Flying a 172 with Autopilot?

Corky Scott wrote:

I just tried using the AP on the C172SP I rent from the local FBO last
time I flew, about two weeks ago. I'd never actually used it during
training or in the two years since I got my pilots license, and I
always wanted to try it.

So two weeks ago I did the preflight checkout of the unit, and then
took off and climbed to 3000 feet. I punched in the "AP" button, the
"ALT" button and selected "Heading" as a choice. Then I sat back and
watched while it turned the few degrees needed to lock to the
Directional Gyro's heading and held it there while sticking precisely
to 3,000 feet. The morning was hot and moist and very very still so
the AP had little work to do once it got where it was set.

Yeah, it's too bad we don't usually get instruction in how to use these things.
If you're going to self-instruct be sure to explore the edges of what happens in
altitude-hold when the airspeed bleeds off. Does it disconnect, or fly you into
a stall, or what?

Self-instruction is better than no instruction at all, and may be better than
what you would get if you asked an instructor.

Dave

Prices fluctuate - last week Cub Foods had (yummy) bing cherries at
$1.48/pound. This week they're almost $4 again.

You should see the price of strawberries! They go up and down like oil
futures!

Well, more like "up" I guess. :-(

Of course, they're as big as apples right now, and incredibly sweet. I
can't believe I never used to eat them unless they were ground up in a milk
shake!

Let's see ...hey you're in luck. Grapes are only $1.29/pound over at the
Hy-Vee this week.

You've got Hy-Vees in Minnesota? I thought they were only in Iowa and
points south...
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

I lost 40 pounds over the last couple of years. The Pitts is definitely
more spritely at the top of the verticals than it used to be. I can do
some cool gyro stuff I don't remember doing before!

FORTY POUNDS? Wow, that's, like, a whole kid!

Congrats, man. How'd you do it?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Hell, that NUTHIN'. In 1991 I lost 150 pounds.

130 pounds of her and 20 pounds of me.

{;-)

Jim


"
FORTY POUNDS? Wow, that's, like, a whole kid!

Congrats, man. How'd you do it?

I'm not sure if you're aware of it, but most autopilot manufacturers publish
the POH's for their autopilots on their websites in .pdf format.

You might find these helpful...


"Corky Scott" wrote in message
news
On Mon, 04 Jul 2005 18:19:29 GMT, "VE5JL"
wrote:

Is there any one here flying a 172 using an autopilot?

I think on longer flights (3+ hours) and autopilot would be an advantage,
however there are some in the old school that think it is not necessary.

I'd like some opinions.

thx

Joe

I just tried using the AP on the C172SP I rent from the local FBO last
time I flew, about two weeks ago. I'd never actually used it during
training or in the two years since I got my pilots license, and I
always wanted to try it.

So two weeks ago I did the preflight checkout of the unit, and then
took off and climbed to 3000 feet. I punched in the "AP" button, the
"ALT" button and selected "Heading" as a choice. Then I sat back and
watched while it turned the few degrees needed to lock to the
Directional Gyro's heading and held it there while sticking precisely
to 3,000 feet. The morning was hot and moist and very very still so
the AP had little work to do once it got where it was set.

I tried moving the compass bug a bit to one side or the other and the
AP dutifully tracked to the new heading as it should. I did not try
using it to track the GPS or the VOR, although it could.

I can see this as being a really important tool when flying solo and
having to change frequencies or look one up or any of a number of
occasions when having the Auto Pilot on would be of valuable
assistance.

I'm seriously considering purchasing a non certified unit for my
homebuilt.

Corky Scott

On Wed, 06 Jul 2005 15:32:08 GMT, "Lakeview Bill"
wrote:

I'm not sure if you're aware of it, but most autopilot manufacturers publish
the POH's for their autopilots on their websites in .pdf format.

You might find these helpful...

I actually did read up on how to use the AP before trying it. The
training materials included a thick book that was like a POH for the
172, but was for training only. It has a supplement covering the
operation of the auto pilot. My instructor has long since moved on to
become a jet commuter pilot, but I've kept up contact with the school
and the instructor who is still there and he encouraged me to read up
on it in that manual.

