autopilot question in 172SP

[Alin10123]

Hey guys,
A flight school next to mine just recently got a nice new shiny 172SP. It's a 2003 model i believe. I figured it'd be a good time builder and a nice fun and comfortable cross country aircraft with all of the bells and whistles. During the checkout we did the usual stuff until it was time to turn around and head back to the airport. I glanced down and noticed there was an autopilot. The problem was since that the aircraft was new to the fleet... neither i nor the instructor doing the checkout knew how to use it. I did fiddle around the altitude setting and got it to start climbing at 400ft/min but then we would've climbed into bravo airspace so i disengaged it. Then i tried to get her to maintain 2000ft altitude and to hold the flight plan on the GPS. It seemed like it was doing something but then it seemed liek it wasn't.

Anyone have any idea how to use that thing? The entire aircraft has bendix/king equipment including the AP.

By the way... any tips on transitioning to a low wing to a high wing aircraft? I've been flying low wings all through my training and flying a high wing seems wierd. The center of lift used to be right below me and now it's above me so when i'm turning instead of being near the pivot point on the axis it feels like i'm dangling there if anyone knows what i'm talking about.

thanks in advance

 

[minitour]

Which autopilot?

The CFI didn't know huh? I see that as a big problem...I'd probably ask the FBO to kick something back at me if I were you. Looking at it from the customer's standpoint, I paid for X service and I got X-Y service.

Something else to look at would be the supplement. I'm sure the airplane probably has one. Maybe ask if you can plug in a power cart (assuming they have one) and sit in the plane playing with the AP for a few hours since the CFI couldn't show you anything.

JMHO

-mini

 

[NW_Pilot]

Na'''' just get the thing airborne and figure out how it works!!!

 

[GoingHot]

You say you're time-building?

The first thing you need to do is duct tape over the auto pilot and GPS. Then start gaining some experience using that yoke thingy and those two little pedal things on the floor.

 

[wmuflyguy]

The first thing you need to do is duct tape over the auto pilot and GPS. Then start gaining some experience using that yoke thingy and those two little pedal things on the floor.

Ah cause the airline pilots never fly with an Autopilot or GPS/FMS right? He should tape over it, so he can be a Flgiht Instructor and not know how to use something in the aircraft when asked by a student? Please, that is possibly the dumbest attitude about automation I have heard.

With even light aircraft being built with more and more Gee-whiz avionics, he should begin learning how to use automation.

You should know how to use everything in that plane, It very well could save your life.

As silly as it sounds, I say just tinker around with it on a Cross country. You won't learn too much on the ground other than what modes of operation it has. You need to learn how it reacts and handles the plane.

However you can learn alot abuot the GPS on the ground.

 

[FL420]

Google Bendix/King then go to their website. You'll probably find a Pilot Guide or a Quick Reference Guide on the autopilot in .pdf format you can download.

 

[RipCurl]

Was it a KAP140? I think that's what's in most of the newer Cessnas (pre-glass). The thing that gets most people with that autopilot is that you can set that altitude to whatever you want, and push the alt button, and nothing will ever happen. There are two vertical modes - altitude hold mode and vertical speed mode. The alt button cycles between them.

Example - I'm flying along level at 2000' and I want to climb to 5000'. I hit the ap button and I see ROL and VS pop up. This will keep the wings level and maintain 0 fpm climb/descent (which is different from an altitude hold because it won't return to an altitude if you hit an updraft or something). I set the heading bug and hit HDG. The airplane will now fly that heading. Now comes the tricky part. I turn the knob to 4000 and hit the alt button. I see that the VS annunciation has been replaced by ALT, but nothing else happens. The autopilot is now in altitude hold mode, and will stay at my current altitude. If the airplane is displaced, it will return to it (unlike VS mode). I hit the alt button again to return to VS mode, and rotate the knob to 5000. Below the VS annunciation pops up ALT ARM. 5000' is now armed, and all I have to do is select my desired climb rate. I push the up button a few times and the airplane will now climb at the selected rate and level off at 5000'.

I know it sounds really complicated when I'm trying to explain it to you over the internet, but if you just play with it for about 10 minutes straight in flight, you'd figure it out. An alternative is to find another instructor who knows the system and can teach it to you.

 

[Alin10123]

Which autopilot?

The CFI didn't know huh? I see that as a big problem...I'd probably ask the FBO to kick something back at me if I were you. Looking at it from the customer's standpoint, I paid for X service and I got X-Y service.

Something else to look at would be the supplement. I'm sure the airplane probably has one. Maybe ask if you can plug in a power cart (assuming they have one) and sit in the plane playing with the AP for a few hours since the CFI couldn't show you anything.

JMHO

-mini

This particular CFI has lots of hours in 172's. She even has a few hours in this particular 172SP. It's just that she only does training flights so she knows how to use everything except the autopilot because she's never even thought about using it. She learned it when there wasn't autopilots in her aircraft. When she has students in there she most surely doesn't allow them to use it while training. I dont really see the problem with her now knowing since the flight school hasnt' had the aircraft that long.

 

[Alin10123]

The first thing you need to do is duct tape over the auto pilot and GPS. Then start gaining some experience using that yoke thingy and those two little pedal things on the floor.

haha... i got my first rating in an aircraft without an AP and i'm going to get my 2nd rating in an aircraft without one too. All i said was that i was curious. I've never used one before so i just thought that it was kind of neat.

 

[Alin10123]

Google Bendix/King then go to their website. You'll probably find a Pilot Guide or a Quick Reference Guide on the autopilot in .pdf format you can download.

I think i did that already. Dont think i came up with much. I even tried doing a google search for an autopilot simulator or something so i can just tinker with it. But i didn't find anything.