>> I found that an in-flight vp prop doubles the cockpit
workload, because in a way one is on the back of the power curve<<
Quite right Bill. You can set it up in a nice quiet cruise, then bump into some
rough air and lose 5 kts or more. I once lost 10 kts over a large lump of French
forest through giving control to my crew man whose style of flying, (wiggling
the stick continuously, the way he'd been taught on Austers) didn't seem to suit
the Europa. I tend to leave the stick alone except for a slight steady side load
to counteract the torque.
Next time you fly with a master, like Martin Stoner, watch and marvel. Nothing
seems to move but the plane flies straight and level. With a laminar flow
airplane like the Europa the less you move the controls the better.
Graham
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