Letters

Stinson's Reliant

Your article about the Stinson Reliant (" Reliant, Revived," April Pilot) brought back memories. When I was about five or six years old, circa 1936, I had my first airplane ride — and it was in a Stinson Reliant. It was in the depths of the Depression. My dad decided to risk the money and took me down to Newark (New Jersey) Airport, where a young man had a Reliant. I was really excited because I had read about the Reliant and it was my favorite at the time.

The plane was everything I had imagined, and the pictures in your April issue brought back the mental images I still had of that plane. It was not in the beautiful condition of the restored Reliant on your cover, but I still remembered the steering wheel and the roll-up and -down windows. The backseat was truly luxurious and gave the impression of being in a well-furnished living room.

The takeoff was the most exciting thing of my young life. Then, we were heading straight for the very new and shiny Empire State Building, which was the announced destination of the sightseeing flight. The pilot circled the tower both left and right, so that the passengers on both sides had a good view. We certainly would have difficulty in getting clearance to do that today, especially at an altitude lower than the top of the building.

I actually met the pilot of that flight years later, in the 1960s, and we accidentally fell into a conversation about flying. His face lit up when I told him about that flight, and he said he was the pilot!

Thanks for bringing back that adventure.

Al Parsonnet AOPA 149249
Hillside, New Jersey

As usual, the photos and story of the gull-wing Stinson were great. But the description of the flap system, while creative, was not completely accurate.

Vacuum-operated flaps were one of the good ideas of the 1930s that did not survive. They were used on airplanes besides the Stinson, too; I had several years in a Grumman Goose with them. Indeed, they do work like the windshield wipers on old cars, as was mentioned in the article, but neither is powered by a vacuum pump. Their vacuum source is the engine intake manifold, which is plumbed into a large storage canister. It is a tank full of nothing, almost literally, that powers the pneumatic flap cylinders.

Remember that "manifold vacuum" is greatest with the throttle closed. It is at its maximum when the airplane engine is windmilling, or the Chevy is coasting downhill in gear. Those windshield wipers went like crazy when coasting and they nearly stopped when the accelerator was floorboarded going uphill.

So for airplane flaps the logic is perfect: When the engine is at low power (as on approach), lots of vacuum is available to hold the flaps down. At high power (as on go-around) there is little vacuum and the flaps will partially bleed up, even if the pilot did not raise them.

Bill Whitney AOPA 295136
Bothell, Washington

Wake turbulence wake-up

Barry Schiff's " Proficient Pilot: A Wake-Up Call" (April Pilot) had me jumping out of my seat and talking out loud — and I was alone in the room. My experience of five or six years ago wasn't nearly as devastating as that account, but I thought I'd pass it on.

I had departed Northeast Philadelphia Airport after dark to pick up a student who got stranded in Cape May, New Jersey, while on his solo cross-country flight. As I crossed the Delaware River under the Class B airspace, I was talking to Philly Approach and was issued an advisory for "traffic, three miles, crossing left to right, descending through 3,000 feet, [Boeing] 757. Caution, wake turbulence." I saw his lights and responded that I had the traffic in sight. Since I was at 2,000 feet, I figured that just as I arrived under his flight path, his wake would have descended about 1,000 feet. I thought this over and then decided that the chances of actually hitting his wake were probably low, and that the wake would diminish sufficiently in intensity by that time anyway.

I was wrong. I was hit by one great wallop from above that caused my head to hit the canopy and everything on the seat next to me to jump into the air. I braced for a second hit, thinking that I would soon encounter the vortex from the other wing. I didn't. I checked the canopy of the Grumman Trainer for a crack, but there was none; my headset had taken the majority of the impact.

I was warned by ATC, I predicted the coincidence of altitude and position, and then I did nothing about it. I have passed the event of that day on to other pilots, some of them my students, at appropriate times. I am not proud of my poor judgment, but others should know about it so that they don't repeat my mistake.

Larry Toto AOPA 568727
Elkins Park, Pennsylvania

ADF's benefits

There is an additional benefit of an ADF not mentioned in the fine article (" Fear of Needles," April Pilot). Should your directional gyro quit (by Murphy's Law during an approach in air so rough that the compass is little help), unless one is GPS-equipped, the ADF is the only instrument that can give you a direct indication of heading change.

If you need to make a 10-degree correction, for example, you can see the effect instantly. Unfortunately, many ADFs are not well maintained and some NDBs transmit so weak a signal that ADF needles often meander uselessly until quite close to the station. Static electricity caused by snowflakes (and sometimes raindrops) can cause erratic operation. Finally, if the NDB is at a considerable distance from the runway, terrain-induced errors can cause an offset greater than that caused by typical VOR errors.

