as he ran through the pre-start checks for the port engine in a slow and methodical manner.
X had not slept well the previous night. He had watched the weather report before going to bed and the smiling weather lady had promised early morning fog which was forecast to burn off before 11am, leaving a clear day. This worried X, as he knew that he was scheduled to take off at 10am. At 23 years old, X was the youngest pilot in the company. He’d left school at 18 and started a degree in physics, but from the moment he had completed fresher’s week, he knew he had made a mistake. A year and many missed lectures later, he switched courses to geology, in an effort to revive his interest levels. However, deep down he knew that it wasn’t the studying that interested him but rather his weekly flying lesson as part of the University Air Squadron.
By the end of his second year, and another round of poor attendance at lectures – but with another 50 hours in his logbook, he finally realised that he wanted to be a professional pilot and anything else that he did was merely marking time. He dropped out of university and applied to join the Air Force as a pilot. With almost 100 hours to his name and some good flying reports, he was quietly confident that he would make the grade, so it came as somewhat of a surprise when he was turned down as a trainee pilot but offered a place on the next intake as a navigator. He turned it down on the spot, took a huge loan from his father, and enrolled on a CPL course.
A bright and gifted pilot, he completed the course and found himself on the job market with all of the licences but not a lot of experience. Like the majority of his colleagues, he dreamt of flying big jets on long-haul routes, but right now any paid work as a pilot would do. Days turned into weeks, which merged into months as he supported himself pulling pints. Eventually the break came. Pilot X was offered a job as an Islander pilot on a single-pilot, scheduled service between the mainland and the nearby islands. He’d enjoyed the type rating and. although the aptly-named Islander was far from cutting-edge, it did hold a certain charm and he appreciated its iconic status.
The line training he found more challenging. Flying the aircraft was one thing, but being responsible for the entire flight was another matter altogether. The paperwork seemed endless and even though the aircraft was fitted with a capable autopilot, managing the flight as well as the passengers, while trying to stay ahead of the aircraft, was always challenging. After shared flights with company pilots, today was his first day alone in the cockpit, with six passengers on board who depended on him for a safe flight.
Intolerable
The second engine kicked into life almost as soon as the starter was engaged. X watched for the oil pressure rising and set the rpm again before completing the remainder of the start checks. The fog had appeared as forecast but was now also burning off, as forecast, so after a nervous one-hour delay waiting for the visibility to increase, it had now reached the legal limit for take-off and with his destination clear, it was all systems go.
Taxying out over the bumpy grass, X tried to settle his nerves. Never had he felt more alone in such a small space with so many people. Of the six passengers, one was clearly nervous and although sat well behind him, X could sense the apprehension as it crept forward and threatened to engulf him.
With engine run-ups and pre-take-off checks complete, X had one final glance around the cockpit before calling for departure. With the visibility at 1,000m, he could just about make out the end of the runway as he taxied onto it. Slowly he advanced both throttles and the cabin noise increased dramatically. The Islander bounced across the grass strip with the airspeed slowly increasing. At 50kt he lifted the nosewheel and the aircraft left the ground as the airspeed reached 65kt. He trimmed the aircraft in the climb and by 400ft he was already out of the thinning fog bank as he lowered the nose slightly and cleaned up the flaps while allowing the speed to build slightly.
Continuing the climb, he tried to relax a little and enjoy the view as he constantly retrimmed to keep the aircraft in a steady climb. It wasn’t until he passed through 1,000ft, climbing straight ahead, that he realised something wasn’t quite right – the noise level in the cockpit was becoming intolerable. Somehow he had forgotten to reduce the power after take-off and he still had maximum throttle and maximum rpm set.
He automatically reached forward and set 2,200rpm, with the blue-ended propeller control levers. He heard the rpm reduce and the sound level came down significantly, although there was now a distinct ‘beating’ sound. He nudged one of the rpm levers up and engines returned to the usual hum. Next, he moved his hand to the throttles; before setting the power, he glanced at the manifold pressure gauge. Both gauges were way over limit. His heart sank as he realised what he had done. He pulled both throttles rearwards and the gauges swung back down into the green range. However, even with his limited experience, X knew the damage to the engines had been done and sensibly elected to return to the airfield rather than risk the lengthy sea crossing. n
Variable-pitch propellers are not intrinsically complicated, however they do need a little thought and management to get the best efficiency out of the engine/propeller combination and avoid any damage to the engine and propeller.
1. What is the basic fail-safe rule when operating a variable-pitch propeller?
2. What causes the ‘beating’ X referred to?
3. How did X damage the engines?
Richard Boswell tells the tale of young Pilot X and his first solo-flight with paying passengers on board – an important point in his career – but an hour’s delay and a passenger’s nervousness lead him to forget some basic rules...
