Version 1.0, 25 September 2011

Flight BriefingStage 1, Module 4

Copyright © 2011 Ted Dudley

Which airplane are you flying?

Hit the esc keyClick on “Slide

Show”

Click on “Custom Slide Show”

Select your aircraft

Preflight

Any questions?On today’s preflight, tell me

What documents are required to be aboard? Identify the function of all the visible antennas on the

aircraft. What’s the proper inflation pressure for the nose and

main tires? How long can we fly with the fuel that’s aboard?

Radio Communications

What frequency will you use and what will you say… On initial contact with ground control? When ready for takeoff? When sent to departure control?

Let’s pretend we’re going to KFSO for practice patterns. What frequency will you use and what radio calls are required there?

Sectional Charts

Using the Montreal Sectional, tell me: What does it mean when an airfield is

depicted in blue? What’s the lowest altitude at which you can

overfly the Burlington Class C airspace? When is R6501A active? When is R6501B

active? What’s the difference between the two?

What’s the pattern altitude, CTAF and ASOS freqs, and runway length at KPBG? Would you make left traffic on all runways there?

Climbing Flight

Advance the throttle to full, apply back elevator pressure to raise the nose of the airplane and right rudder to center the ball

As power is increased, the airplane’s nose will rise due to increased download on the stabilizer

As pitch attitude increases and the airspeed decreases, progressively more right rudder must be applied to compensate for propeller effects and to hold a constant heading

Climb speed is 80-90 MPH; establish the appropriate attitude and trim for 80-90 MPH 49R, 93L

Climbing Flight

Advance the throttle to full, apply back elevator pressure to raise the nose of the airplane and right rudder to center the ball

As power is increased, the airplane’s nose will rise due to increased download on the stabilizer

As pitch attitude increases and the airspeed decreases, progressively more right rudder must be applied to compensate for propeller effects and to hold a constant heading

Climb speed is 70-85 KIAS; establish the appropriate attitude and trim for 70-85 KIAS

8ZD

Climbing Flight

Advance the throttle to full, apply back elevator pressure to raise the nose of the airplane and right rudder to center the ball

As power is increased, the airplane’s nose will rise due to increased download on the stabilizer

As pitch attitude increases and the airspeed decreases, progressively more right rudder must be applied to compensate for propeller effects and to hold a constant heading

Climb speed is 75-80 MPH; establish the appropriate attitude and trim for 75-80 MPH

43T

Level Off

Initiate the level-off at approximately 10 percent of the rate of climb

Retain climb power temporarily so that the airplane will accelerate to cruise airspeed more rapidly

Trim as you accelerateGood way to remember: PITCH-POWER-TRIMWhen speed reaches the desired cruise speed, set

throttle to cruise power setting and trim for cruise speed

Straight and Level Flight

Set powerSelect some portion of the airplane’s nose as

a reference point, and then keep that point in a fixed position relative to the horizon

Crosscheck against altimeter and vertical velocity, adjust nose position and trim as required

Straight and Level Flight

Of course, if you want to fly straight, wings must be level

Descending Flight

Descend with power as desired Airspeed will increase if you leave the power up; trim as required

Carb heat on if RPMs below the green arcFlaps as desired

But mind you don’t overspeed them! Initiate the level-off at approximately 10 percent of the

rate of descentReturn throttle to cruise setting after level-offAgain, it’s PITCH-POWER-TRIM

Ailerons in the direction you want to goWhile rolling, rudder to overcome adverse yaw

Equal amounts of rudder and aileronA little opposite aileron when you’re happy with the bank

angle to stop the rollA little less rudder when bank

angle is setA little more power and

elevator back pressure, especially in turns greater than 30 degrees bank

Level Turns

Turn Coordination

Keep the ball centered – step on the ball

Performing Steep Turns

Clear!Ensure you’re in stabilized, level flightTell the IP the your target altitude, airspeed,

and entry/rollout heading (360o turn)Look in direction of turn and smoothly roll

into 45o of bank, maintaining coordinationAdd a little power to maintain speed

Performing Steep Turns

Maintain altitude, speed, and bank angle; make corrections as required

Lead rollout by about 15 degrees, and maintain coordination while rolling out

Throttle as required after rolling out

Tips for Steep Turns

Remember it’s a visual maneuver; look over the cowling and adjust the sight picture as required

