This just in.....from an old B-17 pilot | FerrariChat
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This just in.....from an old B-17 pilot

Discussion in 'Aviation Chat' started by Skyraider, Jan 2, 2006.

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  1. Skyraider

    Skyraider Formula Junior

    Nov 4, 2005
    620
    #1 Skyraider, Jan 2, 2006
    Respectfully submitted, to this honorable group,
    for Dick Sanborn, a retired B-17 Captain.

    Skyraider


    DEDICATED TO ALL THOSE WHO FLEW BEHIND ROUND ENGINES

    We gotta get rid of those turbines, they're ruining aviation and our
    hearing...

    A turbine is too simple minded, it has no mystery. The air travels through it in a straight line
    and doesn't pick up any of the pungent fragrance of engine oil or pilot sweat.

    Anybody can start a turbine. You just need to move a switch from
    "OFF" to "START" and then remember to move it back to "ON" after a while.
    My PC is harder to start.

    Cranking a round engine requires skill, finesse and style. You have to
    seduce it into starting. It's like waking up a horny mistress.

    On some planes, the pilots aren't even allowed to do it...

    Turbines start by whining for a while, then give a lady-like poof and
    start whining a little louder.

    Round engines give a satisfying rattle-rattle, click-click, BANG, more
    rattles, another BANG, a big macho FART or two, more clicks, a lot
    more smoke and finally a serious low pitched roar. We like that.

    It's a GUY thing...

    When you start a round engine, your mind is engaged and you can
    concentrate on the flight ahead. Starting a turbine is like flicking on a
    ceiling fan: Useful, but, hardly exciting.

    When you have started his round engine successfully your crew chief
    looks up at you like he'd let you kiss his girl too!

    Turbines don't break or catch fire often enough, leading to aircrew
    boredom, complacency and inattention.
    A round engine at speed looks and sounds like it's going to blow any minute.
    This helps concentrate the mind !

    Turbines don't have enough control levers or gauges to keep a pilot's
    attention. There's nothing to fiddle with during long flights.

    Turbines smell like a Boy Scout camp full of Coleman Lamps.

    Round engines smell like God intended machines to smell.

    Pass this on to an old WWII pilot (or his son, or anyone who flew them in Korea or Vietnam)
    in remembrance of that "Greatest Generation"
     
  2. SWITCHESOFF

    SWITCHESOFF Formula Junior

    Nov 9, 2005
    582
    #2 SWITCHESOFF, Jan 2, 2006
    THAT is so good ! BUT it omitts the whine of the starter and the grunt and pop of the first few cylinders spitting out the thick oil and popping into life......sort of and then the few other cylinders deciding to join in and soon the clatter of piston clearances begin to rattle and everybody gets into synch settles down to a consistent rumble to puke out the oil in a blue oilsmoke. Yeah, I forget a lot of the stuff that you had to watch, oil pressure first, then RPM, and all the other 53 items that had to be monitored like manifold pressure, prop, cylinder head temp, cowl flaps, post office address, blood pressure. And the smell of 115-130 octane exhauast is intoxicating. The blue flame in the stacks with a tinge of pink is beautiful sight at night and at shut down the counter weights slapping around as things come to a halt is a nice ending if it wasn't for the tick tick ticking of the cooling exhaust stack when things are finally ready for the form one. Jets are okay , too.
     
  3. SWITCHESOFF

    SWITCHESOFF Formula Junior

    Nov 9, 2005
    582
    #3 SWITCHESOFF, Jan 2, 2006
    Got to thinking about the interminable work that the old R1820's and R1830's required, sometimes all night to get a bird ready to fly in the morning. They were miserable to work on , cramped and innaccessable in the dark......daytime , too. Many times when everything was done right, the damn thing would fail anyway. And then there was the R3350.....UGH !!! and the R4360 .....jets are GOOD!
     
  4. SWITCHESOFF

    SWITCHESOFF Formula Junior

    Nov 9, 2005
    582
    #4 SWITCHESOFF, Jan 4, 2006
    This thread triggered some visions of working near the end of the runway at night and seeing B-17's and B-24's taking off right over our heads with four cherry red "donuts" under each nacelle as the turbos were working. The B-17's 9 cylinder engines had a muffled popping sound while the B-24's were very liquid and smooth sounding with their 14 cylinder engines.
     

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