Locking the tailwheel and runways?

[SEE]

I don't use it as I am trying to perfect using the rudder (by watching how the AI set theirs when taking off) but was locking the Tailwheel a function that was actually available to pilots?

I also notice that quite a few on-line players manage to take off without using the runway but if I try that my plane falls apart. I always use the runway now but how do they manage to do that?

[Tempest123]

Yeah, locking the tailwheel is real, it's common on large taildragging planes, it helps the aircraft track down the runway. Check out some of the Roaring Glory Warbirds videos on youtube, they will teach you lots about actually flying some of these planes. There are a few planes in Il2 such as older biplanes that don't have this feature, but anything with major horsepower usually does.
Folks not using the runway usually just gun it to full power and catch a lucky bounce until they are airborne, its not a guaranteed takeoff, lol.

[WTE_Galway]

Originally Posted by SEE

I don't use it as I am trying to perfect using the rudder (by watching how the AI set theirs when taking off) but was locking the Tailwheel a function that was actually available to pilots?

Some aircraft yes. Other aircraft no.

Also some tail wheels where steerable.

Originally Posted by SEE

I also notice that quite a few on-line players manage to take off without using the runway but if I try that my plane falls apart. I always use the runway now but how do they manage to do that?

I have not been online for years .. but at one stage the polite thing to do was takeoff from taxiways and land on runways.

[IceFire]

Originally Posted by WTE_Galway

Some aircraft yes. Other aircraft no.

Also some tail wheels where steerable.



I have not been online for years .. but at one stage the polite thing to do was takeoff from taxiways and land on runways.

Polite yes... but there are still some (many) morons who just spawn, start engine and 110% throttle and take their chances.

I usually use the tailwheel after I've setup my takeoff.

[Splitter]

Originally Posted by IceFire

Polite yes... but there are still some (many) morons who just spawn, start engine and 110% throttle and take their chances.

I usually use the tailwheel after I've setup my takeoff.

Yes, in real aircraft it can be easy to send a plane into a sideways skid on the ground with the tail wheel unlocked. It CAN be done in IL-2, but it seems that you have to intentionally try to do it. In other flight sims, it is easy to inadvertently send your plane careening sideways, dig in a wing, bend the landing gearm etc.

Just prior to take off, I roll the plane forward a few feet to make sure the tail wheel is locked straight...I'm not sure it would lock any other way in IL-2, other sims, or in real life, but it's a little ritual for me . I also always lock the tail wheel prior to landing...and I lock it when I park it lol.

Really, an unlocked tail wheel is only needed when you need to make sharp turns while taxiing. I have also heard that an unlocked tail wheel can cause drag in IL-2, but I have never tested it.

Another good habit that makes absolutely no difference in this game is to use the wheel brakes as you retract your gear. This stops them from spinning and prevents damage in some planes in real life and other sims.

Splitter

on large taildraggers u MUST lock your tailwheel to improve your direction stability, otherwise you'll go trimming grass on the sides of the runway. There are different kinds of tailwheel: the Mustang has a steerable mechanism that was activated when u pushed the stick forward (so that you could actually use it only during taxiing), otherwise it would stay in semi-locked position (with only 6 degrees of movement on each side); the Corsair doesn't have a steerable tailwheel, but it's lockable as well.
The rule is that your tailwheel must be locked at all times apart from when you need to steer on the ground during taxiing.

[KG26_Alpha]

Originally Posted by SEE

I don't use it as I am trying to perfect using the rudder (by watching how the AI set theirs when taking off) but was locking the Tailwheel a function that was actually available to pilots?

I also notice that quite a few on-line players manage to take off without using the runway but if I try that my plane falls apart. I always use the runway now but how do they manage to do that?

Try an IL2 series or I16 they have heavy torque, most "virtual" pilots will firewall the throttle and go slewing all over the runway and everywhere else ending up in a smoking crater declaring their stick was playing up

Some of the Bf109 variants tail wheel lock was engaged by pulling the stick fully towards the pilot, I'm not sure exactly which ones though.

Here's some interesting take off facts regarding the Bf109 series.

Bf 109 D:
"The ground control was excellent. Without using the wheel brakes, on the way out to the take-off position, I found that a propeller blast on the rudder brought a surprisingly pleasant reaction, in spite of the fact that the vertical fin and the rudder were both rather small.
The take-off was normal, and I estimated that the ground run was fully one-half the distance used by the Hawker Hurricane and about one-fourth the distance used by the Supermarine Spitfire."
- US Marine Corps major Al Williams. Source: Bf 109D test flight, 1938.

"Care had to be taken to prevent any swing as the combination of narrow-track undercarriage and minimal forward view could easily result in directional problems."
- Eric Brown

Me 109 E:
"(Takeoff) is best done with the flaps at 20 degrees. The throttle can be opened very quickly without fear of choking the engine. Acceleration is good, and there is little tendency to swing or bucket. The stick must be held hard forward to get the tail up. It is advisable to let the airplane fly itself off since, if pulled off too soon, the left wing will not lift, and on applying aileron the wing lifts and falls again, with the ailerons snatching a little. If no attempt is made to pull the airplane off quickly, the take-off run is short, and initial climb good."
- RAF Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) Farnborough handling trials,Bf.109E Wn: 1304. M.B. Morgan and R. Smelt of the RAE, 1944.

Me 109 E-4:
"The tail felt like it should be raised just as the airspeed started to register i.e., at 50-60 kmh. Once the tail was off the runway the familiar extreme change in directional stability became apparent - from almost absolute stability to almost absolute instability. The aircraft flew herself off at 110 kmh."
- Charlie Brown, RAF Flying Instructor, test flight of restored Me 109 E-4 WN 3579. Source: Warbirds Journal issue 50.

http://www.virtualpilots.fi/feature/...myths/#takeoff