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How to use AOA

sglynn

Well Known Member
How do you use AOA?

I'm 12 hours into phase I flight test. I calibrated my Dynon Angle of Attack (AOA) indicator. Now what? How do you use AOA?

What are the best practices, or tricks, or tips a pilot can use with an AOA system and indicator?

thanks
 
Steve: Carl beat me to it, but many posts by Vac explain AOA well.
Or, we can talk next time I see you at the at the hangar.

Doug
Seattle area
 
Dynon AoA

I am no AoA expert but have the Dynon AoA system in my -7 and here are my observations and use cases for comparison:
1. Choose your comfort level for the AoA warning, initially I set mine at the start of the yellow which proved to be a little early for the audio alert, I now have it set at the top of the yellow.
2. Not as easy to look down at the display when on short final etc. as you are head out most of the time. I have mine on the left of the screen as most patterns are to the left and it helps the glance a bit. I have the D-100 which means you have to pick the right setup if you fly in split screen mode which I do so that the display does not disappear.
3. I dropped the "bitchin Betty" voice alert and use the tone, I find it less distracting and the tone seems to work better for me. I basically use the tone more than looking at the chevrons on the display.
4. Calibrate the low end speed cutoff to minimize the aural warning all the way down the runway if you have a taildragger and 3-point the landings, gets very irritating.

I have had a couple of instances where the system proved its worth to me, warning me I was getting high AoA and slow while I was too busy concentrating on other stuff out the window, system works.

Only wish I could connect it to one of the fancy dash mounted Xmas tree type systems so that you could easily see the aircraft status while looking out the windshield.
 
I am no AoA expert but have the Dynon AoA system in my -7 and here are my observations and use cases for comparison:
1. Choose your comfort level for the AoA warning, initially I set mine at the start of the yellow which proved to be a little early for the audio alert, I now have it set at the top of the yellow.
2. Not as easy to look down at the display when on short final etc. as you are head out most of the time. I have mine on the left of the screen as most patterns are to the left and it helps the glance a bit. I have the D-100 which means you have to pick the right setup if you fly in split screen mode which I do so that the display does not disappear.
3. I dropped the "bitchin Betty" voice alert and use the tone, I find it less distracting and the tone seems to work better for me. I basically use the tone more than looking at the chevrons on the display.
4. Calibrate the low end speed cutoff to minimize the aural warning all the way down the runway if you have a taildragger and 3-point the landings, gets very irritating.

I have had a couple of instances where the system proved its worth to me, warning me I was getting high AoA and slow while I was too busy concentrating on other stuff out the window, system works.

Only wish I could connect it to one of the fancy dash mounted Xmas tree type systems so that you could easily see the aircraft status while looking out the windshield.


How do you calibrate it for the taildragger on the low end? Mine keeps screaming stall down to 20 kts. I have not had time to deal with it. I have a d180 setup.
 
EFIS>SETUP>AOAALM>MINSPD

How do you calibrate it for the taildragger on the low end? Mine keeps screaming stall down to 20 kts. I have not had time to deal with it. I have a d180 setup.

I assume the D-180 setup is very similar to the D-100, Page 6-28 of the D-100 installation manual discusses the alarm setup and specifically the MINSPD setup which is the minimum speed at which the AOA alarm can occur. Anytime the speed is above MINSPD alarms can occur, the problem is that if the alarm is already sounding it will continue to sound as the speed falls below MINSPD until the high AOA condition is resolved. This is a particular issue for us taildraggers in a full stall 3-point landing as the alarm starts as it should but does not quit until you get pretty slow.

There was a thread here about this issue sometime back but no real resolution. That was one of the reasons I switched to the tone aural alert as it is somewhat less annoying that the "STALL, STALL, STALL etc." voice alert ;). Wheel landings letting the tail drop when slower does not exhibit the same annoyance.
To get to the MINSPD setting is EFIS>SETUP>AOAALM>MINSPD
Figs
 
AOA

Doug, Carl
Thanks for the links. Yes, VAC has a lot of great explanations. I have the Dynon HDX. thanks
 
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I assume the D-180 setup is very similar to the D-100, Page 6-28 of the D-100 installation manual discusses the alarm setup and specifically the MINSPD setup which is the minimum speed at which the AOA alarm can occur. Anytime the speed is above MINSPD alarms can occur, the problem is that if the alarm is already sounding it will continue to sound as the speed falls below MINSPD until the high AOA condition is resolved. This is a particular issue for us taildraggers in a full stall 3-point landing as the alarm starts as it should but does not quit until you get pretty slow.

There was a thread here about this issue sometime back but no real resolution. That was one of the reasons I switched to the tone aural alert as it is somewhat less annoying that the "STALL, STALL, STALL etc." voice alert ;). Wheel landings letting the tail drop when slower does not exhibit the same annoyance.
To get to the MINSPD setting is EFIS>SETUP>AOAALM>MINSPD
Figs

Yeap. This is exactly what mine does. I have it wired to the audio input of my gtr200. The music input switch disables the alerts, but it is annoying.
 
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