Photo: David Álvarez López, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons · Extra 330SC pictured
Deliberately speed-invariant and feather-light: pencil-grip forces, near-flat per-g gradient, friction-free centering, and rolls that start and stop abruptly.
Sources: Extra EA 300 POH; Extra published data.
The Extra 300 is a competition aerobatic aircraft that happens to be certified: a steel-tube fuselage, a carbon wing with a symmetric airfoil, and control response measured in eye-blinks. It exists to convert stick pressure into rotation with as little between you and the surfaces as possible.
For a simmer the Extra is the direct-connection benchmark. The profile is deliberately different from everything else in the fleet: a linear load curve instead of the usual square law, minimal damping, and forces that stay light and immediate because that is the entire design brief of the aircraft.
Walter Extra was a German aerobatic competitor who built himself a better airplane in 1988 because nothing he could buy rolled fast enough. The 300 grew from his single-seat 230 into the two-seat trainer-capable competition standard of the 1990s.
Three decades of variants later, Extras still fly Unlimited-category competition and airshow acts worldwide, and the type has trained most of a generation of aerobatic pilots. The two-seat 300 modeled here is the classic mid-wing configuration.
Each finding pairs our reading with the evidence it rests on. Fly the type and read something wrong? Every claim links straight to the corrections form.
Counterweights, horns, and aileron spades keep control forces the same as speed changes; elevator trim doesn't change from stall speed to Vne, and the symmetric zero-incidence wing flies inside and outside maneuvers at identical airspeeds with the same stick forces.
The elevator is light and the stick force doesn't increase much with g — a little care is needed at very high speed not to overdo it. Pulling about 3 g takes only mild back-pressure.
Hold the stick with three fingers, like a pencil; the movement needed for turns is nearly imperceptible, breakout forces are light and linear, and the floor-mounted stick feels friction-free.
Mild positive centering through the first third of travel, then the horns, tabs, and spades unload and the roll rate spikes toward 400–450°/s — "Dr. Jekyll to Mr. Hyde". Rolls start and stop abruptly. The engine cannot render force lightening, but it must not add edge heaviness either.
The 1 g stall comes around 58 kt indicated and is benign — a bit of pre-stall buffet and a small wing-drop.
| Gate | Knots | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| VsoStall, landing configuration | 60 | Published figures span 55–60 kt; 60 usedRepresentative |
| VrRotation | 65 | Representative |
| VyBest rate of climb | 96 | Representative |
| VappApproach | 85 | Representative |
| VaManeuvering | 158 | Aerobatic category; 140 kt normal · EASA TCDS — Extra 300 series |
| VneNever exceed | 220 | EASA TCDS — Extra 300 series |
The complete starter profile, in the same order and with the same names as the desktop Tuning page. Highlighted rows cite evidence. Hover a row to see its profile-JSON path.
The final overall output scale applied to everything the model produces, before the device cap.
▲ More: everything (spring, loads, effects) gets stronger together. ▼ Less: everything softens together.
Why here: 90%: competition-crisp output, near the top of the fleet.
The base centring force that pulls the stick back to centre. Every other force stacks on it. Too low and the stick feels limp in normal flight; too high and it fights your hand and masks the smaller cues layered above it.
▲ More: firmer centring that resists your hand at all times. ▼ Less: a limper stick that leans on aerodynamic load alone.
Why here: 88%: the stick centres hard and instantly. Competition pilots fly the centre.
A small neutral zone around centre where the spring stays quiet, so tiny movements at rest don't chatter. Wider is calmer but looser; narrower is more precise but can twitch around centre.
▲ More: a calmer but looser centre with more free play. ▼ Less: a tighter centre that may chatter at rest.
Friction-free stick, light linear breakout, crisp centering.
How much of the spring survives at a standstill, before airspeed can build any aerodynamic force. A high floor keeps the parked stick firm; a low floor gives the loose, cable-slack feel of a parked light aircraft.
▲ More: a firmer stick while parked and taxiing. ▼ Less: a floppier parked stick that only wakes up with airspeed.
Why here: Half strength parked; alive the moment it rolls.
The sustained pitch load from elevator deflection and airspeed, balanced independently of roll. This is the main lever behind a type's pitch weight. It does not touch aileron, spring, trim, or buffet forces.
