The clouds didn't lift like they were supposed to, so we've canceled today's lesson on account of a 1000' ceiling.
For Wednesday, I've got homework: do the weight and balance for our up-coming Thanksgiving trip. We'll be taking the Dog (~90 lbs) and while we try to travel light, for this exercise I'm to give us each a 40-lb suitcase. We've got the, er, what do you call them? The distance from the datum to the loading point... That distance times weight is the moment, compare totals to POH W&B envelope... What are those distances called? Arms? Arm length? Anyway, we've got all of that info at home and I've done it before using our family members as ballast for their visits, so it should be easy enough. Husband turned it all into a spreadsheet, too, so I'll do it both ways.
The "arm" signifies the lever effect on the weight. Try to pick up your dog, and you'll hold him close to your chest because you cannot hold him at arms length.
ReplyDelete"With a big enough lever, you can move the world".
A weight on the tailskid is a huge lever!