Test Pilot

GENERAL

1. What place on Earth has received more rain in one year than any other?
2. Why do twin-engine jetliners at maximum-allowable gross takeoff weight typically have much better climb rates after takeoff than similarly loaded three- and four-engine jetliners?
3. What is the only tailwheel airplane currently serving active duty in the U.S. Air Force (excluding training aircraft at the Air Force Academy)?
4. "Born in Missouri, I left home at 15 and eventually joined the Canadian Royal Flying Corps. I went to England, flew in France, and downed several German aircraft during World War I. I was a barnstormer, flew for a warlord in China, and was a stunt pilot in films such as Howard Hughes' Hell's Angels. While flying in South America in search of gold, I discovered one of the world's seven natural wonders. Who am I?"
5. From reader Steve Madorsky: Considering the relatively imprecise lateral guidance provided by the four-course radio ranges of yesteryear, what was the lowest "minimum descent altitude" allowed during an instrument approach utilizing a leg of a four-course range?
6. What was the first aircooled radial engine developed for aviation?
7. What is the leading cause of high-speed rejected takeoffs (RTOs) made in turbine-powered aircraft?
8. From reader George Shanks: During World War II, Allied bomber pilots dreaded flying into areas protected by anti-aircraft cannon fire called flak (from the German flieger abwehr kanone). Why are the metal fragments expelled from exploding shells called shrapnel?

MULTIPLE CHOICE

9. In 1930, a United Air Lines stewardess was required to perform which of the following functions?
   1. Offer a rigid military salute to the captain and copilot as they board.
   2. Swat flies in the cabin after takeoff.
   3. Warn passengers not to throw lit cigarettes out of the windows.
   4. Accompany passengers to the railroad station in case of flight cancellation.
   5. All of the above.
10. From reader Bill Rimer: When Neil Armstrong was assigned to carrier duty and flew his first combat missions during the Korean War, he was a _______ in the U.S. Navy.
    1. midshipman
    2. ensign
    3. lieutenant commander
    4. commander

TRUE OR FALSE

12. The holes drilled into the metal tips of wood propellers provide a place for termites to escape.
13. Chimpanzees were used during the in-flight supersonic testing of the ejection seats or pods developed for the Convair B-58 Hustler.
14. A pilot is in cruise flight in a typical light airplane equipped with an autopilot and electric pitch trim. The autopilot is off, and the pilot uses the switch on his control wheel to input a little nose-down trim. When he removes his finger from the trim switch, he notices that the trimming continues even though the autopilot is not being used; he is experiencing a runaway trim. The fastest and best way to stop this trimming is to depress the autopilot-disconnect switch on the control wheel.

ANSWERS

1. Cherrapunji, India, received 1,041 inches (almost 87 feet) of rain in 1860 (and 366 inches in only one month). Water is now trucked into Cherrapunji, a result of pollution and deforestation.
2. Jetliners must meet minimum initial climb gradients following an engine failure before liftoff (after V ₁). An engine failure in a twin results in losing 50-percent power, whereas other jetliners lose only 33 or 25 percent of their power. The twin, therefore, must be "overpowered" to begin with.
3. The Lockheed U2 spy plane (colloquially called Dragon Lady).
4. Jimmy Angel discovered 2,937-foot-tall Angel Falls (15 times as tall as Niagara Falls) near Canaima, Venezuela, in 1933.
5. The lowest "MDA" was 200 feet agl. Today's pilot may not descend so low (unless in visual conditions) without benefit of descent guidance.
6. The Wright J-1 Whirlwind engine developed by Charles Lawrance in 1921 had nine cylinders and developed 200 horsepower. The Wright J-5C used in the Spirit of St. Louis in 1927 developed 237 horsepower at 1,950 rpm.
7. Traffic conflicts result in significantly more high-speed aborts than any other cause. The second leading cause is tire failure.
8. Lt. Henry Shrapnel (1761-1842) of the British Royal Artillery suggested that artillery shells exploding above enemy troops and spreading small musket balls with explosive velocity would be more lethal than shells without such "shrapnel."
9. (e) My, how times have changed.
10. (a) In the late 1940s, Congress approved a short-lived program to revitalize the Navy's depleted flying force. This resulted in more than 1,000 combat pilots being assigned to the fleet wearing the insignia and uniform of a midshipman.
11. 1. (c); 2. (a); 3. (b) Mussolini had a civilian pilot license issued by Italy's Ministero Dell Aeronautica but never flew in combat.
12. False. Holes allow moisture to escape centrifugally after collecting between the blades and the metal tips. Such propellers should be parked horizontally to prevent moisture from draining down over time and creating imbalanced blades.
13. False. Chimps were too small to substitute as pilots. Bears were used instead. It is unknown if the bears volunteered for this assignment.
14. True. In the vast majority of light airplanes, depressing and holding down the autopilot-disconnect switch interrupts the trimming (removes power from the trim motor). This allows the pilot time to disable the trim using whatever other switches or circuit breakers are available to him.

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