Cuban 8

Jeff Owens

Let's start with what is called a half Cuban 8. Start by beginning a loop as if you were doing an Immelmann turn, but continue past the top until reaching a 45 degree downline - technically that is 5/8 of a loop. Now do a half roll so that the model is upright on the 45 degree down line. Now pull up to level off at the starting altitude. This is just like an Immelmann turn except that the 45 degree downline allows you to pull out at the starting altitude. I have flown this maneuver in a CAP-10B and it is a lot of fun. The CAP has a bubble canopy so that as you do the initial part of the 5/8 loop you can lean your head back and watch the ground as you go inverted. Then you watch the two wingtips to judge when you are inverted on the 45 degree downline. Then you roll upright and level off. Cool!

The next step is to stitch two of these together to get a full Cuban 8. After the first half instead of levelling off you repeat the procedure pulling into a loop and rolling upright on the second 45 degree downline then levelling off at the starting altitude. It takes some pracrtice to determine how long to hold the straight line segments on the downlines, but with practice you can get the two half rolls to be in the same spot and to level off at the starting altitude.  When done correctly it looks like a figure 8 on its side and the two half rolls form an X shape in the middle.

A variant of this is called a Reverse Cuban 8. Here you enter climbing at a 45 degree upline, do a half roll, and pull 5/8 of a loop to level flight (half Reverse Cuban 8) or do two together to get a full Reverse Cuban 8. It just reverses the rolling and looping parts of the Cuban 8. Note that the half Reverse Cuban 8 is like the Split S described in the previous entry except that you enter climbing at a 45 degree angle rather than from level flight.

These maneuvers again show the principle behind the Aresti scheme for describing maneuvers. Each of these can be broken down into looping segments, rolling segments, and straight line segments. When looked at this way it becomes easier to do the individual segments and then to stitch them together.