I have a Sig 4* with an FMA Direct CPD4 Co-pilot on it. The co-pilot doesn't seem make enough correction or make them fast enough. In set up mode it applys corrections very fast and gives the control surfaces 100% travel but after calibration and during pre-flight check corrections are slow and travel is about 60%. With the co-pilot on during flight it doesn't respond fast enough to apply corrections as needed. I am using a Futaba 6 channel radio & the co-pilot is controled from the flap channel. I would like to know if anyone has had the same experiences with the co-pilot or might know what I am doing wrong.

I dont know much (anything really) about co-pilots, but does it really make sense to use as much gain as possible? I mean, you want some control, dont you?

whats the deal with co-pilots... do they fix a mistake you make in the air? what if you want to do a wired manuver (SP?) but it won't let you?

you turn the gain down to zero using the flap knob

Ok on my plane it came with a Co Pilot on it already .......
well not knowing anything about it, it almost crashed my plane..
because on take off as soon as i got about 2 feet off the ground my plane went into a VERY steep right Bank
wanting to ROLL right on me. to keep the plane up used a little elevator and lots of left rudder
once i got the plane in a safe altitude i attempted to trim the plane
but before i could do that,
this guy started talking to me asking is there a Co Pilot on there "yeah" so then
he started telling me about what a Co Pilot does
while in the air flying and also listening to him he said "let go of the Control's watch"
and i swear that plane flew at the same altitude it was at just doing a
very big circle i didn't have to touch anything......

what he told me was that the Co Pilot is underneath the fuselage "right"
well if you are flying at a HIGH sun the Co Pilot will try to stay in the Shadow of the plane which is
directly underneath it , which makes the plane fly in a big circle all by itself

so since i was flying at a LOW sun. At about 5pm as soon as the plane lifted off . the Co Pilot was looking for shade
which then made the plane roll over so that the Co Pilot was Underneath the plane thinking i was flying at Noon "high sun"

i have no idea how i got the plane down, because of the way it took off and then once i got it up. playing with it and axually seeing how that Co Pilot thing works

once it was on the ground i unplugged the Co Pilot and the plane flew like a bird

!QUOT!TRUE STORY!!!!!!QUOT!
a guy a my club,<He's an old guy and drinks alittle to much, So he's ehhhhh different> anywas he put his Co. Pilot on the top of his plane and flew on a NICE SUNNY day. _AROUND NOON_ well i bet you can guess where his plane went
Nose came off the ground
plane flipped
and plane went into pieces KABOOOM!!!!

with my experience
Once i pushed the Co Pilot out and just flew Solo Much Better
i dont recommend a Co Pilot

PLUS WHAT I SAID COULD BE WRONG ABOUT THE CO PILOT/AFS THINGY,
THIS IS WHAT I WAS TOLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
sorry if iam wrong

There are different types of "co-pilots". One type can be mounted to the top (or bottom) of the plane and senses the horizon by looking for the "contrast" between sky and ground, and appears to work quite well.

Not sure how the one on the Nextstar is supposed to work, but have heard of similar problems with it.
Dennis-

Why do you have a co-pilot on a 4* anyway? They're supposed to be a training device to help new fliers maintain control of their aircraft if they get disorentied. I could see using maybee a gyro to keep the tail straight during certain aerobatic manuvers, but I have to assume this is your second plane? Please don't take this as an insult to your flying experience, but you should have no problems wiht keeping alititude up during turns and leveling your plane's wings by now....


Andy