Conventional gear aircraft are not much less demanding than monowheel.
The main lesson that had to be learnt with monowheel was to keep the
tail on the ground to 40kts on take-off. Also the vulnerable period on
take-off (40 - 50kts)is much reduced with the use of higher power
engines and CS props. I know of one conventional gear Europa has
departed the side of a tarmac runway and sheared off the bottom of its
gear leg so they are not immune to loss of control. The nosewheel on
trigears can receive a lot of loading on grass and nosewheel collapse
has happened on several occasions. Trigears are great if you are only
going to use tarmac runways and are prepared to sacrifice payload, speed
and fuel consumption. With monowheel aircraft landings are more
difficult on tarmac due to the increased directional instability. This
also applies to conventional gear to a slightly lesser extent. The
monowheel has a weight advantage as the reinforced area of the fuselage
for the landing gear coincides with that of the engine. Due to the need
to reinforce the fuselage in a different area both the trigear (and to a
lesser extent the conventional gear) suffer weight penalties.
In my opinion too much blame is placed on the aircraft. Without doubt
greater skill is required to handle the monowheel but most of the
accidents/incidents are down to the pilot which is why the number of
events have reduced over the years as technique and training have been
developed. I know many pilots with many hours of monowheel experience
who haven't groundlooped their aircraft. Many never will, but it would
be tempting fate to claim it. The secret seems to be to take proper
specific type training, learn the specific techniques and operate within
your own limitations which will often be more limiting than that of the
aircraft. After 250hrs I still try to avoid crosswinds of over 10kts
even though I have operated at higher crosswinds on a few occasions.
Crosswind handling is always going to be a bigger challenge for
monowheel and conventional gear aircraft over trigear. Gradually
increasing your personal limit and making an allowance for gusty
conditions is a wise precaution.
In monowheel form the Europa still stands out as a unique aircraft in
terms of grass strip operation combined with fuel efficient cruising.
Once you choose other types of gear there are several similarly
competetive types around such as the Sportcruiser. With the recent hike
in fuel prices even the RV series (another good strip/touring machine)
is starting to feel the pinch in terms of operating costs.
Nigel Charles
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