Cgjunk2 Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 Im trying to understand what is happening related to pitot icing, airspeed indications, and an electrical system that is sucked dry by pitot heat. I’ve done some longish flights where I notice my airspeed go to zero. When I turn pitot heat on, sometimes the problem is resolved in a few minutes, other times it stays at zero airspeed (until the ammeter indicates zero amps-generator on), and some other times, the problem seems to resolve until I notice my airspeed reading as wildly high (ie 600mph indicated in straight and level cruise). It’s been a while since I’ve thought about airspeed errors/pitot icing relationships. I seem to recall that a frozen pitot can make the airspeed ind act like an altimeter in some situations, which may explain my high readings. But Im stumped as to why the pitot heat doesnt seem to be clearing the ice, or why the electrical system is sucked dry so quickly. Most of my flying is on Aerobatics online where currently it is winter on caucases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grafspee Posted January 20, 2021 Share Posted January 20, 2021 I think pitot heat need revisiting, i experience this problems is many planes not in P-47 only. System specs: I7 14700KF, Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Elite, 64GB DDR4 3600MHz, Gigabyte RTX 4090,Win 11, 48" OLED LG TV + 42" LG LED monitor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cool-Hand Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 Yeah it happens in the clear for me, away from clouds with pitot heat on in winter conditions and no visible precip of any type. The pitot heater doesn't seem to prevent the tube from icing over. [sIGPIC][/sIGPIC] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diesel_Thunder Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 The F-16 had similar pitot icing issues for a while as well, except for the part about draining the batteries. I think that did get resolved, though it took a while. PC: MSI X670E, Ryzen 9 7900X, 64GB DDR5 RAM, RTX 3090 Ti, TM Warthog HOTAS, Saitek Pro Flight pedals, Opentrack Link to my Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/DieselThunderAviation Commander, 62nd Virtual Fighter Squadron Join the 62nd VFS today! Link to our discord server: https://discord.gg/Z25BSKk84s Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grafspee Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 What do you mean by electrical system is sucked dry, are you sure that you switched generator ON ? System specs: I7 14700KF, Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Elite, 64GB DDR4 3600MHz, Gigabyte RTX 4090,Win 11, 48" OLED LG TV + 42" LG LED monitor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cgjunk2 Posted January 25, 2021 Author Share Posted January 25, 2021 Yes, when the generator is on, the ammeter will move to 0 amps after a short period of flight. Maybe after half hour? Actually, the discharging battery might even happen independent of pitot heat being on, but Id have to test that to make sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grafspee Posted January 25, 2021 Share Posted January 25, 2021 (edited) Agree, ammeter should show GEN current, why it is fading away no idea. Looks like a bug for me. Not sure is it only gauge bug or plane's generator failing away. Edited January 25, 2021 by grafspee System specs: I7 14700KF, Gigabyte Z790 Aorus Elite, 64GB DDR4 3600MHz, Gigabyte RTX 4090,Win 11, 48" OLED LG TV + 42" LG LED monitor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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