Hi;Tried the search looking for some of the info twinman has posted but can't find it.Need to refresh my memory on this.Flyinga Twinstar and a Double Impact but would like to go over what should be doing.Had lot of practice on engine outs but not sure of proper procedure so far OK except for one on lift off at fullthrottle with the Double Impact she rolled before I could do anything but is back in the air now.Everyone refers to use of rudder on engine out but seems like the ailerons work OK?Being one of the newer fliers who han't really learned the use of rudder.Twinstar isn't to concerned over engine out but the other one rolls immediately till get the other engine shut down try to keep adequate altitude till get the engines settled down on it.Any hints would be appreciatted,Thanks!

Bob:

The most basic thing for an engine out is to recover control. On some, like your TwinStar or my C-3/10, it's a non-event. Others. like my Tiggerkitty, or a P-38, or a B-25, or... Anyway, lose an engine on one of these and you have stepped in deep doo-doo. The very first thing is chop the throttle. Recovery from an engine loss induced departure is almost impossible with the resulting off center thrust. If you are at a high air speed it's easier, but chopping the throttle is still advisable.

Get the nose pointed down and level the wings, let the dive help you regain airspeed. When the plane is stabilized gradually feed the power back in, and keep the plane in a descent provided you have altitude. Speed is your second best friend when you lose an engine with a twin, altitude is your best friend. As the power comes back on you will have to use the rudder to keep it flying straight, possibly a little aileron, different planes need more or less - it's due to the greater airflow over the wing with the running engine.

When you have the plane stabilized, land it. Many people will tell you never turn into the dead engine. This is bull. But I will advise you not to do it, a little mistake turning into the dead engine can become a big mistake very quickly. Save that for sometime when you have more engine out time, and feel more comfortable with it. For the moment make all your turns into the live engine, set up your approach, and land the airplane. Keep the air speed aas high as you feel you can land the plane. Cut the throttle the minute the wheels touch, let the rolling friction bleed your speed off. If the pattern at your field requires a turn into the dead engine, pull the power back and do the turn in a dive. After you are straight again, put some power back on.

Go fly your Twinstar, fill the left tank full, and put only enough fuel in the right tank to get up to a comfortable altitude. The best way to learn engine out is by flying engine out. And the Twinstar is an easy twin to learn on.

Bill.

Bill, how do you determine which engine is dead? I have been practicing engine outs on my Real Flight simulator. You hit the "k" on the keyboard and an engine stops but it is random and by the time I might have figured it out the plane usually has gone into a spin I cannot recover from. I could understand if the aircraft is right in front of you and you can see the prop stopped but what about when it is too far away from your sight to be able to 'see' the dead engine? How do you make that quick decision about which way to turn the rudders?

Tom:

Deciding which engine has quit really isn't hard, the plane is going to roll into the dead one. Keep your left thumb cocked, the moment the plane starts an uncommanded maneuver pop the throttle to idle. Then you can level the wings a lot more easily. Often it's easiest also just to continue the roll back to wings level.

Even losing an engine on takeoff, chop the throttle and put the nose down. If you're quick enough you can land straight ahead, if you aren't then cutting the power will minimize the damage. Hopefully, anyway.

Bill.

Twinman's articles are on www.rcwarbirds.com

Twin rules I have learned from personal experience:

1. Run engines richer than you on a single engine powered airplane. Instead of 300-400 rpm shy of max lean rpm on the high needle, I run mine 500 rpm shy and RICHEN the mixture on the stronger engine to match it to the weaker engine. Never lean the weaker engine to match its rpms to the stronger engine.

2. All throttle movements should be smooth and slow. I never slam the throttle to WOT and always gradually advance and retard my throttles.

3. On takeoffs use as much runway as you can before lifting off. The goal is to verify your engines can operate at wide open throttle with no problem and also to get as much air flowing over your control surfaces. Takeoff speeds are typically higher for me before I rotate to become airborne.

4. As a newbie, fly a little higher and faster than you normally would to give yourself some extra room and control surface authroity to react to an engine out.

5. Repeat 100 times before every twin flight: I WILL CUT THROTTLE AND DEADSTICK THE AIRPLANE TO A LANDING WHEN I EXPERIENCE AN ENGINE FAILURE. I WILL NOT ATTEMPT TO LAND WITH ONE ENGINE UNTIL I HAVE PRACTICED and PERFECTED SIMULATED ENGINE FAILURES AT ALTITUDE.

6. Rig your throttle on separate servos and separate channels that are slaved together. You should rig your radio (computer radio is best) to be able to match throttles in flight (not necessary if your engines are of good quality). Set your radio with a switch to be able to pull and engine off to idle at altitude so you can get practice with single engine flight. You want to be in charge of your first engine failure, NOT MURPHY, and determine the parameters and flight characteristics of your airplane on a single engine. On one of my twins, engine failure loss is a non-issue with hardly any yaw as long as airspeed was fairly fast. In fact, takeoffs were easy on one engine too! On another twin of mine, engine failure caused instant spin and the only remedy was to cut throttles ASAP, do an unusual attitude recovery, and complete a deadstick landing.

7. If your engines so as much as hiccup during the take off roll: ABORT ABORT ABORT. Better to overshoot the runway and bust a landing gear than takeoff and suffer a flameout on takeoff.

8. I prefer shallower climbouts to maintain a high airspeed. High angle of attack takeoffs, while tempting, are more risky. I save the near vertical flights with my overpowered twins only when I get to altitude.

9. Always preflight your airplane before each day's flying and if you can before each flight. Always verify mixture settings on each engine with pinch test. Extra vibes possible due to twins can easily loosen mixture screws, muffler and backplate bolts and yes, even glow plugs! I lost a nice twin when a glow plug vibrated loose on me.

10. Rule No. 10. ENGINES FLAMESOUTS tend to occur only on go arounds (aborted landing attempts). I do not know why but this appears to be a law of nature. The worse your approach to landing is the greater the chance one engine will quit when you decide to abort the landing and try again.

11. First few flights when a twin newbie should be made when no one else has a loud powered plane in the air. You want to be able to hear your engines. An engine in distresss often will let you know.

12. Try to have fun flying :0)

Thanks Bill!

Tom:

You're welcome. But thank Homebrewer also - his post is excellent.

Bill.

Thanks for the advice.Probably saved my big twin today when she lost engine ,had to be just after strong wind hit too.Remembered to shut her down and was able to get it under control in spite of the spin it likes to do when it quits.Powered up after under control and was able to make good landing would have liked to experiment a little but wind was so bad decided better get on the ground ASAP.My twinstar doesn't pay to much attention if one quits but this DOuble Impact gets a little violent but sure flys nice.Big and powerful enough not bothered much by the wind if both running.Anyway thanks for the advise you had quite a little to do with keeping her in one piece.

Bob:

Thanks for the kind words, but your thumbs were on the sticks. You are the one who got it back. You, not me.

And I definitely approve of your decision to get it down and not play with it. Play with the Twinstar and RF for a while yet.

Glad you did it safely.

Bill.