New Member in CT

[NewEnglandPilot]

Good afternoon all! Just wanted to reach out and say hi. I'm a new member to both the Forum and the TICA170A itself.

I love in CT and will be starting to fly a '52 170B out of Danbury. I will be helping the owners with it in terms of flying, maintenance, etc. hopefully partnering with them and maybe eventually buying it if they move on to something bigger/faster, IFR capable, etc. It's a beautiful bird with a nice fairly stock VFR panel with comm and transponder. Just perfect for some fun flying.

I am the CT State Liaison for the Recreational Aviation Foundation and plan to do plenty of grass strip flying, camping, and some fishing & hiking with the plane. Hopefully I run across some of you in my travels. Let me if any of you are in the area and maybe we can meet up at a breakfast or lunch run sometime soon.

Looking forward to learning as much as I can about these great aircraft through the forum, newsletter, and all you members.

Thanks,

[GAHorn]

WELCOME, Drew!
If matters work out this year we will be holding our Annual Convention in Penn Yann, NY sometime in October, so I certainly hope we’ll be in contact and meet then, if not sooner.

Which airplane/serial with which are you participating? What other airplanes have you flown? Is your position with CT an appointment or other?
(A short bio would be great!)

[NewEnglandPilot]

I will be flying N2481D (S/N 20633) owned by Christine Rusbarsky (not sure yet if she's a member, will discuss with her and her husband Derek Lagasse) this weekend when we meet up for my first flight. I've got about 350 hours total time, but only 13ish in tailwheel, which I just got endorsed for this past summer. The majority of my time is split between the Piper 28s (tapered wing models) and Cessna 172s. I've also got time in Cessna 150/152s as well. For tailwheel, I got the endorsement in Piper Cubs and also have time in a Cessna 140, Just SuperSTOL, Aeronca 7AC Champ, and Maule MX-5. I got my license back in 1997 and flew actively until late 1999 then stopped due to career and family demands. Picked it up again in June 2018 and have been as active as I can be since.

The RAF position is an appointment by the board. State Liaisons help represent the RAF in each state (most states have Liaisons, but not all presently), interact with members, work to market our mission and gain new members/supporters, and work with local government agencies and airport owners/managers to help preserve and maintain access to airports of recreational value/interest, as well as helping to create new ones where/when possible. Presently, I am helping to enhance two CT airports with recreational use assets such as campsites, picnic areas, etc. to help make them are destinations for aviation gatherings, etc. (Waterbury N41, and Goodspeed 42B).

I look forward to the annual meeting in NY - now just need to hope we can wrangle control of this virus in the meantime so we can start having larger gatherings again. Would be amazing to meet a bunch of 170 pilots and see their birds as well. My friend Greg (owns the Maule MX-5 I've flown) and I held a fly-in at Waterbury (N41) this past October and of the 25 aircraft we had, there were two beautiful '52 170Bs in attendance, as well as some baby brothers (2 120s and a 140) as well as a couple of big brothers ('57 180 and a '49 195). It was a great time despite almost being rained out completely. We'll do it again this coming summer.

On the personal side, I have a background in finance (undergrad in accounting/finance and worked as an internal auditor for several years, working in insurance and lending industries) prior to moving over to the development/construction industry. With a master in construction management and about 10 years experience now, I work for a construction risk management consulting firms, aiding investors, lenders, and/or owners identify, understand, and mitigate/avoid certain risks on real estate development/construciton projects. We work nationwide; I focus primarily in the NY/NJ/PA and GA markets.

Looking forward to meeting many of you, chatting with folks on here, and learning as much as I can about the 170s.

[Richgj3]

Welcome Drew.
I’m at BROOKHAVEN, LI. KHWV. Stop in and I’ll buy you a cup of coffee. Are you on Super Cub.org? I know a lot of RAF guys are on there. I have N2444D, close to yours. My first 170 but I have 4000 hours in conventional gear airplanes. I did own a tailwheel converted 172 years ago. I’m retired so I’m always around. If you get a chance to come down or if you’d like to meet up somewhere, shoot me a text

5 one 6 9 oh 9 77 five 7

[NewEnglandPilot]

Sounds good Rich. I will reach out to you once I start flying it. Will be going up this weekend with the owner. Will probably do a couple more flights with him and/or another CFI Buddy with tailwheel time to build up a bit more time in type and with the tailwheel to get comfy. Looking forward to many breakfast and lunch runs with it soon though!

[c170b53]

Success Drew, thanks for joining our association

[DaveF]

Welcome, Drew! RAF is an outstanding organization, thanks for being a big part of it. I’ve been a member for a few years, and it’s a real pleasure to donate every time.

