Methods used to test top speed....

[eddiek]

I am sure someone has posted the method used to test a plane's top speed at alt.  However, I missed it.
After my countrymen eliminated all the cons within 4 sectors, I found myself all alone at 26K in my Jug and decided to see what she would do......was pretty surprised....soon as I figure out how to post screenshots I'll put them here....

[Karnak]

1: Climb 5,000ft above the alt to be tested without using WEP (you want to save it for the test).

2: Activate WEP and dive to the desired alt.  You should now be going much faster than any potential maximum speed.

3: Hit your autolevel key (default is "x") and wait for the aircraft to cease decelerating.  Give it a few more minutes to absolutely stabilize its speed.

4: Check the speed.

[ 06-28-2001: Message edited by: Karnak ]

[wells]

You can nail it to within 1 mph by using speed trim instead of trying to read the instrument where the needles are 5 mph thick..heheh

Just type .speed xxx (<---whatever you think the speed is)

Then switch from level trim to speed trim.  If the plane climbs, you picked a speed that was too slow.  Hit level trim again while you type in a faster speed and try it again.  Keep in mind that the speeds you type in are the indicated speeds, not the true speeds.  Likewise, if the plane dives, you will need to type in a slower speed for the next attempt.

[hblair]

Ed, don't bother. The d11 is supposed to be a slow pig. So lets just leave it at that.

<g,d,r>

 

[funkedup]

The trim method is pretty cool.  Wells gets 10 nerd points for inventing it.  Of course it assumes there is no steady state error in the auto trim controller.  But since HT has a controls background (like all great engineers   ), I'm sure that isn't true!

[juzz]

wells didn't invent it - Kurt Tank did!