Possible F6F flight model bug.

[Krusty]

I flew the F6F last night, lost my rudder, and flew back to land. No other damage, but I could not keep a straight course. I don't mean a slight drifting, either. I was flying due east to my field, and kept drifting as much as the 120-degree notch (from the 90 degree notch) to the right in about 12-15 seconds. That's a VERY drastic yaw. I wasn't missing my stabilizer, just my rudder.

I tried various engine settings, including minimum RPM, maximum MAP, vice versa, and minimum RPM and MAP, and it didn't seem any engine setting changed the amouth of drift I had (which, if modeled properly they should, lower settings = lower torque, = lower yaw, right?). [EDIT: Also, during these tests I slowed down considerably across the range from 300mph to 180 ish, alt was constant at about 3-4k, and the yaw was still there even at slower speeds]

I did get down to land safely, but I had to fly hands-on for an entire sector banked to the left 10 degrees to counter the constant right drift. Doesn't seem that this should be the way it is flying without a rudder. The rest of the stabilizer was still fully intact.


Is this a bug in the F6F flight model?

[NOT]

you had a damaged rudder, the plane flew accordingly. no bug.




NOT

[Krusty]

The bug is the degree of impact from the missing rudder. It was like flying a twin with 1 engine shut off.

That's a radical amount of yaw for something as simple as a rudder. The rest of the flight surface was intact.

Also, IF the rudder were simply adding more surface area to help yaw, why didn't reducing RPM, MAP, or shutting the engine off negate this yawing motion? The engine creates this force, so reducing settings should have reduced or stopped the yaw.

I've run into something similar with a P-40E without wingtips. Kept rolling heavily to one side and no amount of reducing RPM or shutting the engine off would stop it.

I think there are some bugs in the system, and was pointing out one possible bug.

[bcadoo]

reduced stability from the loss of surface area behind the cg?  Do you have the film?  Perhaps adverse yaw?

Just a few suggestions.

[Krusty]

Did not roll film, sorry. Boring sortie, no kills. Lost rudder to the first HO-bugger that ran through me, guns blazing.

No real handling quirks, per se. No problems landing, no problems with squirrelly behavior like I've seen in a few other planes missing parts. I just kept yawing to the right, regardless of engine torque or flight speed. It was funky.

[Finn]

Doesnt a destroyed surface remain locked at the position it was destroyed at?

Did u have a little right rudder deflection when it got shot off?....

[Krusty]

That's only flaps, that have that problem.