Path: jabba.kesmai.com!usenet From: cen09504@centuryinter.net (Earl) Newsgroups: bigweek.general Subject: Re: Wishlist - Variometer Date: Fri, 02 Apr 99 22:40:45 GMT Organization: Kesmai Corporation Lines: 38 Message-ID: References: NNTP-Posting-Host: ppp251.wi.centuryinter.net X-Newsreader: Quarterdeck Message Center [2.00] It's a slip or skid indicator. It looks like the one Frenchy put up, but ours were incorporated with a turn needle indicator. We called the entire insrument simply the "needle and ball". The needle was devised so that one needle width of turn was a 2-minute turn, a double needle width was a 1-minute turn (meaning that one could do a 360-degree turn in 1 minute). This instrument was important for low approach procedures when using the old style radio stations and before ILS. The ball (variometer) was important for dive bombing. If the ball wasn't centered at bomb-release, the bomb would deflect laterally. Jet aircraft have a string attached to the nose (called the "yaw string") with a line painted there. When the string is on the line, the aircraft isn't slipping or skidding. ^Lars mentioned seeing an elaborate slip/skid indicator on a float plane. I have never flown float planes, but believe it to be very important to to be in a non-slip/skid at point of touchdown - much more so than wheel landings because of structural strength differences and the forces water would have on the pontoons. Flying instructors placed great emphasis on keeping the ball centered during turns. I found that I could turn a P-39 sharpest with the ball just a wee bit below center. Earl ------------------------Reply Separator---------------------------- > I am considering a new wishlist item - a variometer (translating from > Russian letter by letter). It is a glass tube which goes from one > side of cockpit to another. There is a small ball inside. So if you > slip the plane, the ball travels across. Somebody with RL expirience > please tell me if it is a useful instrument. I bet Eyeballs must have > one in Yak-18T, because it is there. > > --Pete