It is not for nothing that NDB minimums are generally higher than those for VORs. Nevertheless, the inexpensive NDB is sometimes the "only game in town" and until the entire fleet is GPS-equipped, there is no good or cost-effective reason to continue to decommission them.

Dave Twining AOPA 1325723
Corvallis, Oregon

The joy of ownership

Well, I was finally able to do it — fill in the O in AOPA, that is. Just a week ago on a nice Saturday afternoon, a beautiful scarlet-and-gray 1976 Cessna Cardinal RG was delivered from Houston to my home field of Madison County, Ohio. So now I am an aircraft owner. Wow, what a feeling that was! As many of you know, buying that first airplane runs your emotions through the wringer, but in the end it is immensely satisfying. I think the experience really hit me when a couple of days later, my wife and I passed the tiedown area near the highway on our way to the airport driveway, and there our "new" plane sat ready to take us to exciting places. Not having to stop at the FBO to pick up the book and keys to one of the rentals was a strange feeling indeed after many years of doing that.

If any one of you is on the fence about owning that first airplane, consider it seriously, but go and do it if you possibly can. AOPA has vast resources at your fingertips to assist you with your aircraft acquisition. Use them. You'll be glad you did.

David Campbell AOPA 1228217
South Charleston, Ohio

Another viewpoint

John McKenzie's points about aircraft maintenance are shortsighted (" Letters," April Pilot). What good will artificially low maintenance costs do if no one can afford to buy airplanes in the future? The aviation liability act, about which John Yodice wrote correctly and with some pride, was historic and a major first even if it involved only one small industry.

In this country, half of the blame for our incredible lawsuit malignancy is the fault of the lawyers and judges; the other is the fault of everyday people being greedy, looking for quick riches, and refusing responsibility beyond anything known in the past. The tort bar is like a noxious household pest. Spray its major customary thoroughfares and it will seek other sources of access. Insurance in other areas may rise. It might have regardless, but we have to start the cleanup process somewhere. It will be well worth it; some sources estimate that up to one-third of everything we pay for is a cost of the "lawyer tax."

Cleaning up the tort mess will be a long and involved battle. Rather than whine, let's dig in for the fight and contribute to long-term reform.

Paul Sharp AOPA 893322
Salt Lake City, Utah

Frequency conservation

I enjoy articles by Thomas A. Horne, but I need to address part of " Letdown Lowdown" (April Pilot). If all of us reported on unicom or CTAF as he suggests (perhaps 10 times from 10 miles out to touchdown), nobody would ever be able to get into 122.8 or most other unicom frequencies. I just don't think there is any need for it. Frequency conservation is a virtue for safety reasons.

Ten miles out is a good time to decide what runway to use, by talking to unicom or listening to AWOS or other planes. Then listen for anyone else. Assuming that there are no other calls, then announce once when entering the pattern area, with your intentions. That should be the last call, unless there are calls from other airplanes. In that case whether or not to make another call depends on where they are and where you are. You may need to make several, or none. A call for every turn and leg of the pattern merely jams the frequency at several airports in the area, so it is difficult for planes that really have a possible conflict to sort it out.

Start every call with the name of the airport. Then I don't need to listen to you if you are at another airport, and I can concentrate on calls where I am.

And for the sake of frequency conservation, don't call exiting the runway in good VFR conditions, unless there is a hump in the runway so someone taking off can't see you. The person in the air can see you.

James A. Peterson AOPA 388882
Morris, Illinois

Deuce caper

Contrary to Alton K. Marsh's representation (" Fast Eddie and the Deuce Coupe," April Pilot), the term Deuce Coupe does not have its genesis with a rumble seat, but rather refers to the 1932 (deuce) Ford, which first introduced the flathead V-8. It is recognized by a unique, slightly heart-shaped radiator and came in three- and five-window variations.

Robert H. Wagstaff AOPA 311517
Anchorage, Alaska

Partial attraction

" Airframe and Powerplant: What Oil Can Tell You" (April Pilot) was very well done, with the exception of one statement that could be misleading. The author indicated that when examining the material in an opened oil filter, a magnet should be used to confirm that what might look like metal is actually metal.

If that material is steel, cast iron, or a 400-series stainless steel, the magnet will indeed attract it. Austenitic stainless steels (300 series) and any nonferrous metal will not be attracted.

George W. Genevro AOPA 404595
Salem, Oregon

Errata

The telephone area code for Michigan's Beaver Island (" Postcards: Beaver Island," May Pilot) has changed to 231.

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