BAe J41 What's it like to fly ?

[l8starter]

Hello Chaps/Chapesses,

Just a general question about what life might be like spending the working day on the flightdeck of the J41 ? A search hasn't thrown up very much, as far as I can see.

I'm considerng a contract (DEC) job in Romania on the beast, and would be interested to learn a little of its strenghts and (particularly) its weaknesses. I'm an unemployed jet jock, but had 600 very happy hours on the Dash8 many years ago, which was my last experience of a turbo-prop.

I very well remember my first real experience of icing in the Dash, and initially watched with some trepidation as the boots merely re-arranged the ice ! The Dash, however, seemed to carry ice very well, and as I could be spending some considerable time bouncing around the Transylvannian mountains in the summer, and coping with a Romanian winter, I'm keen to know how the J41 will cope in those conditions.

All contributions gratefully received.

Many thanks,

L8.

[Mister Geezer]

I used to fly the 41 a few years ago and I spent about a year and a half flying it. It is noisy and a bit compact compared to what you would have been used to in the Dash but the 41 is nice to fly. I never had any problems with ice and I only needed to use the boots on a handful of occasions - if that. There are certainly far worse props out there that you could be flying!

Its short field performance is poor but it is quite quick though and until the Saab 2000 and the Dash 8 Q400 came along, the old 41 was perhaps one of the fastest turboprops around in the civilian airliner market.

[l8starter]

Thanks for the input Mister !

Was obviously hoping for a few more replies, but will try some more digging and PMing.

Thanks again, appreciated.

L8.

[jetjockey737]

I had 18 months on the J-41 about 6 years ago. I cant remember too much bad about it to be honest. It is lovely to fly and although compact, it is reasonably comfy ( i am nudging 6'1" ).

It is noisey though and going for pee in flight is interesting as effectively you are in the back galley area!

I never had any problems in icing conditions as the boots seemed to work quite well. The only problem I can remember was the pod smoke warning going off if you got deiced and some got into the pod....it would start to evaporate and set of the detectors!!( well thats what I was told but I am sure someone will come along and prove me wrong!!).

Good luck with it...I actually miss flying the thing!!!!

JJ

[l8starter]

Thanks for that Jetjockey. I'm getting so desperate to fly again I'm thinking of entering the Birdman competition at Bournemouth this year ! Glad it sounds like it's decent and fun to fly, so could be something to look forward to :).

I've positioned on a Jetstream a couple of times many years ago, and I have to say that my memory of it (apart from the noise) was the proximity of the galley to the bog - certainly enough to make me think twice about accepting the catering :-D.

Cheers,

L8.

[Rainboe]

I think you might be a cold lonely birdman- the Birdman competition is at Bognor pier isn't it? Or it used to be.

Having the john in the rear galley seems to be a fairly established UK design practice, like superstalls in jets. The HS748 was the same. It's meant to be so awful you cross your legs instead. The Jetstream is OK. The Handley Page Chief Test Pilot, John Allam, who checked it out 42 years ago was an old boy of my school, and I went on a school visit thanks to him. They wouldn't let me stick my head in a Vulcan, which I'd have killed for- I suppose at 17 I might have been a Roosian spy!

More important is why we are still flying around in designs over 40 years old.....like the 747? It's like flying around then (1967) in a 1925 aeroplane. Passengers would have fled in disarray if you turned up in 1967 at the departure gate in an HP42, so how come they don't run away screaming when we turn up in something 42 years old now? Maybe progress isn't as fast as we like to think sometimes! Hasn't design changed in 42 years- my goodness we put the tailplane on top of the fin now! How daring!

[Brian Abraham]

my goodness we put the tailplane on top of the fin now! How daring!
tut tut Rainboe. Even the HP 42 had the tailplane on top of the fin. and one on the bottom I bet if one was to wheel out a 42 today you would have no end of takers willing to part with hard earned for a jaunt.

[l8starter]

Bugger, Bognor ! Of course, silly me. Mind you if I entered at Bournemouth I stand a chance of being first and last at the same time, maybe even being the first to be first and last in its history ? Jeez I goota get out more, I've been a house husband for too long now; mind you the Anne summers parties are something else . . . . .

Back to things aeronautical. The change in appearance of aircraft design between the 1920's and the 1960's was phenominal, whereas from the 1960's onwards it has hardly changed at all. So to the self-loading freight an aeroplane today probably doesn't look much different than it did 40 years ago (prop or jet), and especially if they board via an airbridge, their only perception of the aircraft age is likely to be based on the condition of the cabin.

Having poled a Dash8 across the North Sea in the midst of winter, however, I remember well the concerned looks from the passengers as they walked across the freezing apron to their propellor driven machine. Having to tech stop for fuel was a bit of an embarrassment, but happy days none-the-less, especially as I needed the hours at the time :). Personally it's the vintage stuff that floats my aeronautical boat, and since I've spent the last few years flying a full glass cockpit jet, if I get the opportunity to fly something that's destined for a museum then I'll take it (I've to try and keep taking the positives out of this situation . . )

Glad to hear the Jetstream is OK though. Keep 'em coming guys,even if the thread drift is entertaining ;-) ! Now where's that catalogue . . . . . . .


L8.

[HiFli]

Try the Africa Forum. Airlink in South Africa operates a number of J41s.

[HalinTexas]

It's been over ten years.

I transitioned from the J32 to the J41 which was much better in all regards. Decent power, good autopilot stable. One weakness was the main cabin door seal. It used bleed air to seal the door. The seal tended to fail frequently. Makes for a noisy unpressurized flight.

One caution: when selecting flaps 8, add down-nose trim. It tends to pitch up.

[l8starter]

Thanks for the input guys, and the tip for the African Forum !

Having flown the ERJ145 I'm used to whistling door problems, although the engineers would have us believe that was just due to poor door design and rigging problems. And having flown the Dash8 I remember having to also put a big handful of trim in as Flap 35 was selected. Mind you the ERJ145 has some noticable pitch changes when the first two stages of flap are taken, but so little hand flying was done (by order of the Fuhrer), people lost the knack of having to manage it, or even think about it. Sad really.

Whilst I'm here, perhaps I could make a request for a "quirk sheet" for the J41, if anyone currently flying it has one they might share ? Thanks again, and keep 'em coming if you can.

L8.