Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2012/03/07
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Hi Ken, Again, the airplane is flying in a mass of air, and all of the instruments respond to its movements relative to that mass of air. As long as the proper speed and attitude are maintained relative to that mass of air, the flight is stable, maybe a little bumpy. A headwind simply moves that mass of air over the ground, much as you see the clouds moving overhead. It can certainly slow down the passage of the airplane relative to the ground, and can cause a marginally-planned flight to run short of fuel, but there is no likelihood of a stall, because a stall is caused by a lack of airspeed relative to the air mass in which the airplane is flying. Now, when the flight is over and the pilot approaches for a landing, then he must consider both airspeed and groundspeed. This is the scenario where stalls are most likely to occur. A gusty day usually requires one to maintain a little extra speed so that a relaxation in the wind velocity will not cause the airspeed to get dangerously low. I hope this helps. I've been involved in aerodynamics through education and work for more than 60 years. What seems obvious to me can certainly be puzzling to someone with a different background. Jim Nichols Tullahoma, TN USA ----- Original Message ----- From: "Ken Carney" <kcarney1 at cox.net> To: "Leica Users Group" <lug at leica-users.org> Sent: Wednesday, March 07, 2012 7:12 PM Subject: Re: [Leica] Off Topic--Stella Awards > Jim, > > I am not a pilot (I could never understand why you couldn't look out over > the dashboard), but: with severe headwinds, what about a stall with a > small airplane? Just wondering. > > Ken > > On 3/7/2012 6:55 PM, Jim Nichols wrote: >> Bob, >> >> As a pilot, I can't let this go unchallenged. An autopilot senses >> airspeed, etc, with respect to the RELATIVE wind. A headwind would cost >> the pilot speed over the ground, or groundspeed, but would not affect the >> ability of the airplane and autopilot to maintain flight. He would not >> settle to the ground except in two ways: 1) He encountered rising >> terrain. Or, 2) He ran out of fuel. >> >> There has to be a better answer. >> >> Jim Nichols >> Tullahoma, TN USA >> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Robert Baron" >> <robertbaron1 at gmail.com> >> To: "Leica Users Group" <lug at leica-users.org> >> Sent: Wednesday, March 07, 2012 6:27 PM >> Subject: Re: [Leica] Off Topic--Stella Awards >> >> >>> ==On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 6:14 PM, Ken Carney <kcarney1 at cox.net> wrote: >>> >>>> >>>>> >>>>> I live in Oklahoma and have heard the Winnebago version, in various >>>> incarnations, for probably 30 years now. There is also one about a >>>> doctor >>>> who put his airplane on autopilot and went back to take a nap. >>>> >>>> >>>> Ken >>>> >>>> >>> There actually was a lawyer in Oklahoma City who would set the alarm on >>> his >>> wrist watch, set the autopilot and doze off for a while. >>> >>> When he finally had his fatal crash the assumption was he was asleep >>> while >>> he ran into a headwind and the airplane slowly lost speed and settled >>> into >>> the ground. >>> >>> This is a true story and, speaking as a lawyer who knew him, I'll say it >>> was just more proof that you can't always fool Mother Nature. >>> >>> --Bob >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Leica Users Group. >>> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information >>> >>> >> >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Leica Users Group. >> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information >> > > > _______________________________________________ > Leica Users Group. > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information > >