FlyPast 01.2018

PILOT’S PERSPECTIVE BÜCKER BESTMANN

108 FLYPAST January 2018

gentle squirts of primer and cracked
the throttle. Accompanied by a
somewhat ‘graunchy’ noise, vaguely
reminiscent of a coffee grinder, the
prop jerked around spasmodically
and then dissolved into a blur as the
engine fired.
Having waited several minutes
while the engine slowly warmed
up I ensured that the tailwheel
was locked and set off towards the
active runway with the short, stubby
exhausts emitting a satisfyingly crisp
bark. For a taildragger the visibility
over the nose is excellent, as the
cowling slopes down. This enables
the pilot to see everything except
immediately in front on the right.
The pre-take off checks are
perfectly straightforward, and with
the flaps set to ‘Start’ I carefully
aligned the aircraft with the runway
and smoothly opened the throttle.
Accelerate it didn’t, but rather
‘gathered speed’ in a rather languid
fashion. This impression was
exacerbated by the terrible ASI, as
for some considerable period the
needle simply didn’t move!
It is important to raise the tail as
soon as the elevator is effective. On
the plus side, there was absolutely

no problem in keeping straight.

Eventually, and after a somewhat

protracted ground roll, the ASI came

alive and the speed slowly rose to

85km/h (about 46kts).

Finally, the needle slipped past

125km/h and I eased the Bestmann

into a rather shallow climb. I could

see immediately this was an aircraft

in which you ‘fly the wing’. The

Bestmann is certainly not over-

endowed in the power department,

and thus far I had not been terribly

impressed. However, as soon as

I began to evaluate the handling

I rapidly changed my mind. The

Bücker marque has always had an

enviable reputation for beautifully

balanced controls, and this type is no

exception.

The ailerons and elevators are

authoritative and felt very light and

smooth. I tried some slightly steeper

turns, and noted that even this

elementary manoeuvre confirmed

quite clearly that this machine

enjoys crisp handling and very well

co-ordinated controls.

No surprises

I always like to know how an aircraft

will behave on the slow side of the

speed range, so once we finally had

the height I reduced power for a look

at the stall. This produced no real

surprises, as with the flaps set to

any of the three positions the stall is

quite benign.

There is very little pre-stall buffet

and I noted that the sink rate

increased rapidly. The poor ASI

made noting the stall speed almost

impossible, but I would imagine it

was around 75km/h. Easing the stick

forward and adding power produced

a recovery that was effective and

immediate.

Having retracted the flaps, I

accelerated to 170km/h for a look at

the stick-free stability. This I judged

to be somewhat curious, as it has

negative pitch stability, is just barely

neutral in roll and slightly negative in

yaw. However, as the Bestmann was

intended to be an aerobatic trainer,

I suppose the stability would have

needed to be somewhat relaxed.

I experimented with the trimmer,

and found it to be both slightly fiddly

and quite powerful. You don’t need

to move it much.

Overhead Old Warden I studied the

windsock and was pleased to see it

still favoured Runway 21 – landing

uphill to help slow us down. During

the briefing Peter had emphasised

two things. That close attention to

speed control was imperative, and I

must not come in too fast due to the

relatively inefficient flaps.

If I did have to go around, the lack

of power dictated that I must make

that decision early. Finally: no touch-

and-goes.

Easing the speed back to 130km/h,

I realised I’d have to go further

downwind than I wanted to as the

final approach needed to be fairly

flat. I didn’t even have the option of

side-slipping, as this is not allowed

with the flaps down.

Abeam the runway numbers I

closed the throttle but continued

downwind. Although I don’t usually

select full flaps until I’m on final, the

very flat glide convinced me that I

needed them sooner than usual, and

I extended them on base. Pitch trim

changes with flap extension were

negligible.

I needed to keep the speed under

control, so on final I maintained my

aiming point with the stick, waited

until it had decayed to 115km/h

and then added just a suggestion

of power. Despite the somewhat

shallow approach angle and flat

attitude, the view over the nose was

good enough.

On short final I began drawing off

the small amount of power, and we

crossed the hedge with the speed

sinking towards 95. I then closed

the throttle fully and ensured that it

was firmly ‘on the stop’. Even a small

amount of thrust would prolong

the float. My close attention to the

approach speed paid dividends - the

Bestmann touched down gently in a

three-pointer.

Best for both

So, what were my impressions of

this interesting piece of aviation

history? Well, as I’m sure you’ve

already concluded, although it has

wonderful handling, good visibility

and a comfortable cockpit, it could

definitely use better flaps and a

more powerful engine.

In fairness, I imagine that 70-plus

years ago the Bestmann would

have been very popular with both

students and instructors. Being an

enclosed, flapped monoplane I think

it was more representative of the

aircraft the students would go on to

fly operationally.

The side-by-side seating must

have benefited both students and

instructors. I’m sure that they were

also extremely grateful for the

protection afforded by the fully

enclosed cockpit, particularly during

a northern European winter.

During the early afternoon of August 31, 1944, Lancaster III NE112 M-for-Mike of 166 Squadron took off from Kirmington, Lincs,

bound for Agenville, east of Abbeville, France. The Lancaster force-landed near to its target. Its two gunners were killed; two

of the crew, including its Australian pilot, evaded. The remaining three were captured.

One of these was the 25-year-old wireless operator, Fg Off Donald Henry Pleasance, who was released from Stalag Luft

I, Barth, in 1945. Seventeen years later, Pleasance was again in a prisoner of war camp. This time he was on the set of the

1963-released movie The Great Escape, based on the mass get away from Stalag Luft III, Sagan, of March 24, 1944. By then a

well-established fi lm actor, this was his 26th feature fi lm and one to which he could contribute a great deal of experience.

Playing the character of Flt Lt Colin Blythe, he was ‘The Forger’, working closely with ‘The Scrounger’, Flt Lt Robert

Hendley – James Garner. And what does this have to do with the Bestmann? Having escaped, Hendley and Blythe broke into

a Luftwaffe base and stole a Bü 181, heading for the Swiss frontier. They never made it – in a forced landing the aircraft was

wrecked and caught fi re. Hendley was captured, the hapless Blythe was shot as he unwittingly stumbled towards the enemy.

That Bestmann has never been identifi ed – can anyone help?

Bestmann - the Great EscaperBestmann - the Great EscaperBestmann - the Great Escaper

Cockpit controls are well laid out and easy

to fi nd.