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A fun Mighty Maule video

yes William once you own one you don’t sell them

Its like the the girl that got away. Haunts you forever! Going to jump in the Pacer here and make Cessna Skywagon noises :-(

Buying, Selling, Flying
EISG, Ireland

Sparing William’s blushes his book on all of Ireland’s airports, airfields and farm strips (including a couple of secret ones), with photos and notes has to be one of the most encyclopaedic and entertaining airport guides ever written. In his 180 (yes William once you own one you don’t sell them), he was truly in the spirit of one of Laurence Sterne’s best characters.

Oxford (EGTK), United Kingdom

The impression I get is that to fly one well you need a lot more skill than with a normal plane like mine.

Thats the impression we like to give as tailwheel men alright! Reality is some are almost idiot proof, and some have very quirky habits. The Cessna 180K I used to own (and miss dearly) could fly on days when it would be unsafe to open the hangar doors. You see RV’s out in some really stonking winds, so in that regard there are very capable and practical. I’ve flown with a real Alaskan bush pilot and his family owned Pen Air flying Grumman Gooses. He has landed in winds gusting in excess of 70kts in the Goose, but then again he is the worlds leading authority on their operation and maintenance.

The MX7 is a very capable airplane and everyone who has them seems to love what they can do. There is a 180K here in Ireland that flies with a full garmin stack in as rough IMC days as you would ever dare go out in. The owner took a weekend trip to Tangier and yet came home to land in his garden. The tailwheel life :-)

Buying, Selling, Flying
EISG, Ireland

This beautiful old timer is more typical – antique brakes, small fin/rudder, tarmac (less forgiving).

https://www.gov.uk/aaib-reports/aaib-investigation-to-miles-m38-messenger-4b-g-akvz

Light GA tailwheel aircraft don’t require superior skills (some of us are proof of this statement), just a bit more patience and care while taxiing, and the basic skill of landing and keeping the aircraft straight.

The larger tailwheel types (Cessna 195, Harvard, Warbirds), historic types and some where the undercarriage was only for occasional use (Grumman Goose), do require good knowledge of their foibles.

Oxford (EGTK), United Kingdom

I guess it is relative. The Maule I was in could not land with a crosswind of about 15kt, but it was a narrow strip (maybe 15m) on top of a hill. The pilot tried a few times but kept going off to one side and then diverted. Not much later the plane got written off by another pilot.

Where I am based, the taildragger pilots much prefer the wide grass runway, and are almost nonexistent in 15kt+ crosswinds. They have always said to me that the crosswind capability is the reason why. You have little steering authority when moving slowly but you can’t jump on the brakes otherwise it might tip over.

OTOH the movie posted above shows a probably exceptional pilot who does this all day long…

Obviously I know nothing about taildraggers from own experience The impression I get is that to fly one well you need a lot more skill than with a normal plane like mine.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

The downside was very little crosswind capability (unless you have plenty of ground sideways)

Jacko may step in, but am not aware the Maule is crosswind challenged – it has plenty of rudder and good brakes, perhaps a slightly forward CG so you may want to be careful on the brakes on a wheel landing – but preferred technique is a two wheel landing (upwind and tail).

Tailwheel bush planes have good rudder effectiveness precisely for crosswinds – you may need a couple or more wing walkers for taxying afterwards, if say its 30 knots plus.

Did you mean if the runway is wide you can land across? A Super Cub might have a landing roll comfortably in 30-40m once winds are 20knots on the nose – although I prefer to be cautious and would limit myself to 10 knot crosswind.

Oxford (EGTK), United Kingdom

That’s amazing. Is that the “tundra tyres” option?

I flew in a Maule some years ago, and flew it for maybe 30 mins. It got airborne in probably about 50m! The downside was very little crosswind capability (unless you have plenty of ground sideways) and the owner’s wife was vomiting in the back seat for the whole flight – light UK summer turbulence.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Very cool!

LFHN - Bellegarde - Vouvray France

Rather boring to fly

Your flying never looks boring to me!

Buying, Selling, Flying
EISG, Ireland

Yes!! Almost makes me want to go out and buy a Maule !

but before you do so, consider some of the pros and cons – based on 3 years ownership and about 400 hours in a MX-7-180:

Pro:
Relatively inexpensive (compared with “Brand C” bushplanes)
Very docile easy to fly
Simple to maintain with reasonably priced parts
Big loading door and 900 # useful load
8 hour endurance and surprisingly comfy seats
Can be equipped with A/P etc. for IFR
Even faster cruising speed than a super cub
Forgiving oleo landing gear with narrow track for farm roads
No performance data in flight manual for the Federales to hang you with

Con:
Feels a bit “homebuilt” (compared with “Brand C”)
Rather boring to fly
Parts not always off the shelf from the factory
If your flying buddy has a Cub you’ll have to carry half of his fuel and gear
Limited toilet facilities – best to make precautionary landing(s) on a long trip
Non FIKI
Take off (usually more than 6 seconds) is even worse than a Carbon Cub
Anaemic climb rate with 31" Alaskan Bushwheels – but a Maule without bushwheels is like a lurcher with two broken legs
Mud and sh1t from farms stick like glue to wings and tail
Water splashes through poorly fitting doors on lake and river bed landings
Water landings tend to piss off the Feds

Glenswinton, SW Scotland, United Kingdom
15 Posts
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