Coff,
Returning to your earlier post about the merits of the types chosen. The ME platform was always going to be the most challenging to select. The EFT platform has to prepare the students for 3 types: T6, Phenom and whatever the rotary platform is chosen to be. I know little of the rotary world so I will say no more about that. Students from the T6 will progress only to the Hawk T2 so platform suitability for that role is relatively straightforward to ascertain. The students from the ME platform choice will graduate from it onto Shadow/Avenger, E3/Air Seeker, A400M, Voyager, C130 etc. And then there are the Islander/Defender variants. To get a 'one size fits all' ME trainer was always going to be interesting!
I have flown the Phenom 100 and, like many others, before I flew it I had doubts about whether its asymmetric flying qualities would be adequate to teach ME students. However, at low speeds large rudder inputs are required to counter the asymmetric thrust if the aircraft is flown wings level, and the rudder pedal forces are manageable. Also, the loss of thrust requires a significant reduction in the pitch attitude in order to maintain the required speed. The major consideration is roll control. The aircraft has no lateral stability (dihedral effect) and there is no propwash over the wings. Therefore, once stabilised there is no aileron deflection required to maintain a constant bank angle. However, it does feature a spring interconnect such that when a large rudder pedal input is made a lateral control force is required in the opposite sense in order to maintain the required aileron angle so some opposite force on the yoke is needed. The other aspect with respect to roll is that if 5 deg of bank is applied towards the live engine then the aircraft can be flown essentially rudder free. Overall, and considering the range of roll control strategies required by the in-service ME platforms for flight on asymmetric power the Phenom can, in my opinion, provide satisfactory training in flight on asymmetric power.
LJ,
I agree totally about the fact that our next generation trainers need glass cockpits (although there will be some scratching of heads for students then graduating onto platforms with analogue cockpits such as the Islander/Defender but there are other solutions). However, if we want good, capable pilots we still need to teach them the basics of how to fly and apply good airmanship because they will need to be able to cope with reversionary modes if they are to be truly effective. Please note that I am not implying that you have said otherwise! Piloting skills will always be about flying an aeroplane and will always be required for high calibre operators. Rely too heavily on automation at ones peril!
Happy New Year
L