Groundloops

[Benny Moore]

Where are the groundloops?  Any taildragger pilot will tell you that groundloops will happen if the tail is allowed to slide more than a few degrees off center.  Yet in Aces High II, I've only managed to groundloop the Corsair.  All the other taildraggers not only have no groundloop tendencies, but cannot be groundlooped if one tries.
 
Please, before posting something clever (and I know you simulator types so love to do that), do some basic reading on what a groundloop is and what causes it.  I'm aware that the lack of wind in the simulator can account for decreased probability of the occurence, but in no way should it make it impossible.  As it is, only one ship - two at the most - can be groundlooped at all.  Only the F-4U can be groundlooped unintentionally.

[TW9]

could u explain to me what a groundloop is?

[Benny Moore]

Once, when I posted this at a forum for another simulator which also lacked groundloops, a clown replied something like, "There's no way any airplane is going to make a vertical maneuver on the ground."  Another asked, "Why would you want to?"

[hubsonfire]

I have no trouble groundlooping anything. It's probably your trim settings.

And I've never heard the word groundloop used by real pilots. I guess groundlooping isn't popular these days.

[Leslie]

In the game ground looping is where you land and spin around sometimes breaking off a wing and ending up off the runway.  Happens to me when I come in to land too slow and hit the brakes before locking the tail wheel on the runway.  Happened to me a few nights ago in an La-7.  Been playing this game 6 years.  Still happens sometimes.


Les

[TW9]

Originally posted by Leslie
In the game ground looping is where you land and spin around sometimes breaking off a wing and ending up off the runway.  Happens to me when I come in to land too slow and hit the brakes before locking the tail wheel on the runway.  Happened to me a few nights ago in an La-7.  Been playing this game 6 years.  Still happens sometimes.


Les

ah ok.. the only plane i have trouble with that is the f4u but ive learned to just let it roll a little b4 applying the brakes to prevent it..

[Treize69]

It happens, especially if you throttle up too fast or kick rudder in the wrong direction

also if you settle down and tap the toe brakes or rudder too hard or too soon.

I tend to think the torque effects on the ground are a bit soft in game, watch in-cockpit film of a Warbird taking off and you'll see what I mean. Takes a real bootfull of rudder to get off the ground, and even a Hog or Tempest in game doesn't take very much rudder to take off straight. All about playability, can't fault them for that. Hard to get anyone to play when theres no trainer aircraft to learn on and most of the planes have over 1,000 HP- no newbies would ever get off the ground.

[TW9]

i use auto take-off  so i really dont notice what u are talking about in game..

[TexInVa]

I groundloop my spit9 1 in 3 landings. I've been assuming that it's my brakes, which are usually set before the wheels even touch the runway.

I also usually don't worry about it because it's on the runway when it happens and I just "re-up".

[BlauK]

Wikipedia:
"In aviation, a ground loop refers to the rapid rotation of a fixed-wing aircraft in the horizontal plane whilst on the ground. Aerodynamic and centrifugal forces may cause one wing to rise, which may then cause the other wingtip to touch the ground. In severe cases (particularly if the ground surface is soft), the outside wing can dig in, causing the aircraft to swing violently or even cartwheel."


I assume people have different kind of experiences (in AH) depending on their usual ways of take-off and landing. Big issues might be whether they lock the tail wheels before take-off, and what speed they use for landing, flaps/no flaps, stalling the plane to 3 points or not, etc...

[BTMe62]

Ground loops can happen on take off also.  Depending on the aircraft, you
have to use the rudder to keep yourself tracking down the runway, a smooth
application of power at the start of the take off roll will help too.  Hint, all the
single engine aircraft need right rudder to stay on the runway, except the
IL-2.  It needs left rudder, prop rotation is counter clockwise.

On landing, once you are on the ground and have slowed down a little,
hold full back pressure on the stick, this forces the tail down and locks the
tail wheel.  Watch out though, if you are too fast, you will go back up, then
stall and crash.

Mike
aka BTMe62

[lagger86]

The fear of groundlooping is why I never land my plane, I prefer to get shot down...it saves me the humiliation of having someone see me crash for no reason....well sometimes I crash into trees and water and buildings and mountains and GVs and PT boats and.....

[EagleDNY]

On autotrim, I'd have to agree.  Take the autotrim off and I'm not sure that is the case.  The spitfires and 109s sure seem easy enough to spin out, and I've put a few wingtips in the dirt during takeoffs & landings by forgetting to be careful with them.  

EagleDNY
$.02

[Airscrew]

before I got my CH rudder pedals I pretty much ground looped everything.  it was too hard for me to coordinate a landing using the rudder.  With the rudder pedals its much easier.  the 109's and Spitfires seem to me to require more rudder input than other planes.  I cannt comment on the F4U's, I usually only use them from CVs and land on CVs

[Masherbrum]

Originally posted by Benny Moore
Where are the groundloops?  Any taildragger pilot will tell you that groundloops will happen if the tail is allowed to slide more than a few degrees off center.  Yet in Aces High II, I've only managed to groundloop the Corsair.  All the other taildraggers not only have no groundloop tendencies, but cannot be groundlooped if one tries.
 
Please, before posting something clever (and I know you simulator types so love to do that), do some basic reading on what a groundloop is and what causes it.  I'm aware that the lack of wind in the simulator can account for decreased probability of the occurence, but in no way should it make it impossible.  As it is, only one ship - two at the most - can be groundlooped at all.  Only the F-4U can be groundlooped unintentionally.

Corsair's major issue in WWII was the ground loop.   109's, some Spit's and the IL-2 have some ground loop issues in the game as well.