Short Field Performance

[Edward Pierson]

Howdy folks,
I’m a new member here, just beginning the search for a replacement airplane. I currently fly an Air Cam, which is probably an aircraft best understood as an Anti-Meyers. Superb short field performance but at the cost of a cruise speed equal to a Meyers 200 approach speed. I am airfield limited in that there is only one airport on the island in the Pacific NW where I live (2S1) and it’s 1900 feet long, turf, with trees at both ends.
My question is will a Meyers 200 at gross weight be able to get down and stopped comfortably in that length. I gather from the book that takeoff is not a problem, but I’d like to hear from someone who routinely operates out of short grass strips.
Thanks,
Ed

[Ed Pulliam]

Ed, a very good ask. What are your typical winds and how is the turf? My experience (and there are many folks here with much more than mine) is that short field can be tricky as you almost have to get behind the power curve to drop a 200 in. Full flaps and 90 MPH means a fair amount of power as you come down to short final to keep the sink rate in check. And once in ground effect and power coming off, she will settle very quickly, which is a good thing. I can make 1000′ turn offs, but it takes practice. And gusty winds negates that as you need the extra airspeed to combat the loss of lift when airspeed is bouncing around.

And my turf landings are very limited.

I hope some others will chime in. Tom Thibedou (sp) has excellent experience and I always appreciate his thoughts.

Best-

Ed P.

[Edward Pierson]

Thanks, Ed
Our winds are usually less than 10 Knots, seldom with a crosswind. The grass can be wet, so that limits braking effectiveness. We do have an F33 based here and he doesn’t appear to have any trouble, but I haven’t had the chance to find out what his weight is and what approach speed he’s using.
Ed

[Ed Pulliam]

I would fly with the F33 guy and watch his technique. Meyers has less wing area (at least I think it does), but engine and airframe configuration are very similar. For sure see his weight limitations. At gross the Meyers will sink unless you have power in and the flare happens quickly.

Best-

Ed

[Thomas Kube]

Here in Europe there are a lot of short grass runways.
Getting the Meyers down is easy in my opinion.
Takeoff performance depends on the usual factors: actual mass, wind and temperature. I have a IO 520, so power could be better. To get best climb out you need to fly with Vx over the trees and then accelerate to Vy while cleaning up. I find it uncomfortable to fly with Vx, but with any higher speed the climb out is rather shallow.

The shortest runway I flew out was EDKA with 540m (1800ft) with a train dam to the east.

Thomas

[Dennis Martin]

We operated a 200a out of our 2000 ft grass strip in WI for years. We had clear approaches, a 520 engine, and a 3 blade prop. Getting in was not a problem. The 200 has a really steep approach angle and doesn’t float. Fly your numbers and hit your spot and you’ll be fine.

Getting out was a different story. If he was filling all 4 seats Dad would often fly over to a bigger airport to pick up that last guy. Getting off the ground wasn’t a problem, but the Meyers doesn’t have enough rudder and if you horsed it off you couldn’t hold it straight. It accelerates quickly but it just takes time to get it cleaned up and climbing. I would be nervous flying out of a 1900 ft strip with trees. With the big engine and prop I noticed our plane would get out significantly shorter than a stock plane.

[Edward Pierson]

Thanks, Dennis, Ed and Thomas for your input. I get the impression that landing is not so much the problem as keeping it straight on a Vx departure. Our airport authority is working on getting the offending trees down so I should probably wait for less obstructed approaches.
Interestingly enough I tried a Myers using Microsoft FSX. While generally speaking it’s a pretty lousy simulator, it did confirm what you’re saying about directional control on takeoff out of a short field.
Ed

[Ed Pulliam]

Ed, there is no offset in the engine mount or a trim tab on the rudder to deal with significant P-factor when you rotate with a 520 or 550. You have to somewhat snatch it into ground effect and throw in a lot of right rudder as you keep it aligned with the runway as you retract gear and take off flaps. A lot happening in a short amount of time. Once it is cleaned up through 100′ or so things settle down and climb out is nice with a great elevator-like climb with a low angle of attack profile from the cabin. The view is great and you look at the VSI and it is showing 1200′ per minute climb. Still a fair amount of right rudder to keep it centered.

Best-

Ed P.

[Peter Jensen]

I agree with Dennis Martin. Landing isn’t the issue. Takeoff out of a short field is the pucker manuever.

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