Champion Aerospace, who has been creating spark plugs for aircraft for over a century is now an official sponsor of the new Accu-Sim C172 Trainer aircraft that’s currently being developed by A2A Simulations Inc. They now manufacture a broad range of aviation products including igniters, exciters, leads for turbine engines, oil filters, and ignition harnesses for reciprocating engines. A2A Simulations produces high-end flight simulations using their own proprietary Accu-Sim technology through Microsoft flight simulator products.
“A pilot should understand and develop proper habits to keep the spark plugs from fouling. When on the ground, this means keeping the engine running above the minimum recommended RPM and leaning when idling and taxiing. When in the air, you should also try to keep the airplane properly leaned except during high power operations, like takeoff and higher power climbs. Like many piston-powered aircraft, our Comanche would often foul a plug or two. It could sometimes be a challenge to clear them out during runup as well. All of these actions waste precious fuel and add more wear and tear on the motor. We recently replaced our older “massive” type spark plug with a “fine wire” type spark plug, and our spark plugs have not fouled yet. However, we still use the same techniques we learned while flying with the massive plugs, even with the fine wires. This will keep the newer plugs even cleaner and running better,” said Scott Gentile of A2A Simulations Inc.
“Just like the real planes, you can experience the actual effects of fouled plugs in the simulation. You may notice the engine is running a little rough but you should be able to isolate the side that has the fouled plugs during a mag check. Typically, you would lean the engine and throttle it up for 10 seconds or so, and then re-check the mags. Most of the time you can clear them, but you may once or twice experience a stubborn plug and have your mechanic pull and clean the plugs for you. The end result is, after you fly the Accu-Sim C172 trainer and experience this yourself, you will also develop good techniques and eventually a fouled plug will be a very rare event,” said Krzysztof Sobczak of A2A Simulations Inc.
More information about Champion Aerospace can be found at http://www.championaerospace.com
More information about A2A Simulations can be found at http://www.a2asimulations.com
