Leading Edge Simulations Saab 340A Experience

[arb65912]

Hey Canox,

 

Great job man!

I have to stop messing with Gimp and start flying.

 

Here is mine, I am going to live it as it is for now but I just discovered some new tool I wanted to try.

 

I am going to work on the NZWN approach that was suggested here some time ago and then I will do some experiments with take off power and V speeds for  maximum load.

 

Cheers, AJ 

 

 

Edited February 15, 2014 by arb65912

[canox]

Haha nice I like the gradient.  The colour is just bleeding off because of the blistering speed of the SAAB 340

 

Alright post your experiences!

 

 

Edited February 15, 2014 by canox

[arb65912]

Very nice, Canox!  You are the Gimp master now.

 

I also repainted my LES Saab340A, added some LES, X-Aviation decals as a way of saying thank you for this outstanding plane, see videos in next reply.

[arb65912]

OK Gentlemen, I DID IT!!  Some time ago trevg wrote:

 

AJ, While you are in NZ.

Get your weather right ie: Nor wester 45 knots gusting 70 and see how you land on a typical day at NZWN, RWY 34.

 

NZWN landing on RWY 34 with 45 KTS  NW winds and Gusts 70.

Maximum gusts setting for X-Plane is 50 so I set it like the, see below.



I do not think it would be ever attempted in real life but this is simulation so I gave it a shot.

It was probably one of the hardest successful landings in my whole flight simulator career.

Enjoy the video, I think it is pretty cool.

Cheers, AJ

P.S. As always, for the best results, watch in on YouTube, HD and full screen.

[arb65912]

I wanted to make sure it was not just a good luck with landing so I took off and landed in the same weather conditions. It was hard but possible.  Enjoy!  Cheers, AJ

 

P.S. I will be working on video for take off  with extreme loads and temperatures, it will be interesting.

Then after that I will start working on approaches suggested some time ago by Jim.

[arb65912]

A little bit of subject...

 

I added some decals to my LES Saab340A livery to show the appreciation for all people who made the flight simulation experience so great in last few months.

 

Thank you again X-Aviation, Leading Edge Simulations and Maxx Teams.

 

I honestly see the day to night difference that happened recently.

 

Cheers, AJ

 

Edited February 16, 2014 by arb65912

[canox]

Lol your first NZWN video it looks like youre landing a helicopter!

[arb65912]

Lol,lol I know, well, that is what what requested so....

[Tsetsoh]

Lol your first NZWN video it looks like youre landing a helicopter!

Canox and AJ,

 

This looked like a fun landing.   It does look a little like a helicopter coming in.

 

I had a landing like this in real life.  I was flying a Cherokee 180 on a leg from Alabama into Arkansas and I hit an unpredicted strong headwind that slowed me down enough that I had to make an unscheduled refuel stop in Mississippi.  On landing the headwind was so strong that I completely stopped in about 10 feet.  I turned off on the threshold taxiway before the numbers!

 

My non-pilot passenger was un-impressed. . .

[canox]

Heh it was a graceful landing. SAAB swooped in, flapped its wings a bit then plopped right down

[trevg]

Well done AJ.  Congrats on your landing skills, It shows the undercarriage working really well, good work by the team on this plane.

btw, winds were not extreeme, just normal.    I have had worse in real life many times there as well as a few diverts..

Cheers

[arb65912]

Gentlemen, thank you very much for replies.

 

It is a great pleasure to fly and experiment with LES Saab340A , it takes some time and effort to make the videos and post them but it is YOUR input that keeps me motivated and willing to spend time so I can share my time in Saab here with you.

 

@Tsetsoh: it must have been a lifetime experience, I can only imagine that. I loved your comment about non-pilot passenger.   It is always funny AFTER, isn't it?

 

@trevg: wow, that was normal weather? It must take a long time to fly in the winds like that comfortably.

I was almost sure that conditions like that would call for diversion to alternate.

You are a brave man , in real life it would be more than a challenge.

 

@Canox: keep flying and painting buddy, always fun to read your comments and watch your videos.

 

Cheers, AJ

[canox]

Bad experience today.. succumbed to hypoxia at 14,000 feet in the SAAB.  

Completely forgot how to set up the cabin pressure.. I had my landing alt set. AC was working fine.  

I thought it was supposed to take care of pressure automatically? My differential pressure was at  0.1 when I passed out...

 

On a positive note I think I got my 'heavy' takeoffs on point.  More flaps and a long runway is necessary it seems.

When landing with heavy weight I find its also much easier to get a stable approach for landing set up.

 

Any tips on anti-ice systems? I know I should put them on in colder weather and when in clouds..  what about very cold and dry weather?

