Tweet
I have been SPUN! I asked a world aerobatic pilot to give me some spin training for my review. I think I learned more than either one of us intended.
First, the spins were fun. He could count each quarter turn; all I could see was the world spinning!
Doing a climbing turn at stall speed introduced me to a whole new flight characteristic. Slow enough that the ailerons were completely ineffective except for low aileron drag. Rudder and elevator were functional but extremely mushy. The Taylorcraft bucked and sang but still was fully controllable even into a stall. Had to kick rudder to start a spin.
Second, I'm embarrassed to say that my ego told me I was a great/smooth pilot. When the instructor took over, the improvement was very apparent. Silky/smooth moves! He praised the flying characteristics of my t-craft but I knew his excellent piloting skills made the difference.
Third, Every landing I made the plane diverged slightly to the left of centerline. After he made a landing I realized I was releasing right rudder too soon. Nothing wrong with the plane. Diagnosing this thought, I realized the landings at my field have contributed to this problem. The field slopes down to the right and up straight ahead. One wheel landing is common. In a full stall landing I never needed right rudder to compensate for the descending tail. Landing on the pavement changed all that.
So here's the lesson! We've heard it many times here:
This is a rudder aircraft. Study/practice/feel the many things that have an effect on yaw.
FLY THE PLANE ALL THE WAY TO TIEDOWN.
First, the spins were fun. He could count each quarter turn; all I could see was the world spinning!
Doing a climbing turn at stall speed introduced me to a whole new flight characteristic. Slow enough that the ailerons were completely ineffective except for low aileron drag. Rudder and elevator were functional but extremely mushy. The Taylorcraft bucked and sang but still was fully controllable even into a stall. Had to kick rudder to start a spin.
Second, I'm embarrassed to say that my ego told me I was a great/smooth pilot. When the instructor took over, the improvement was very apparent. Silky/smooth moves! He praised the flying characteristics of my t-craft but I knew his excellent piloting skills made the difference.
Third, Every landing I made the plane diverged slightly to the left of centerline. After he made a landing I realized I was releasing right rudder too soon. Nothing wrong with the plane. Diagnosing this thought, I realized the landings at my field have contributed to this problem. The field slopes down to the right and up straight ahead. One wheel landing is common. In a full stall landing I never needed right rudder to compensate for the descending tail. Landing on the pavement changed all that.
So here's the lesson! We've heard it many times here:
This is a rudder aircraft. Study/practice/feel the many things that have an effect on yaw.
FLY THE PLANE ALL THE WAY TO TIEDOWN.
Comment