Welcome to Flightinfo.com

  • Register now and join the discussion
  • Friendliest aviation Ccmmunity on the web
  • Modern site for PC's, Phones, Tablets - no 3rd party apps required
  • Ask questions, help others, promote aviation
  • Share the passion for aviation
  • Invite everyone to Flightinfo.com and let's have fun

Turbine Equipment really is better

Welcome to Flightinfo.com

  • Register now and join the discussion
  • Modern secure site, no 3rd party apps required
  • Invite your friends
  • Share the passion of aviation
  • Friendliest aviation community on the web

flight-crew

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 16, 2001
Posts
167
I forget how much I appreciate operating turbine equipment over recip. equipment.

Turbine engines start up perfectly almost every time. There is no worry about flooding the engine, vapor lock, or having to crank it over and over. Even Auxillary Power Units start up with one button push and then operate completely automatically and unattended. I love the benefits of an APU. Staying completely cool in the summer and warm in the winter. And having a backup source of bleed air and electrical power.

I love the smell of Jet-A right after being burned in a jet engine. I love the sound of a jet engine right after lightoff during spool-up. I like the ability to go from 200 knots indicated up to 330 knots indicated in about 20 seconds in staight and level flight. I like that jet engines can be equipped with Auto-throttles for exact speed control. I like climbing out at 1500 ft/min during an engine failure and not having to do anything except add rudder. I love the smoothness and low noice level of turbofan engines.

All in all I really appreciate turbine engines and their reliability. Turbine engines get two thumbs up from me!
 
I will agree with everything you said except one thing. I normally love the smell of spent Jet A, but working out on the Line at Fed Ex, the smell coming off of the DC-10 and Airbus is so bad it makes me sick every night, just want to puke. Give me a Citation or a Westwind, now thats the smell of Jet A that I rember.
 
Real men fly round engines, the kind with pistons, not wheels!
 
Turbines have no soul.

If you were having all that trouble with pistons, you just weren't doing it right.
 
avbug said:
Turbines have no soul.

If you were having all that trouble with pistons, you just weren't doing it right.

You said it right! Kinda like comparing a sport bike to a harley.

Ain't nothing like a radial starting up. It's almost like it's talking to you! Actually more like farting...
 
P-51s are great, in fact I watch Jack Roush fly by from time to time in his up at JQF. But if you really want a kick in the pants be close to a B-17 fly-by. Without a doubt the most elegant warplane ever built.
 
The safest and best kind of flying JOB is a turbine job. However after all is said and done a job is a job even if it’s at FL450.

Flying for the love of FLYING nothing beats a radial! Or even better, good old Mother Nature (thermals). That's when flying is fun again.
 
If it's just a job, then it's definately not the best...though it's probably the "safest."

The best job is the one that you're grateful to have.
 
Hey guys let me tell you that I love radial engines as much as anyone. I have been fortunate enough to have experienced many hundreds of hours behind those great marvels of engineering. However, I would not trade my PT6 for a truckload of radial engines. You say that turbines have no soul. Thats not really true, they just speak a different language than the old radials. The one thing that I do hate about the turbine is the exhaust fumes. When the wind is right (wrong) it can just about choke you while loading.
 
That turbine motorcycle is pretty sweet! I wonder if it has a lag in it when you give it some juice? Even so, it would be really cool pulling up to some guy in some crappy crotch rocket and revving it up a little. I'd pay to see that look on their face! Just not 185,000 dollars.
 
Hey bugchaser, turbines do speak a different language, but there just tone deaf.

You just set the ITT and go, but with the radial, you bring the mixture down to the rivet, wait a minute, look down at the exhuast and then fine tune the flame, that was from my Beech 18 days, and only worked at night.

Turbines= reliability, which is a good thing.

Radials= real flying, with the occasional, "what was that".

I guess its easy to say once you dont fly them everyday and you fly jets all the time. But they sure were fun.
 
You've got it Saabtrash. I kept thinking to myself: What is his point?! Now it makes sense.
 
>>>Turbine engines start up perfectly almost every time.

Well, which would give you a greater sense of satisfaction:

A: Working the primer paddle, ignition boost and throttle just right to get a nice smooth start with no backfiring or popping on an R-2800 after a quick turnaround on an hot day,

or,

B: jabbing the start button on your CRJ with your index finger and watching it go through the autostart sequence.

I know what my answer is, I'd rather risk buying the occasional pitcher of beer for the crew for banging one on start, knowing that I'm doing something that is challenging and not everyone can do well.

I have a friend who recently checked out in the CRJ. Listening to him describe it, I was dumbfounded by just how much everything is done for you. Unless I misunderstood him, according to his company policy, they are only actually flying the airplane for a minute or 2 of each leg, and even when they are hand flying it, there's a lot of assistence from from the magic, like that little display that shows exactly what your airspeed will be 10 seconds from now as you move the throttles or change configuration.

I dunno, I'm not trying to put down anyone flying a CRJ, or any other highly automated airplane. If you like it and it pays the bills, great. It's just a long, long way from what attracted me to flying.
 
100LL, aviation perfume.
 
flight-crew said:
Turbine engines start up perfectly almost every time.

I dunno. I have a relatively scant amount of turbine time, but I've seen a few hung starts on Garretts, and that wonderful little PT6 is not fond of colder climes. Frozen nozzles, 8% N1, it's only as strong as it battery in the cold. Although I've heard that there is an, ahem, "alternative" technique to get a PT6 started when the gas generator is feeling sluggish in the morning.
 

Latest resources

Back
Top