Under the category of "intrigue", Steve Johnston (not the same as Steve Johnson) has built this handy AOA indicator

More than an airspeed indicator! This angle of attack indicator assists me when I fly slow and operate in tight spots.

An aircraft can stall at any airspeed and the stall is not directly caused by lack of airspeed. However, an aircraft will ALWAYS stall at the same angle of attack. The stall always occurs when a critical angle of attack is exceeded.

The only flying instrument the Wright Brothers ever designed was an angle of attack indicator. Their indicator used a piece of string very similar to this one.

Most Cub drivers tend to fly by the seat of their pants This device serves as a crosscheck and a confirmation to the seat of your pants. When you are coming in low and slow it is a good feeling to glance out at that piece of yarn and see that it agrees with you.

Cruise speed

Slow speed (about 40MPH)

Very slow speed (about 30 MPH with some power on)

On the edge of a stall ( with slight buffeting)

In a stall

Device mounted on aircraft

Mounting View #2

I calibrated the AOA by trial and error. I flew the aircraft at cruise, slow speed , very slow speed and entered into stalls. I adjusted the positions and widths of the colored tape bands. As shown in the photos the AOA it has a wide green safe operating range with a small yellow caution range and the red range for stall condition.

Materials include the following: - 82" length of cold water type 3/4" PVC pipe and two Adell type clamps for attaching to aircraft

-gas welding rod to mount yarn on

-yarn

-length of 1/4" aluminum tube for color range markings

4-11-2002

Disclaimer: Items found in the Woe and Intrigue section or any other section of this websites are contributions of various authors. Any modifications to your aircraft or flying techniqe should be reviewed and signed off by an AI, FAA inspector, or your flight instructor. Supercub.org takes no responsibility for the use or misuse of any information found on this website. It is simply provided without verfication.

---

The Author Steve Johnston Pheasant Hunting in North Dakota