Prop Pitch question...

[Therion_Prime]

Originally Posted by BadAim

In general, 95-100% will be for max power, eg. takeoff, climbing, fighting. (experiment, most planes make best power at 100%, some, esp japanese planes run better at slightly less RPM, and many planes overheat less at lower RPM)

I never really understood the proppitch behaviour in IL2.

Of course 95-100% PP will achieve the most power .... but not speed. It's much like you push the pedal to the metal in first gear in a car. You will accelerate very fast with very high RPM's, but if you want to accelerate further, you have to swith to second/third ... gear.

In other sims - like BoB:WoV for example - you have to adjust the proppitch according to your speed, like the transmission in a car.
You DON'T achieve the highest speeds with 100% PP. If you cruise in the 109 for example with 300 kph and decrease PP accordingly, you can actually see the speed increase dramatically. (Which seems logical, because the prop blades grip more air). In IL2 you actually loose speed when decreasing PP in level flight - which I find kinda strange.