▲ More: heavier sustained pitch forces at speed. ▼ Less: a lighter elevator that takes less muscle to hold.
Why here: Pitch reference at 100%.
The sustained roll load from aileron deflection and airspeed, balanced independently of pitch. Together with the elevator load it sets the control-harmony ratio reviewers talk about.
▲ More: heavier roll forces. ▼ Less: lighter, quicker-feeling ailerons.
Why here: 70%: the full-span ailerons are famously lighter than pitch; 400°/s must not feel like work.
A master scale over both sustained axis loads, applied before their independent balance. Profiles normally leave this alone and tune the two axis loads instead.
▲ More: both axes load up harder. ▼ Less: both axes lighten together.
The airspeed-loaded force is deliberately suppressed by the type's aerodynamic balancing; what remains is a modest firming toward Va, not a heavy q-ramp.
The indicated airspeed where aerodynamic load reaches its designed full level. It anchors the whole load curve to the aircraft's real speed range: a 172 loads up by 110 knots, a jet much later.
▲ More: loads arrive later; the stick stays light up to a higher speed. ▼ Less: loads arrive earlier and cruise feels heavier.
Why here: 158 kt reference spreads the light loads across the aerobatic envelope.
How sharply stick load builds with airspeed. 1.0 is linear; about 2.0 matches real aerodynamics, where dynamic pressure grows with the square of speed, so controls are much lighter slow and firm up fast. Felt when holding the stick off centre, not at rest.
▲ More: lighter at low speed with a steeper rise toward cruise. ▼ Less: a more linear build that loads up earlier.
Invariance is the character — no V² ramp.
How much the centring itself stiffens with speed, on top of the deflection loads. Zero keeps centre feel constant; more makes the stick centre harder at cruise and looser in the pattern.
▲ More: a centre that hardens noticeably as you go faster. ▼ Less: constant centre feel at every speed.
The centering spring does not stiffen with speed on this type.
A cap on each steady pitch or roll force before it reaches the device, guarding against slamming or saturating the hardware in strong maneuvers.
▲ More: stronger peak steady forces before clipping. ▼ Less: a gentler ceiling; hard maneuvers flatten out sooner.
Strong transients — snaps and gyroscopics — still need headroom even on a light-force type.
For hydraulically-boosted or fly-by-wire types: how much of the raw aerodynamic load actually reaches the pilot's hand. 1.0 is a fully manual control run; lower values model the artificial-feel systems that isolate the pilot from true surface loads.
▲ More: more raw aerodynamic load reaching your hand. ▼ Less: more isolation, closer to pure artificial feel.
Why here: Inert for a manual control run.
How strongly elevator trim relieves held pitch force and shifts where the stick settles. At 100%, a properly trimmed aircraft needs no held pressure, the trim-away-the-load workflow of real flying.
▲ More: trim removes more of the held pitch force; at 100% full trim zeroes it. ▼ Less: you keep holding force even when trimmed.
Why here: 30% on the simple trim tab; competition flying mostly ignores trim.
Extra spring stiffness as positive G rises above 1G: the pull-up loads your arm as well as the wing. Too little and steep turns feel weightless; too much and maneuvering becomes tiring.
▲ More: pull-ups and steep turns stiffen the stick more per g. ▼ Less: g has less effect; maneuvering stays light.
The ±10 g envelope is flown on light per-g forces — the lightest curve in the fleet, near the FAR 23.155 legal floor.
Extra centre deadband added at parked and taxi speeds, narrowing away as airflow builds. It keeps the stick calm on the ramp without costing precision in flight.
▲ More: a calmer, looser stick on the ground. ▼ Less: ground handling as precise as flight, and as twitchy.
Why here: 4%: nearly none. Ground precision matters for a taildragger you land looking sideways.
How strong that edge-of-travel boost is once triggered: a soft warning versus a hard stop near full throw.
▲ More: a harder stop near full deflection. ▼ Less: a softer edge you can push through.
The type gets lighter past one-third deflection, the opposite of edge stiffening; the engine must not render extra edge heaviness.
Rolling surface vibration from wheel speed and surface type: pavement, grass, or gravel under the gear.
▲ More: louder surface texture through the stick. ▼ Less: a smoother taxi.
Why here: 40%: stiff sprung gear on pavement transmits sharply.
