AIRCRAFT OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS – VIRUS 912 S-LSA GLIDER
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11. Supplementary information.
11.1 Familiarization flight procedures.
This chapter has been written to assist
owners/pilots/instructors of Virus 912 LSA on their quest to learn how to safely and efficiently fly this
aircraft in addition to the information already assembled in the rest of this POH. This section will cover
most operations the aircraft offers in an order established in section on Normal procedures and
recommended speeds. Please consider what follows as an add-on to that chapter.
Engine start-up
First and foremost make sure you have sufficient fuel quantity on board for the desired length of flight. If
you are not completely confident there is enough, step out of the aircraft and add more fuel into the
tanks. There is an old aviators’ saying: “The only time you have too much fuel is when you are on fire.”
When engaging the engine starter, wheel brakes MUST be engaged. To keep your propeller in perfect
condition, avoid starting up on areas where there are small stones on the ground. Those little stones can
easily be picked up by the propellers causing damage to the blades.
Warming up must be conducted below 2500 RPM. When reaching safe operational engine temperatures,
verify maximum engine ground RPM. Hold the stick back completely and slowly (!) add throttle to full
power, then verify RPM.
Taxi
Taxiing with the Virus 912 LSA is rather simple considering the steerable nose wheel. For sharper turns on
the ground you can also use wheel brakes to assist yourself. It is recommended you taxi slow, up to 10
km/s (5 kts), while holding the stick back fully to ease the pressure of the nose wheel.
During taxiing, monitor engine temperatures. Due to low airflow around the radiators the CHT and Oil
temperature will rise during long taxi periods. If you are holding position, do not leave throttle at idle. It is
better you have some 2500 RPM as this will provide some airflow from the propeller to the radiators and
the temperatures will not rise so quickly. Should you see engine temperatures exceed safe operational
values, shut off the engine, point the aircraft’s nose into the wind and wait for the temperatures to
reduce.
Take off and initial climb
Having checked and set all engine and aircraft parameters, you should be ready for take-off by now.
Re-verify both fuel valves be open and the airbrakes retracted and locked (handle full up). Trim lever
should be in the middle.
Start the take-off roll gradually. Keep adding throttle slowly and smoothly full power. There are two
reasons for this. First, you change flight stage from zero movement to acceleration slowly; this pro-vides
you with time to react to conditions. Second, especially if taking-off from a gravel runway, this method of
adding full throttle will prevent the little stones on the runway from damaging the propeller. Extremely
short runways are an exception. There you should line up the aircraft, set flaps to 2nd stage, step on the
brakes, apply full power and release the brakes. As you start to move, pull the stick 1/3 of elevator’s
deflection backwards to ease the pressure on the nose wheel and lift it off the runway slightly. Do not use
full back deflection as this will cause the aircraft’s tail to touch the ground.
When the nose wheel has lifted off the ground, there is nothing else but to hold the same pitch attitude
and the aircraft will become airborne. Crosswind take-offs, depending on wind strength, require a little
bit of aileron deflection into the wind. Remember, wings must stay level throughout ground-roll, rotation
