xftrplt

Patrick, Taxing, running-up, and launching into single-pilot, S/E, night IFR with an known electrical malfunction can certainly be a learning and/or religious experience. Was the flight that important? Are we at DEFCON 2 and the news hasn't gotten to rural MD? Glad all is well. Dick PS: The burning smell reported by the truck was probably just your seat cushion.

And: The Safety Pukes have gone to "the other place." Everybody can "hack it"...even O-5's and above. You win all the quarters on the range...and all the debriefs, too. There's no 35-10. Every trap is a 3-wire. There's always another stage of AB.

Brett, Your Francophone ancestors are surely spinning at your spelling faux pas. Dick

Quote: gregwatts As I descend and get closer to the airport.......the gap closes. I believe that the 696 measuresthe distance from the airport to the unit....whereas the 430 measures from the airport to a point on the ground over which I am flying. The discrepancy only exists when the fix is an airport. A geometry thing.....I guess

I suppose the right thing to do would be to file the correct equipment suffix and then just ask for direct. Exactly.

Byron, Since you elected to try your case in moot court, I'll offer an opinion: Your logic may be correct, but you weren't /I for reasons expressed above. You may try to defend your position to the Feds, but listen to your copilot, or, as they say, your hearing will improve at the hearing. (Of course, there's no problem...until there's a problem.)

Curious. What was your altitude and phase of flight?

An Aspen Pro provides a RMI display with source-selectable needles on a slaved compass card. I'm not familiar with Garmin and other brands, but I should think they offer similar displays.

That's cheating. Clearly, if you've got a GPS, you ain't lost.

C-C-C is all well and good. (nice little mnemonic) But the devil's in the details of how? In a word: Aviate.

1. Slow to Max Endurance. (If you don't know where you're going, don't get there fast.) 2. If fuel not a problem, DVFR, think of landfall navigation. You must have some idea of where you are, i.e., if roughly east of the Mississippi, head west, find the river, follow it. Most areas have natural borders, and even the Great Plains states have Interstates, and RR tracks generally lead to towns. (This may not work in, say, the Australian Outback.) Circling is unappealing to me, if I don't know where I am, why stay there? Climbing is generally a good idea. Now, if you generally know where you're going, Max Range speed is appropriate. 3. Transmit Pan-Pan on 121.5, or, if appropriate, Mayday. (Side note: how many of us monitor Guard on Comm 2? I always do.) 4. Squawk 7600. 7700, if fuel is a concern or Mayday declared. I could go on, but the above actions are a good start and certainly food for thought. Never been lost, just bewildered often.

Maybe a bit higher, Byron. A 530 pulls just under 4 amps @ 13.75VDC for GPS/Nav with Comm in receive mode and 10 amps when transmitting. An Aspen PFD is 2.4 amps. Pitot heat is, I believe, ~ 10 amps. Prop heat > 15 amps

I guess I'm not stating it well. For a given size alternator, the more amps, the more heat and wear. (Think of regenerative braking.) There's no free lunch in nature. For a given amp load, the larger the alternator, the lower its percent of rated power. Sure, it produces the same heat for the same load, but it's engineered to higher specs to tolerate and/or shed the heat.

In other words to have max available amps is pointless since if the alt goes the amps are useless and you are really left only with the battery anyway? Pete, This time: No and yes. The larger alternator is running at a smaller percentage of its rated output, thus not "working as hard," and less likely to fail (all other things being equal). But, if it were to fail, all you've got are the amp-hours stored in your battery. [using a battery that won't hold a charge will lead to premature alternator failure, as it puts a continuous load on the alternator. You might consider adding-up up your amperage draw at cruise and comparing that to your alternator's rated output. (Though I haven't done this myself.)]

...is a full battery good for the alternator too because it doen't have to work as hard since the battery is full? Or it makes no difference to the alternator since its running anyway anytime the motor is running? Yes. No. The more power (amperage) an alternator produces, the greater the stress on its drivetrain, internal bearings, and the more heat it makes. I suspect, as we've added fancier nav displays, engine monitors, etc., our alternators work harder, unless they've been upgraded. Having a fully charged battery will demand less of the alternator(s), which can't be a bad thing--not to mention the safety aspect of having the nominal 30 minutes of electrical power in the event of the alternator failing.

