Simplified biplane?

[Victor Bravo]

If you prop most light GA high wing airplanes (Cub, T-craft, etc.) from behind, and the airplane lurches forward, guess what happens?

1. The leading edge of the wing tries to bump your head forward towards the propeller.
2. The lower main wing strut pushes your waist or butt forward toward the propeller.
3. The tire rolls forward and pushes your ankle or calf forward towards the propeller.

If any of these impacts from the airplane put you off balance, all this forward momentum could make you fall forward, perhaps faster than the airplane is moving forward.

 

[crusty old aviator]

We had a local Champ takeoff pilotless and made it as far as the treeline. Pilot had tied down the tail with a not strong enough rope.

We had a Champ do the same thing at Post Mills. The old girl is now known as “Dances with Trees.” She should have her rebuild completed by the end of this year...

 

[crusty old aviator]

If you prop most light GA high wing airplanes (Cub, T-craft, etc.) from behind, and the airplane lurches forward, guess what happens?

1. The leading edge of the wing tries to bump your head forward towards the propeller.
2. The lower main wing strut pushes your waist or butt forward toward the propeller.
3. The tire rolls forward and pushes your ankle or calf forward towards the propeller.

If any of these impacts from the airplane put you off balance, all this forward momentum could make you fall forward, perhaps faster than the airplane is moving forward.

Always thinking forward, Victor...Onward, into the prop!

If you don’t have a strong rope, tie what you do have (boot laces, kite string?) to the throttle quadrant and route it out the left side door or window. If the throttle “somehow” is set too far forward and she takes off on you: Don’t let go of that rope! You’ll pull the throttle back to idle as she passes by you. Okay, this won’t work as well on a wicked steep hill (going downhill, like this thread), I’ll give you that, and you may have to dive to the ground to let the wingstruts pass over you...just Don’t let go of that rope!

 

[BJC]

When you are out in the middle of a wheat field...

Nope.


BJC

 

[BJC]

We had a local Champ takeoff pilotless and made it as far as the treeline. Pilot had tied down the tail with a not strong enough rope.

We had a Champ do the same thing at Post Mills.

When a Champ can pull free of a tie down, one has found a really sorry tie down.


BJC

 

[crusty old aviator]

When a Champ can pull free of a tie down, one has found a really sorry tie down.


BJC

Oh, so that's what happened to little Fifi’s dog tether!

 

[J.L. Frusha]

...just Don’t let go of that rope!

 

[Riggerrob]

How about using a rope starter ... like a lawn-mower?
At least one ultralight has been built with a lawn-mower motor and the homebuilder left the original rope starter installed.
The rope allowed the pilot to pull-start the engine while standing beside the fuselage and pulling sideways.

While discussing hand-starting ... what about the old trick of bolting a glider tow-hitch to the tail wheel? A glider tow-hitch allows the pilot to complete all his pre-flight checks - and even engine run-up - before releasing the last tie-down and he/she can release that tie-down while comfortably belted into the cockpit.

 

[Dillpickle]

Nope.


BJC

It would have to be life threatening for me to "want" to leave that bad. A guy got killed at my home field a few decades ago propping a homebuilt. People still talk about it. I've hand propped plenty of times with the tail tied to everything from stumps to cars, and certainly fenceposts, using the tie-down ropes in the plane. Once started and idling, I can untie the tail, get in, and pull the chocks with a bit of paracord.