Simviation Forums

I like flying the Howard 500 in FS9 but sometimes forget whether I've locked the tailwheel or not.

Is there a panel indicator light some where that will illuminate when the tailwheel is locked ? If I had one of these I could add it to the existing panel somewhere to remind me

I use the keyboard "shift-G" to lock the tail wheel.

Not really necessary in the Howard......

The 'tailwheel lock' is controlled differently in the Howard than in most aircraft. You do not toggle the lock on and off so there is no control lever or indicator.

To lock the tailwheel, pull the yoke all the way back and hold. The tailwheel will remain locked as long as you hold the yoke back. It releases when you move the yoke forward.

So for take off, line up and then pull back on the yoke and throttle up. Hold back on the yoke until you have enough airspeed for the rudders to have authority. This keeps the tailwheel locked and 'pinned' to the runway until you want the tail to lift.

(Shift+G) has no effect on the tailwheel lock/unlock function in the Howard.

Dave