The first engine kicked into life with the second rotation of the propeller. X watched the oil pressure rise before selecting 1,200rpm and bringing the generator online. He reached up above his head and flicked the magneto switches on for the second engine. He was hoping that the six passengers in the rear of the Islander would not be able to sense his nervousness, as he ran through the pre-start checks for the port engine in a slow and methodical manner.
X had not slept well the previous night. He had watched the weather report before going to bed and the smiling weather lady had promised early morning fog which was forecast to burn off before 11am, leaving a clear day. This worried X, as he knew that he was scheduled to take off at 10am. At 23 years old, X was the youngest pilot in the company. He’d left school at 18 and started a degree in physics, but from the moment he had completed fresher’s week, he knew he had made a mistake. A year and many missed lectures later, he switched courses to geology, in an effort to revive his interest levels. However, deep down he knew that it wasn’t the studying that interested him but rather his weekly flying lesson as part of the University Air Squadron.
By the end of his second year, and another round of poor attendance at lectures – but with another 50 hours in his logbook, he finally realised that he wanted to be a professional pilot and anything else that he did was merely marking time. He dropped out of university and applied to join the Air Force as a pilot. With almost 100 hours to his name and some good flying reports, he was quietly confident that he would make the grade, so it came as somewhat of a surprise when he was turned down as a trainee pilot but offered a place on the next intake as a navigator. He turned it down on the spot, took a huge loan from his father, and enrolled on a CPL course.
A bright and gifted pilot, he completed the course and found himself on the job market with all of the licences but not a lot of experience. Like the majority of his colleagues, he dreamt of flying big jets on long-haul routes, but right now any paid work as a pilot would do. Days turned into weeks, which merged into months as he supported himself pulling pints. Eventually the break came. Pilot X was offered a job as an Islander pilot on a single-pilot, scheduled service between the mainland and the nearby islands. He’d enjoyed the type rating and. although the aptly-named Islander was far from cutting-edge, it did hold a certain charm and he appreciated its iconic status.
The line training he found more challenging. Flying the aircraft was one thing, but being responsible for the entire flight was another matter altogether. The paperwork seemed endless and even though the aircraft was fitted with a capable autopilot, managing the flight as well as the passengers, while trying to stay ahead of the aircraft, was always challenging. After shared flights with company pilots, today was his first day alone in the cockpit, with six passengers on board who depended on him for a safe flight.
Intolerable
The second engine kicked into life almost as soon as the starter was engaged. X watched for the oil pressure rising and set the rpm again before completing the remainder of the start checks. The fog had appeared as forecast but was now also burning off, as forecast, so after a nervous one-hour delay waiting for the visibility to increase, it had now reached the legal limit for take-off and with his destination clear, it was all systems go.
Taxying out over the bumpy grass, X tried to settle his nerves. Never had he felt more alone in such a small space with so many people. Of the six passengers, one was clearly nervous and although sat well behind him, X could sense the apprehension as it crept forward and threatened to engulf him.
With engine run-ups and pre-take-off checks complete, X had one final glance around the cockpit before calling for departure. With the visibility at 1,000m, he could just about make out the end of the runway as he taxied onto it. Slowly he advanced both throttles and the cabin noise increased dramatically. The Islander bounced across the grass strip with the airspeed slowly increasing. At 50kt he lifted the nosewheel and the aircraft left the ground as the airspeed reached 65kt. He trimmed the aircraft in the climb and by 400ft he was already out of the thinning fog bank as he lowered the nose slightly and cleaned up the flaps while allowing the speed to build slightly.
Continuing the climb, he tried to relax a little and enjoy the view as he constantly retrimmed to keep the aircraft in a steady climb. It wasn’t until he passed through 1,000ft, climbing straight ahead, that he realised something wasn’t quite right – the noise level in the cockpit was becoming intolerable. Somehow he had forgotten to reduce the power after take-off and he still had maximum throttle and maximum rpm set.
He automatically reached forward and set 2,200rpm, with the blue-ended propeller control levers. He heard the rpm reduce and the sound level came down significantly, although there was now a distinct ‘beating’ sound. He nudged one of the rpm levers up and engines returned to the usual hum. Next, he moved his hand to the throttles; before setting the power, he glanced at the manifold pressure gauge. Both gauges were way over limit. His heart sank as he realised what he had done. He pulled both throttles rearwards and the gauges swung back down into the green range. However, even with his limited experience, X knew the damage to the engines had been done and sensibly elected to return to the airfield rather than risk the lengthy sea crossing. n
Variable-pitch propellers are not intrinsically complicated, however they do need a little thought and management to get the best efficiency out of the engine/propeller combination and avoid any damage to the engine and propeller.
1. What is the basic fail-safe rule when operating a variable-pitch propeller?
2. What causes the ‘beating’ X referred to?
3. How did X damage the engines?
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