Cumulus clouds can be just "puffies" and are often unavoidable. Now a Cumulonimbus is something else. A kitten :: a tiger, dude.

WTFO?

Sorry, guys, I shouldn't have used the term "synonymous" in acceding that--in this precise context--the terms appear--at least on the high-school level--to be used interchangeably (according to several math sites, like wikianswers). To me, however, it injects a unnecessary degree of imprecision, as José points out. And I gladly respectfully defer to our resident math professor, who states they aren't interchangeable.

Inversely and indirectly are synonymous. I stand corrected.

Quote: allsmiles The relationship between Va and turbulence is defined by Newton's 2nd Law, F=ma or a=F/m. Acceleration, a, is indirectly proportional to mass, m. For a given force F a lighter object will accelerate faster than a heavier one. Recall that our airplanes' load characteristics are expressed in g's which is an acceleration quantity (aka acceleration due to gravity.) To be sure we don't exceed our airframe's g load acceleration we need to be sure that according to a=F/m, a (or g) remains within safe margins. The only way we can control this is through airspeed! This is also due to F=ma because speed (velocity expressed as acceleration) is directly proportional to force F. Force F is thus a function of airspeed! The lighter airplane is unable to withstand the same maximum force F as the heavier one. Simply because the lighter one accelerates easier and will exceed its g loading. This is why a lighter airplane needs to be flown slower in turbulence! ------------------ 1. Thanks, Bryan, for correctly defining the terms and getting this thread back on course. 2. Allsmiles makes several errors. a. Acceleration is inversely (not "indirectly") proportional to mass. b. "Speed (velocity expressed as acceleration)" is a non sequitur. One cannot/does not express velocity as acceleration--which is the rate of change of velocity. But, maybe, he means higher IAS allows greater G available, which, of course, is true. c. "The lighter airplane is unable to withstand the same maximum force F as the heavier one." Incorrect. (And, in fact, the reverse is usually is true.) Rather--for a given IAS and AOA--an aircraft achieves/experiences greater G when lighter.

This topic has been discussed at length on this forum. Suggest a search for "hypoxia", and read the previous threads.

Just an unabashed bump to the top to insure all who may care will see the above post. So far we have about six shooters. Questions, email me or call. (301-501-4601)

I have the BM on the hat shelf, then hard-wired (including the temp sensor) to the battery (a Concorde!) via a small hole. The BM is connected and powered up with AC whenever the acft is in the hangar. Use the quick disconnect to isolate the BM when flying or parked without AC; if left connected, it will drain the battery.

Furthermore, METARS, TAFs, area lightning, and cell movement are available on XM. And data delays are also present when using FW.

When: Sunday, April 22, Arrive 1000, Shoot 1100-1500 Where: Somerset County Airport (2G9), with some of cheapest 100LL around. ($5.00 as of 3/26/12.) (Shoot at: http://www.buffercreeksportingclays.com/) Contact: Dick Schwartz at dickschwartz@mindspring.com Fly-in to 2G9 and shoot 100 rounds of Sporting Clays at Buffer Creek. Transportation will be provided from airport to Buffer Creek (15 min. drive). Cost: $30 per round of 100 clays, with your own ammo and gun. A lunch (hamburgers, etc.) will be available for about $6. Golf carts are available (and recommended) at $5/person. NOTAMS: - Please be on time: ARRIVE NLT 1000L. We don't have the resources to make unnecessary trips to the airport. - Due to the facilities, we will have to limit this to the first 20 shooter who sign up. - Sign up by emailing me--dickschwartz@mindspring.com--by Sunday, April 15 with: -- Number of shooters -- N-number -- Cell number - If you have a 12 or 20 gauge shotgun, bring it. Doubles or autoloaders suggested. Field guns are fine. There will be a few guns available for rental, so if you have a spare that you don't mind someone else using, bring it. - Ammo is for sale at Buffer Creek at reasonable prices, but you certainly can bring your own. Nothing larger than #7.5 shot allowed. 7.5 or 8 shot recommended. You will need approximately 125 rounds. (Federal, Remington, or Winchester Skeet/Trap loads sold at WallyWorld are just fine.) No Magnum Loads. - Bring eye protection: sunglasses/shooting glasses. Earplugs are for sale for about $0.25. - No rifles or pistols allowed. (Disclaimer: Neither I nor any of my friends/family have any connection with Buffer Creek, financial or otherwise.)