I was experimenting with the different anti-ice systems (prop, engine, surface de-icing) and was having a hard time figuring which was the best way to go about it.  I was flying in -30C to- 40C weather in clear skies.

[arb65912]

Hey Canox, that is weird, I also thought that pressure was set automatically. Are you sure you had the switch on AUTO and the valve closed?

 

I am happy you got your heavy load take-offs sorted out.

 

I was very busy last week, had to buy a new car, lots of stress but it seems like I can start enjoying Saab again very soon.

 

Anti-icing... no matter what you do, you will crash if you stay too long in the severe icing conditions using only Saab's available devices.

 

It is an X-Plane fault, icing is modeled too drastically.

 

All you can do if you want to stay in icing conditions and not to crash is to assign a button or key to "anti-ice_toggle" command.

At least that is what I do if I have to.

 

I will fly more and do some videos also soon. I missed LES Saab340A.

 

I still have many things to practice, videotape and share.

 

Cheers, AJ

[arb65912]

Hello Gentlemen,

 

Did you miss me?       I hope so.

 

Seriously, I did not give up my all time favorite  LES Saab340A and willingness to share my experiences with this great aircraft in this thread.

 

Real life was just super busy last two weeks or so, I had to buy a new car, freaked out thinking about making payments, adjusting expenses wherever possible and making bulletproof Excel budget sheet so I can enjoy the car and still eat, lol,lol.

 

It seems that things are sorted out to the degree that I can continue to share my joy of experimenting with and flying Saab with you. Where did I left off?

 

OK, Canox was taking off in the tropics with heavy loads and probably high temperature and asked for any hints on take offs.

Unfortunately, I am not a real pilot but I have done some studies and decided to share my findings here.

 

I would like to ask Leading Edge Simulation Team members who might read this reply,please correct me if I am stating something that is not true, I would hate others trying to use my hints in a wrong way. 

 

I am going to have 2 extreme conditions take offs, light, low and cold versus heavy, high and hot.

 

In both case, I will have ECS-ON ( Air Conditioning)  ENG A/I - ON ( Engine Anti Ice) in cold weather and I will use standard barometric pressure 29.92 in Hg for simplification.

 

1. Light Load, Low Temperature and Sea Level Takeoff

 

Fuel 2.00 hrs set from X-Plane .   Payload 0.00 lbs.

 

I looked at the charts from Saab Documentation folder ( see attached) and figured out my CTOT and V speeds as below.

 

CTOT 108%       V1 = 102,  Vrot = 106 and V2 = 108

 

I have set trim as per my usual take offs, soon after rotation nose pointed up A LOT, see video.

I deliberately left this part in video for fun.

It reminds me of the Fat Albert ( Blue Angels) Take Off with the little rocket engines , lol,lol.

If you have ever seen Blue Angels performing, you will know what I am  talking about.

 

Played a bit with video editing, adding text, music , transitions etc. hope it looks more interesting.

 

Enjoy the video, moving on to Aspen KASE ..... for a heavy , hot and high altitude take off, keep your fingers crossed..... they had a crash in Aspen recently. 

 

Cheers, AJ  

 

 

Edited March 1, 2014 by arb65912

[john82088]

AJ:<br /><br />From your posts, you seem to have mastered the SAAB. One problem I am having is how to taxi smoothly. My speed continues to fluctuate back and forth and my taxing is becoming more like a slow roller coaster. I am constantly adjusting my throttle back and forth. Is there a way to have a constant smooth taxi like the CRJ2?<br /><br />Thanks for any help you can offer.<br /><br />John

[arb65912]

Hi John,

 

Thank you for kind words but I have NOT mastered LES Saab340A , at least not yet. 

 

Unfortunately, I do not know how to taxi smooth without using brakes.

 

 

Check this thread , it seems to be a normal behavior unless Jim will touch it down a bit.

 

The interesting part is pasted below.

 

Now I have learned that I can use Power Lever in REV ( Reverse ) range to control taxi speed.

 

Enjoy this awesome aircraft, there is tons to learn. 

 

Cheers, AJ 

 

When taxying after initial movement the aircraft will tend to continue to accelerate unless you inhibit its progress by retarding the power levers to control forward speed. On down slope taxiways you will also need to use the brakes to maintain a constant taxi speed.

 

 

http://forums.x-pilot.com/topic/6532-plane-start-moving-while-engines-in-beta-and-throttles-in-groud-idle/

[arb65912]

Wow! I guess you kept your fingers crossed because I am still virtually alive.

 

Tried at Aspen, Colorado KASE 8440 MSL, 80 deg F around 27 deg C  Fuel for 2.00 Hrs  TOW 27273 lbs.

From the charts CTOT should be set to 72%.

