Difficulty of flying aircraft

[dcnj]

Hi. I know this is an odd question and it is well ahead of where I am now. Here it goes. How difficult is it to fly the T-34C and the T-45? I have a PPL and about 70hrs in C-172s. Is it a lot more difficult? I have flown various add-on products to FS2002 and find those difficult to fly, particularly holding altitude. I know that sims aren't always accurate in their flight dynamics. Hopefully someone who has flown these aircraft, or any other high-performance aircraft, can shed some light on this topic. Thank you.

 

[Fly Navy]

I got my PPL in a C-172 and had 58 hours before coming to Primary. The T-34 isn't really hard to fly, it's just a trim whore. It's a lot more fun to fly, that's for sure. I also find that I land it easier than I do a Cessna, couldn't really tell you why. Thing that's really different is that things just happen quicker. Not a lot quicker, but quick enough to notice.

 

[Rotorhead]

Exactly. Not hard. If you have a PPL, you'll do fine. Take it from a former instructor though, dont hold on to all of your civilian habits too hard. Alot of students get in trouble because although they can fly, they have a hard time learning to do it the "Navy/Marine Corps way". You will have the monkey skills, and that will be a huge advantage to you, but the comms, course rules, and general procedures will be a *****. Dont act like or think you know it all and study just as hard as the guys who have never flown and I guarantee you'll do well.



Good Luck

 

[Squid]

when you say trim whore, how often are we talking compared to the c172?

 

[Rotorhead]

The T-34 requires almost constant trim adjustments. You can trim it up hands off (for a short time), but anytime you make an adjustment to pitch, roll, yaw, or airspeed, you have to re-trim.

 

[nittany03]

Yeesh. Sounds like a pain. Where are the trim controls in the T-34 cockpit anyway? Last time I was in a T-34 I didn't know what trim was. I heard it doesn't use the convenient top-of-the-stick method . . . oh well.

 

[Fly Navy]

Yup, you even touch that PCL and you'll need to retrim. Like Rotorhead said, it's virtually constant trimming. Trim controls are directly to the rear and below the power quadrant.

 

[dcnj]

How about the T-45?

Thanks for all of the good info. I guess it is about what I would expect of a faster plane. Now, how about the jets?

 

[Banjo33]

We had to trim the T-2 after EVERY power adjustment. The thrust line is located below the CG so with an addition of power, the nose would rise, if you pulled power the nose would drop. But, other than that, the only time I trimmed aileron or rudder was just after takeoff, it would stay trimmed on those axis' for the remainder of the flight.