The pilot will then move the throttle, smoothly but quickly, to full power and allow the airplane to accelerate while maintaining the same altitude as the smoke, again using only the pitch control. When the maximum speed has been reached the pilot will reduce the power to idle and decelerate back to the starting trim speed, continuing to stay at the same altitude as the smoke trail. All instrumented parameters recorded properly. A smooth application of stick force which stays on one side of the friction band throughout the maneuver. Smooth power transitions between idle and max.
Data successfully crossplots with sawtooth climbs.
A sample accel.-decel time history is shown. Several additional decels may be performed at the same altitude in turning flight while holding the g constant at various selected values. The excess thrust can be computed by measuring the acceleration and weight. The value should be nearly the same as that measured during the sawtooth climbs for the same condition. Longitudinal speed stability can be identified by plotting the elevator position vs. Mach number.