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  #1  
Old 05-20-2013, 05:54 AM
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Jesse Jesse is offline
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: X35 - Ocala, FL
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Default Slider canopy open in flight

I'm new to the 2-seat RV world. What are the options for flying with the slider canopy open on my RV-9A?

Thanks.
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  #2  
Old 05-20-2013, 07:02 AM
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Zero: Sliders are not designed to be flown with the canopy open, Rosie
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  #3  
Old 05-20-2013, 08:18 AM
David-aviator David-aviator is offline
 
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Location: Chesterfield, Missouri
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rosie View Post
Zero: Sliders are not designed to be flown with the canopy open, Rosie
I do believe it has been said it can be done ONE time - and hope it does not rip off the VS when it departs the aircraft.

I took off with it partially open on a very hot day trying to stay cool while taxiing, it slid open about 3" and could not be moved.

It is probably a good idea to land ASAP as the stress load on the mechanism is unknown when it it not latched.
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  #4  
Old 05-20-2013, 08:54 AM
aerhed aerhed is offline
 
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Quote:
I do believe it has been said it can be done ONE time
They say the same thing about shooting from the back of a horse.
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  #5  
Old 05-20-2013, 08:59 AM
RhodeIsland9 RhodeIsland9 is offline
 
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Location: Middletown, RI
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Default remove it?

What about removing the slider before flight? Two bolts for the roller brackets and it comes right off. No experience, just wondering if this would be a safe alternative.
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  #6  
Old 05-20-2013, 09:26 AM
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RVbySDI RVbySDI is offline
 
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Location: Tuttle, Oklahoma
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Contrary to what one would expect, there is a large back draft of air inside the cockpit coming from the back edge of the canopy flowing right down the back of your neck with the canopy not fully closed and latched. I have had this experience on two occasions. Both times required an immediate return to the airport to properly secure the latch. And, yes, as others have mentioned, my experiences showed me that the canopy is impossible to move while in flight once you take off with it in such a position. That means forward or backwards. It would not budge from its position. Granted I did not struggle long with it when it happened. Trying to struggle with closing the canopy while maintaining control of the flight was not something I wished to spend much time with. As for removing the canopy, well, that would not be something I personally would want to experiment with so if you do experiment with this, please report back your findings. I would not expect this aircraft to perform well without the canopy. And I don't just mean speed-wise. I would expect there could be some rather drastic differences in control characteristics to deal with. I would have no desire to personally test that hypothesis out though.

It seems to me if one would wish to fly in an open cockpit environment one should seek out an open cockpit design to enjoy.
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  #7  
Old 05-20-2013, 10:21 AM
Steve Steve is offline
 
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I was able to slide the canopy fully forward and then latch it only after slowing my -9A to about 60 mph indicated.
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  #8  
Old 05-20-2013, 10:30 AM
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Snowflake Snowflake is offline
 
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The canopy shape creates an airfoil that lifts up on the tracks with considerable force... That, coupled with the slipstream from the fixed windscreen, is likely what prevents movement. Unloading the canopy with slow flight and/or a "bunt" may help you get it closed.

I took off once with just the overhead latch on my tip-up locked... Only realized the main latch wasn't locked once I was a healthy distance from the airport. Slowing to about 90 and then pushing over to -1G was enough to unload it and get the latch in place. If that hadn't worked I would have diverted.
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  #9  
Old 05-20-2013, 09:41 PM
6 Gun 6 Gun is offline
 
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Default No top

On the cover of a mag once upon a time a long time ago there was a RV3 with a small windshield and open cockpit looked great.
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