First attempt failed. Could not get enough speed for take off, aborted.

 

To be able to take off, I had to lower the TOW down to 20,000 lbs and did not use CTOT.

 

Kept the PL so the oil temperature did not go over red range, barely took off, you can see that the main wheels were a bit on the grass for several feet before I was airborne.

 

Of course I got the stick shaker warning as well... 

 

In other words, tremendous difference.

 

I do not know how to do it but maybe someone could tell me how to calculate maximum TOW for a particular conditions ( elevation, temperature, barometric pressure ).

 

Anyway, the experiment was completed.

 

Next time I will experiment with hypoxia and then visible ice accumulation.

 

Enjoy !    Cheers, AJ 

 

[canox]

Hey 

 

Im still here too.. just busy as well.  What kind of car did you buy?

 

Thanks for the takeoff videos.  I noticed your elevator trims are really high in the heavy weight takeoff (well compared to what I use).  Im usually at the first white line at the bottom of the green arc.

I found lower elevator trim helped me get more speed on the runway and a gentler rotation was required to keep speed on liftoff.  I try not to pull back more than 10 degrees.

 

I wonder what a 'normal' everyday weight setup in a SAAB 340 would be? How many passengers on avg. and how much fuel loaded per flight.  Baggage weight limit.

I like how this plane keeps you a rookie.. really need to set it up properly for different conditions. Help you learn a lot though.

[JGregory]

AJ:<br /><br />From your posts, you seem to have mastered the SAAB. One problem I am having is how to taxi smoothly. My speed continues to fluctuate back and forth and my taxing is becoming more like a slow roller coaster. I am constantly adjusting my throttle back and forth. Is there a way to have a constant smooth taxi like the CRJ2?<br /><br />Thanks for any help you can offer.<br /><br />John

John,

 

It is normal procedure to adjust the power levers frequently during taxi.  

[john82088]

Okay, good to know.<br /><br />Thanks<br /><br />John

[arb65912]

Gentlemen,

I was about to start the flight on FSE   http://www.fseconomy.net:81/index.jsp     and the sky looked so good that I decided to shoot a video.

No comment needed, just enjoy the video. 

Cheers, AJ 

P.S. I almost forgot, I was not drunk on take off roll, lol,lol, I just wanted to record the video live so you can hear the sound of my Saab340A. 
Unfortunately, X-Plane reply cuts the sound in external views.

 

P.S' I also posted that video in SkyMaxx Pro Forums.

If that is considered a cross posting, please remove this reply.

I hope that it is not a cross posting since the video refers to Saab and Sky Maxx, many pilots just read one of the forums , I assume.  

[arb65912]

Hey 

 

Im still here too.. just busy as well.  What kind of car did you buy?

 

Thanks for the takeoff videos.  I noticed your elevator trims are really high in the heavy weight takeoff (well compared to what I use).  Im usually at the first white line at the bottom of the green arc.

I found lower elevator trim helped me get more speed on the runway and a gentler rotation was required to keep speed on liftoff.  I try not to pull back more than 10 degrees.

 

I wonder what a 'normal' everyday weight setup in a SAAB 340 would be? How many passengers on avg. and how much fuel loaded per flight.  Baggage weight limit.

I like how this plane keeps you a rookie.. really need to set it up properly for different conditions. Help you learn a lot though.

 

Canox !!! 

 

I thought you "quit".

 

Good to hear you are still here just busy.

As you know I have been busy myself but things got better now. 

 

I bought brand new Toyota Camry LE 2014, $300 for 6 years. 

Made a super detailed Excel budget so we can still eat., lol,lol

 

Elevator trim on heavy take offs, well I might have it too high.

Your method seems to work nice assuming that you do not need to climb at Vx , I guess it is all relative and linked.

 

Yes, this plane keeps your learning curve going, love it.

 

Enjoy your flights and keep sharing your experiences.

 

Cheers, AJ 

[arb65912]

Gentlemen,

 

I was quite busy in real life and did not have a chance to post here, it kind of sorted out now so here I am AGAIN.

 

This weekend I was having a long talk with my LES Saab340A pilots and decided to go for their requests.

 

I gave them long awaited and needed glasses, they have been complaining  about it for a long time.

 

Later on I was not sure it it was a right decision but after a long personal talk with Captain I just bought him a wig... :lol:   I think he is much happier now.

 

Cheers, AJ 

 

[canox]

Still flying the SAAB..

Been a few weeks but took her out for a spin around Lausanne..dicey approach but pulled a go around and 2nd try was on point

 

Assetto Corsa racing simulator has been taking my time recently.  Too much speed.. gotta hit the clear skies for some gentle flying.

Roads? Where we're going.. we don't need roads.

Edited April 2, 2014 by canox