Jerry, There is not much you can do to stretch a glide in an Ercoupe but it has speed brakes just like your glider. Next time you are high on final, open your pilot side window and stick your hand down towards the wing root. You will see what a high sink rate really is. If you really need to get down, get your passenger to do the same.
You are right though about the poor glide performance. I always come in very high on final in my 'Coupe. Whenever I rent a 152 or 172 on vacation I invariably float half way down the runway on my first few landings. It also drives me crazy when I have to follow someone in the pattern that likes to do their downwind a half mile from the runway and then turn base a mile from the threshold. I keep my pattern very tight since one of the most embarrassing things I can think of is to have an engine fail in the pattern and land off-airport. David Abrams [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.ercoupe.com ---------- From: Jerry Eichenberger[SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Wednesday, June 03, 1998 7:23 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: Jacksonville Fly-In Ron - I'm new to coupes, having bought ours last Jan., but have been flying since 1964. Dave's Ercoupe page is nice, but is not affiliated with EOC, to my knowledge. I would like to see a page like the Cessna 120/140 , or Short Wing Piper folks have. I particularly like the C-120/140 page, especially their sections for STCs, 337s, and want ads. I spent a lot of time last fall deciding whether to buy a coupe, C-140, or a short wing Piper. Both of those pages were very helpful is seeing what was out there, prices, etc. I am computer ignorant, basically able to e-mail and write in word processor applications. If you go forward, you'll have my envy. While I've addressed this to the whole mailing list, I've got a couple of questions for the group. My only disappointment with our coupe falls into two areas. First is the horrible gliding performance at idle power. It seems that a forced landing in a coupe is far more critical than other airplanes, and this relates to the second problem of not being able to control glide angle, except with airspeed changes. With no flaps and the inability to slip, you've got a handful in a true forced landing situation. Part of my concern probably comes from being both an airplane and glider pilot. In gliders, with good speed brakes, spoilers, and the ability to slip, you can do a spot landing in a glider to a point with just a few feet of the target after minimal training. Anyone have any ideas, secrets, etc. for the coupe? Jerry Eichenberger Columbus, Ohio N2906H
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