Congrats to 1k subscribers! Nice video as always. I think a mechanical option to lower the gear without electricity or if the spindle fails, would be a good.
@@wgmskiing the Lange Antares also got a mechanical backup. You pull a wire and the gear falls out and locks into place. I can't understand why SH didn't do this. If something else than the end sensors fail you propably have to land gear up.
An UN-necessary and likely to fail option if battery leave becomes low also increased weight. Say your checks aloud and loud after identifying under carriage - (Fahr Werk) lever. Cheers 🥃 Henry Leschen 😀
I think in there are two safety reasons to use a electrical gear: 1) Most of us are right handed, here you can use the left hand to retract / extend the gear. You don´t have to let go the stick to retract the wheel. 2) you don´t have the movement while pulling it in, you can see very often while flying in the double seater, that there will be a slight pull as well on the stick. Everyone has seen the "nick" of a glider when the wheel was forgotten and someone told the pilot via radio "gear up, gear up". We even hat a fatal accident in Germany with someone hitting the ground while trying to get the gear out. 3) My Glider uses a electrical gear since ten years, no problems so far :-)
Thank you for the great video Simon, the electric landing gear is an really interesting system, sometimes it is not that easy to retract a fully mechanical gear, additionally without all that mechanical components you can theoretically gain space in the cockpit :D
Cool gadget, but not for me. Really, how hard is it to lower the gear? Just one more electrical thing to go wrong, particularly if the battery fails or runs out. I agree with Stefan. There needs to be a manual override for if the electronics fail.
While I do think a manual override is necessary, the gear of the Arcus I flew is incredibly hard to lower and raise. I just don't like it. An electrical system will allow "weaker" pilots to fly the arcus maybe even solo, since I can't lower or raise the gear (and lock!) on my own :)
lower the gear was not the problem, make it up yes. And as it was hard people had to try hard with too much force, and this made the mechanic dying at the end... Now it is smooth. And you can override electronic (positions sensors) and main battery with a dedicated battery + switch which controls directly the electric motor. This switch is on front seat (see end of video).
My first reaction was that any electrical system will eventually fail. And even with a spare battery only dedicated to the gear, still the spindle can fail of course and what then ? But we learned this year in Namibia, that also the old Arcus mechanical system can fail, when the manual lever broke during a flight and one Arcus had to land gear up.
Are the switches in both cockpits? Does the instructor switch override the one for the front? What is the amount of effort required on the previous Arcus?
yes both seats have switches. And front seat has an extra emergency switch with dedicated battery and no sensors positions so you have direct control on the electric motor for retraction / extension.
On the previous arcus its painful if you fly it solo. Plus the mechanism broke apart on ours. Electric gears have their own challenges, such as emergency procedures, and power requirements, extra sensors etc.
I wonder why adding a battery and electrical system was chosen over re-designing a proper mechanical gear mechanism. Other manufacturers have done it, why not S-H?
I have an Arcus. This is not a change I would want. Without the electric motor it is quick and easy to either raise or lower the gear from either cockpit, and to confirm its position. Why have a system which is slower, which has more to go wrong, and which distracts you more because you have to look at lights to tell where the gear is?
My wife and I just bought an Arcus and I have to say, the combination of my shortish arms and the seat position, make it very awkward for me to get the gear up and locked on my own. Putting it down is a little easier but I am at full stretch to engage the detent. My wife has not flown it from the front seat yet but I think she will really struggle if flying solo. Our previous ASW 28 was so much easier but hopefully, we will develop our technique!
Mmm I tend towards KISS and what drag improvement is there over a fixed wheel? It also introduces more failure modes to understand etc more stuff to remember...imo Laurie
Might be useful. I recently flew the Discus 2c FES and hell man this gear was garbage. It was nearly impossible to get it down and Locked. If your a bit weaker in the arms no chance you'll get it locked.... Might be a bit bad if land so yeah why not electric
overload on electric motor makes the system stopped. As to retract first the gear as to go a bit more "down" this produce the overload and stop the e motor.
Have you ever flown an arcus or a duo discus? It's very hard to raise the gear up. I know some pilots who even fly with gear down because they can't raise it
