Dear Community! I noticed some strange behaviour of my Just Flight’s Piper PA-38 Tomahawk aircraft. It’s doing sort of reverse behavior of what I would expect: 1) It drifts to the right instead due the left during take-off and 2) the nose goes down instead of up when setting flaps. Anyone seen this? Thanks a mil, F.
Moved to User Support Hub > Aircraft & Systems as OP is requesting community assistance.
Is it possible you had a right crosswind? Both sims have issues with crosswind, and wheel friction, and sometime left rudder is necessary, despite many IRL pilots here having said they have never used left rudder on take off.
I’m probably wrong on this, but I remember a conversation about flap behaviour, and it depending on where the flaps were with regard to the centre of lift. Whether they are fore or aft of that would dictate whether the nose rises or falls.
Have a look at this thread:
So more of a vertical placement than I remembered. Nose down behaviour in a low wing plane doesn’t sound wrong based on that conversation above. The flaps are roughly inline with the wing, and are not above the horizontal stabiliser.
With a high wing plane, the flaps coming down causes the nose to rise as the plane rotates about its centre of gravity, much like someone being clotheslined! The top half stops moving, but the feet continue foreward.
Anyone who’s said that is talking out of their behind. If that’s genuinely the case I’d never want to be in an aircraft with them.
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It’s been posted more than once, I’m sure.
I don’t doubt it 
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Many thanks hobanagerik! You pointed me into the right direction. This is exactly why: 1) In the high-wing Cessna 172, flaps increase lift significantly behind the CG. This creates a nose-up pitching moment. Additionally, the engine thrust line and high-wing position can exaggerate this effect, especially at lower power settings 2) In low-wing aircraft like the PA-38, flap deployment shifts the center of pressure aft but below the CG, resulting in a nose-down pitching moment.Also, many low-wing aircraft have a tailplane that reacts differently to flap deployment due to its position relative to the disturbed airflow.
In my specific setup there were no crosswinds from the right.
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Thanks for your input as well JetWash1023! So the only question left is why do I experience a right drift during takeoff?
What was the wind?
I have noticed this with the flaps, it tends to only last a couple of seconds and then the pitch goes more upwards after that. I assumed it was something to do with the aerodynamics of the plane. My experience flying the PA-38 for real (the only real plane I have ever flown!) is fairly meagre and I honestly can’t recall if it behaved exactly like that, but given the attention to detail in other parts of the flight model, I would assume so.
I have not experienced a right drift during takeoff, so I cannot comment on that.