He also said that he'd be happy to fly with me to check me out on it,
but I was loath to spend the $45/hour. I will continue to try out the
various things it can do as I pick my good weather flying days.

Corky Scott

And make sure you know all the ways to turn it off/disable it.

"Dave Butler" wrote in message
news:1120659733.724673@sj-nntpcache-3...
Yeah, it's too bad we don't usually get instruction in how to use these
things.
If you're going to self-instruct be sure to explore the edges of what
happens in
altitude-hold when the airspeed bleeds off. Does it disconnect, or fly you
into
a stall, or what?

Self-instruction is better than no instruction at all, and may be better
than
what you would get if you asked an instructor.

Dave

Na.... no infighting... just great sense of humours. After all, in the land
of OSH, beer, American Champion, beer, The Hay Bros, beer, Mitchell, Bong,
Basler, beer, Slayton, Sholl, Whittman, beer, The Packers, beer and where
people wear cheese on their heads, do you think that there could ever be any
infighting??? ) Well, maybe a little between beers.
Jim

You made me laugh out loud with that one, Jay! A whole kid!

I did it pretty much the same way you did. Made myself smart about food and
how the body uses it and realized the whole low-fat but high carb diet I was
eating was all wrong. Didn't go the Atkins route because that's a bit
extreme, but I realized that the balance of what I took in wasn't what my
body really needed to be healthy. So I set a few rules and goals for
myself.

Rule Number One: Don't take any rule or goal too seriously! Have fun but
with an eye to shedding some weight and being healthy. Weeks I was pretty
disciplines, weekends I gave myself a break and loosened up on the rules.

2. Aim for a pound off per week. Some weeks I made it, some weeks I
didn't. Oh, well. I got there in the end.
3. Eat food like we're meant to. Humans didn't evolve to eat processed
food. If the cavemen didn't eat it, then I won't (refer to rule 1). This
means eating stuff in as natural a state as possible. If it comes in a box
or a jar, I usually don't eat it.
4. Minimize bread, rice, pasta, potatoes, and cereal because I simply don't
need as much of it as I was eating
5. Bulk up on veggies, 5 colors a day if possible. You can eat as many
veggies as you want and they're still good for you.
6. I wasn't going to be a food nazi and bore my friends rigid with talk
about dietary habits (this made sure I still had friends to notice the
weight loss!)
7. Eat smaller meals more frequently. Breakfast, snack on an apple at
1030, lunch, snack on a banana at 1630, dinner; that sort of thing. That
way I'm not so hungry when meal time comes so I eat better and less.

There were some other bits and pieces in there but that was the bulk of it.
The motivation was watching the belt and collar on my shirts get too big. I
went from tight 36" pants down to loose 32". I'm now on the smallest notch
of a belt I nearly gave to Goodwill because I couldn't get it on.

Started at about 200 lbs and got down to a low of 157. I've put some of it
back on because I've come off some of my discipline, but I'm back on it and
losing it again. This was all without a lick of exercise, by the way.

Like I said, I'd rather put that 40 lbs in the fuel tank (or into
performance)! That was enough motivation for me!!

Good luck with your habits. Sounds like you're on to a winner!

Shawn




"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:kSRye.138502$xm3.89132@attbi_s21...
I lost 40 pounds over the last couple of years. The Pitts is definitely
more spritely at the top of the verticals than it used to be. I can do
some cool gyro stuff I don't remember doing before!

FORTY POUNDS? Wow, that's, like, a whole kid!

Congrats, man. How'd you do it?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Started at about 200 lbs and got down to a low of 157. I've put some of
it back on because I've come off some of my discipline, but I'm back on it
and losing it again. This was all without a lick of exercise, by the way.

How tall are you? If I got down to 157, I'd be in the hospital!

(I'm 6' tall...)

I'm trying to maintain a good balance with exercise, too. Working out every
day with a 14-year old keeps you in pretty good shape! (I equalize his
excess energy by making him work out right after he gets up. Heh, heh,
heh... :-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"