Pelican's Perch

During WWII, the British RAF and the U.S. Eighth Air Force used the Consolidated B-24 "Liberator" to pound the heck out of the Germans. Ernest K. Gann flew a freighter version (the C-87) during the war, and hated it. The plane even saw some service as a corporate executive transport back when burning 200 GPH to go 200 knots was still affordable. Recently, AVweb's resident warbird maven John Deakin had an opportunity to check out in the Confederate Air Force's B-24, "Diamond 'Lil," and reports that the aircraft is both quirky and fun.

We've all been taught about detonation in piston aircraft engines. It's what occurs when combustion pressure and temperature get so high that the fuel/air mixture to explodes violently instead of burning smoothly, and it can destroy an engine in a matter of seconds. Right? Well, not exactly. AVweb's John Deakin reviews the latest research, and demonstrates that detonation occurs in various degrees - much like icing and turbulence - with the milder forms not being particularly harmful. Heavy detonation is definitely destructive, and the Pelican offers some concrete data on how to avoid it.

Coming from the mouth of your CFI, those words (or a close variant) let you know that the instructor wants you to execute a go-around. According to AVweb's John Deakin, this is a maneuver that is often botched by airline captains and light plane pilots alike - not because it's difficult, but because we don't practice it enough and are sometimes not mentally ready for it. Deak offers a thoughtful approach to go-arounds and missed approaches that works in anything from a J-3 to a 747.

We're talking of course, about the North American T-28 "Trojan." (Why, what were you thinking?) You'll recall that last month, John Deakin described his checkout in the Grumman F8F "Bearcat." This time, AVweb's resident warbird maven invites you along as he qualifies for his FAA Letter of Authorization in the T-28. Although the Trojan has only about half the horsepower of the Bearcat, it's a considerably more complex airplane. Why, even learning to operate the (hydraulically-actuated) canopy requires a groundschool session. Deak takes you through the highlights of his 14 ground and ten flight sessions with T-28 owner Mark Matye.

Regular readers know that AVweb's John Deakin is active in the warbird community - a master at flying big radial-engine transports like the Lockheed Constellation and C-46 Commando. Recently, however, John had the opportunity to fly a very different breed of warbird: the Grumman F8F Bearcat. Deak explains that when you take an 8,000-pound airframe and add a 2,200-hp radial engine, what you get is an elevated pulse rate.

What's it like to fly a 25-ton WWII-era round-engined twin to, from and in the Confederate Air Force's big annual warbird airshow? It's a tough job, but somebody's got to do it. AVweb's John Deakin was elected to shepherd one of CAF's two flying C-46 "Commando" transports to the Midland show this year. Unseasonable weather and mechanical problems made the task both challenging and memorable, as John details in his latest column.

Ever gotten steamed at ATC for delaying you, or angry at another pilot who cut you off in the pattern, or hosed at an FBO who forgot to fuel your airplane when you needed to make a quick turn? AVweb's John Deakin points out that you can't be "pilot in command" of an aircraft unless you can first control your own emotions, and that overtly angry behavior usually makes you come off looking like a jerk. Deak offers some thoughts on how to stay cool and act professional.

AVweb's John Deakin concludes his six-part powerplant management series with a discussion of the procedures he uses during descent, approach (including missed-approach), landing, and shutdown. In the process, he debunks some Old Wives' Tales about "shock cooling" and turbocharger cooldowns.

In his fifth column of this series, AVweb's John Deakin continues his detailed discussion of powerplant management technique. This installment is totally devoted to the all-important cruise phase of flight, and includes both theory and hard numbers from the JPI data-logging engine monitor in John's turbonormalized IO-550-powered V-35A Bonanza. (Descents, approaches, landings, and shutdowns next month.)

In his fourth column of this series, AVweb's John Deakin invites you along in the right seat of his turbonormalized IO-550-powered V35B Bonanza, explaining each step of his powerplant-management technique from engine start to taxi, runup, takeoff and climb. (The Pelican promises to cover cruise, descent, landing and shutdown next time.) To help illustrate why he does what he does, John presents detailed CHT and EGT data on some actual flights, taken from the Bonanza's JPI data-logging digital engine monitor, and explains exactly what each squiggle on the graph means.