[Patch6]

Not sure what 'normal' is and therefore figured I would ask the question; when in level cruise is it expected that auto trim will be almost maxed out in the down position yet the elevator servo remains in the neutral or even forward position?

TIA!

 

[Walt]

The goal of auto-trim is to remove pressure from the servo.

 

[BobTurner]

Not sure what 'normal' is and therefore figured I would ask the question; when in level cruise is it expected that auto trim will be almost maxed out in the down position yet the elevator servo remains in the neutral or even forward position?

TIA!

Of course Walt’s statement is correct. For most planes, so is yours (OP): most aircraft will be set up for minimum trim drag in cruise. So in cruise your trim indicator will be close to the nose down end of its range. That does not mean the trim tab is extremely up (nose down). In fact it will be close to in-trail, to minimize drag. It just won’t go much higher. Now the main pitch servo is mechanically tied to the pitch control. So in high speed cruise it, and the stick, should move slightly nose down.

 

[Walt]

Of course Walt’s statement is correct. For most planes, so is yours (OP): most aircraft will be set up for minimum trim drag in cruise. So in cruise your trim indicator will be close to the nose down end of its range. That does not mean the trim tab is extremely up (nose down). In fact it will be close to in-trail, to minimize drag. It just won’t go much higher. Now the main pitch servo is mechanically tied to the pitch control. So in high speed cruise it, and the stick, should move slightly nose down.

Not sure I understand your explanation above, all I know is the trim tab forces the elevator to move to a position to remove control stick pressure.
The trim tab position indicator will tell you how far from neutral the tab is, it has no idea the actual position of the elevator.