One of the things that has not been talked about is the landing surface that you
will be using. The mono does good on glass fields. Where the trouble starts
is on hard surface runways. Concrete, Asphalt and the number of plies the tire
has. When the Europa first arrived on the shores of the U.S. I believe they
were using two ply tires. From what I have learned the fiction between the
runway surface and the tire that causes a twisting of the tire and if a wing
tips as in dropped during the landing, think outrigger, and touches it unloads
the tire and causes the aircraft to weathervane into the wind.
On glass field it will not twist the tire as much as the glass will allow the
tire
to move more freely as there is less fiction.
I believe most of the mono wheel pilots have installed tires with more plies and
you have heard a lot less about ground loops.
If you have a number of hours in a tail wheel aircraft and you get good training
---From a mono pilot you should be OK, but any tail wheel aircraft can and will
bite you if you don't fly it to parking. One of the best ways to practice is
in a glider. They all have a mono wheel and they are fun to fly.
In many ways I wish I had biuilt a mono wheel, as they are faster. They look so
nice when they fly by. With a 914 they are an outstanding airplane.
If you live it the U.S. 97% of all your landings will be on a hard surface!
Rick Stockton
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