Short discrete bumps from expansion joints, ruts, and rough surface, punctuating the continuous rumble.
▲ More: sharper hits from joints and ruts. ▼ Less: softer ground detail.
Why here: 30%: crisp, short impacts, matching the gear.
Vibration under brake pressure while rolling. Invisible braking feels wrong; too much makes every stop feel like an anti-skid event.
▲ More: more shudder under braking. ▼ Less: quieter stops.
Why here: Restrained: brakes are for the last ten knots.
The fore-aft pull on the pitch axis from acceleration on the ground. The takeoff surge draws the column aft; braking pushes it forward.
▲ More: a stronger fore-aft pull under acceleration and braking. ▼ Less: a subtler surge cue.
Why here: 18%: 300 hp on 2,000 lb leaves the ground before the surge story develops.
Airframe shake approaching the stall and while the stall warning is active: how loudly this wing announces it is unhappy. Types with a crisp break get modest buffet and let the horn carry the warning.
▲ More: a louder pre-stall shake. ▼ Less: a quieter wing; the horn carries the warning.
A bit of pre-stall buffet — present, benign.
Airframe shake past the overspeed warning, the airframe's own protest at exceeding Vne/VMO.
▲ More: a harsher protest past the redline. ▼ Less: a gentler overspeed warning.
Why here: 55%: Vne matters in an airplane that can reach it pointing downhill in seconds.
Random shake from short-term G variation in rough air, so bumpy air is felt and not just seen.
▲ More: rough air hits the stick harder. ▼ Less: calmer chop.
Why here: 40%: light and rigid, it reads the air honestly. Competition pilots use that feedback.
Continuous powerplant vibration following RPM between idle and full power, the ever-present reminder that something is burning fuel up front.
▲ More: more engine through the stick. ▼ Less: a quieter powerplant.
Why here: 26%: a six-cylinder aerobatic Lycoming at full song is very much present through the steel tube frame.
The one-shot kick when the wheels meet the runway, scaled by sink rate: a greaser whispers, a firm arrival thumps.
▲ More: a harder kick at touchdown. ▼ Less: softer arrivals.
Why here: 60%: stiff-gear arrivals are felt but the type lands slow.
Power-on pitch bias from propwash over the elevator: why adding power on a prop aircraft nudges the nose and the stick. Zero for jets.
▲ More: a stronger power-on pitch nudge. ▼ Less: power changes feel more neutral.
Why here: 20%: big prop, short coupling; power breathes on the stick constantly, part of the type's aliveness.
Resistance proportional to the aircraft's pitch rotation rate. It settles the stick after abrupt pitch inputs; zero on both axes turns rate damping off.
▲ More: the stick settles harder against pitch rotation. ▼ Less: less resistance to quick pitch changes.
Rolls start and stop abruptly; damping stays only as a quantization guard.
The roll-axis counterpart: damping against roll rate to stop post-input wobble.
▲ More: more resistance to roll rate. ▼ Less: a livelier roll axis.
Same abrupt-stop character in roll.
The airspeed where the forward slump has fully faded, typically almost as soon as airflow builds on the takeoff roll.
▲ More: the slump lingers further into the takeoff roll. ▼ Less: it vanishes almost as soon as you roll.
Why here: Gone almost immediately on the roll.
How firmly the stick holds the autopilot's commanded position while following is active.
▲ More: a firmer hold on the AP's commanded position. ▼ Less: softer, easy to override.
Why here: Minimal.
Research retune — the documented type is the opposite of the old profile on both axes: force gain more than halved, per-g curve dropped to the fleet's lightest, edge stiffening removed, damping trimmed to the abrupt-stop character.
Initial starter baseline.
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This page is built from cited references, and real time in the type beats a citation. Tell us what the actual aircraft does. Corrections go to the maintainer for review and feed the next revision of this research.
What the research could not pin down. If you fly the type, or can point at a source, a correction on any of these feeds the next revision directly.
No lb/g measurement exists in citable sources — "mild back-pressure at 3 g" is the anchor; absolute magnitudes are bench-set.
The two-stage aileron unload is not renderable in the current engine — recorded as a candidate for a future force-model capability, not a promise.
Open conversation about flying and tuning the Extra 300, in the community forum. Corrections above go privately to the maintainer; hangar talk is public.