Enjoy flying the 170. My one piece of advice is: land slower! Took me several years to figure that out.

Dave

[NewEnglandPilot]

Thanks Dave,

What do you typically fly final at? Owner told me not to bother with the 40* flaps unless really necessary as he feels it provides an uncomfortable angel in final descent. Having flowing 172's with them, I know they do their job, but can forget about going around with them hanging out. On the 172 I typically stuck with 30 unless I was squeezing in somewhere over some tall trees and wanted to drop in just past them.

[170C]

Welcome to the 170 association Drew. Hope you can get comfy with the 170. Its a sweetheart once you get a bit more experience. Good luck on either partnering with the current owners or making an outright purchase. Let us know how you are progressing with 2481D.

[GAHorn]

Thanks Dave,

What do you typically fly final at? Owner told me not to bother with the 40* flaps unless really necessary as he feels it provides an uncomfortable angel in final descent. Having flowing 172's with them, I know they do their job, but can forget about going around with them hanging out. On the 172 I typically stuck with 30 unless I was squeezing in somewhere over some tall trees and wanted to drop in just past them.

On PaVEMENT: Approach speed is 75 mph. When I’m lightly loaded I used 30-Flaps. If 40-Flaps are used the rate-of-deceleration is just too rapid during the flare and I find the touchdown to occur too soon. If Heavily loaded...the additional mass/momentum works just fine with 40-Flaps. I also prefer wheel landings on pavement especially if cross-winds exist. If a strong or gusty x-wind then approach with minimum or zero flaps and as soon as possible after main-wheels touchdown reduce flaps to zero and counter heavy-braking with back elevator to come to a walking speed quickly.

On TURF: Approach speed is 75 and 30-Flaps until half-mile final then 60 until touchdown using 40-flaps and full-stall / 3-point landings religiously regardless of weight.

On takeoffs: Pavement, I use no flaps. I neutralize the elevator and leave it there (knuckles are about even with the doorpost) I apply full power and check the RPM, then look forward and initially might use just a “touch” of brake for alignment... as the airplane accelerates I use less brake and rely completely on rudder. With the elevator neutral the tail will rise on it’s own-accord and you will see the nose drop toward the horizon.. RESIST the temptation to “rotate” early at this point. Be patient.... keep the elevator neutral...and you will notice as the airplane accelerates further...the nose will drop a SECond time...(the IAS wil be approx 60)... NOW if you gently apply back-pressure on the elevator the airplane will “levitate” off the runway. Climb at 67 mph until obstacles are cleared then accelerate to 75-80 for best rate.

On TURF: Use 10 or 20 Flaps and the same neutral elevator technique as above EXCEPT as the tail rises the FIRst time... apply VERY SLIGHT back-pressure on the elevator and allow the aircraft to rise from the runway into ground-effect... Remain in ground-effect until 67-mph then maintain 67 until obstacle clearance... THEN when past obstacles reduce flaps to zero and accelerate to 75-80 for best rate.

Your technique may differ but those are my recommendations.

[DaveF]

Thanks Dave,

What do you typically fly final at? Owner told me not to bother with the 40* flaps unless really necessary as he feels it provides an uncomfortable angel in final descent. Having flowing 172's with them, I know they do their job, but can forget about going around with them hanging out. On the 172 I typically stuck with 30 unless I was squeezing in somewhere over some tall trees and wanted to drop in just past them.

I fly downwind at 60 and final at 50 with flaps 30 for a three-point full stall landing. Flaps 40 gives steeper approaches and I rarely use it. There aren’t any trees to clear where I fly! For wheel landings I fly final at 70.

[NewEnglandPilot]

Thanks for the tips guys! Hoping to get my first flight in this Sunday, weather and schedules permitting. Very much looking forward to flying this bird and being part of this group.

[Stankasica]

Welcome Drew, Swing by Chester KSNC anytime, we have a great group of wing nuts that fly out regularly.
Stan

[NewEnglandPilot]

Thanks Stan, I believe we've met. I organized the Waterbury (N41) fly-in last fall along with Greg Delp and you flew your 17 in (beautiful, but the way) along with another one if I remember right. Will definitely pop in some time to say hi.

[mmcmillan2]

20 degrees is my go to landing config. If I’m too high on final, I’ll use more flaps. 40 degrees is perfect for Stuka style descents

I really like 10 flaps on takeoff in the B model, but sometimes will run zero for a long elegant takeoff.

And I land 3 pointers 99% of the time. It does wheelies just fine though.

The plane really does great in all configurations.