Propeller control during engine start:
- is not active during engine start, as the propeller blades remain in whatever position they were in when the engine was shut down
- positions the blades at maximum coarse pitch to provide the highest possible thrust immediately when the engine starts running
- positions the blades at a low pitch angle to minimise the load on the starter motor and allow the engine to accelerate to idle
JayACA asked · 23 Jul 2026
The PT6 starts with the blades in feather?
svenj88: Actually, C is correct for the general case, since a low blade angle presents the least air load and lets the engine accelerate to idle with minimum starter effort. On the PT6 the propeller is a free-turbine layout decoupled from the starter, and on most reversing installations it rests on the fine-pitch start locks rather than in feather, so C still applies.