Practice enough to memorize the sight picture for 45o bank and a reasonable airspeed Check sight picture – check altitude trend – make

correction Check sight picture – check bank angle – make

correction Check sight picture – check airspeed – make

correction Repeat from the top until it’s time to roll out

Tips for Steep Turns

Because of parallax, the sight picture is different when turning left than when turning right

When stabilized in the turn, you’ll need: A little rudder in the direction of the turn for

coordination A little aileron against the turn to avoid overbanking

tendencyPTS standards:

Altitude, ±100 feet, airspeed, ±10 knots, Bank angle, ±5°, roll out on the entry heading,

±10°

Tips for Steep Turns

You’ll need to hold back pressure when stabilized Constant airspeed, level, 45o bank = 1.4 Gs. You’ll feel

heavy in the seat.It’s easy to initially let the nose drop too

much, then overbank. If the nose is a lot too low (altitude decreasing rapidly), take a little bank out, raise the nose to proper sight picture, put the bank back in

Performing Slow Flight

Clearing turns first!Mixture – richSelect and maintain an altitude

1500 AGL minimum Throttle back; raise nose as

necessary and trim for level flightFlaps down below flap limit airspeedNote airspeed at which stall horn sounds

Fly that airspeed or the airspeed the instructor specifies

Performing Slow Flight

Add power as required to maintain selected altitude and speed

Right rudder as required to center ball Pretend there’s a rod linking your right hand (throttle) and right foot

(rudder) You may need a little left aileron to keep the wings level

Don’t descend! If you do lose a little altitude, correct it immediately This will require (a lot) more power, more rudder, nose higher After correcting, take a little power and rudder out, pitch to maintain

level flight

Level Turns in Slow Flight

Use shallow (10-15 degrees) bank and a slow roll rate At your speed, a level turn at moderate bank angles will result in

a stall You’ll get a pretty good turn rate at your speed even with a

shallow bankUse just a little more power to overcome extra drag

while rolling / turningRudder as required to maintain coordination

Rolling left may require just easing up on the right rudder for proper coordination

Recovery from Slow Flight

Add full power, accelerate level and straight ahead

Flaps to 20o at first, all the way up after accelerating a bit

Trim!Gradually take out right rudder as you

accelerate; keep ball centeredManeuver is done after you reach 100

KIAS/MPH

Why Practice Stalls?

Inadvertent stalls are a very popular way to die

You must and will understand: What a stall is

What it looks / feels / sounds / tastes/smells like

How to avoid it And, most important, how to

recover from it If you ever have a bad enough day

that it becomes necessary

Stall/Spin Accidents, 2006-2011

Why did all those people crash?

They didn’t recognize the impending stallWhen they did stall, they reacted with a panic

response instead of a trained response Panic response is mediated from a different part of

your brain than a trained response. It never does things by degrees

Once the panic response took over, the thinking part of the brain never regained control

Panic Response to Stall

Brain, surprised by nose falling when it thinks it shouldn’t be, says “&*%^! Nose is falling! Better pull back on the yoke!” Yoke goes to the aft stop and stays there. Panicked brain will not

move it from there as long as it’s panicked.If a wing lowers during stall, as is usual, brain says “&*%^!

Wing is dropping! Better roll in the opposite direction!” Yoke turns full to the side and stays there. Will not move again as

long as brain is panicked.This combination of controls is also known as “pro-spin”

controls. Aircraft enters a spin.

Panic Response to Stall

Now the brain is really panicked; little chance of overcoming this with a trained response

Either the aircraft hits the ground in a spin, or if recovery does get attempted, it’s interrupted by the surface of the planet

Objectives of stall practice: Recognize impending stall in time to avoid it If that fails, train the panic response away;

substitute a proper response

Stall Training

Although excessive AOA and a stall can occur at any airspeed, attitude, or power setting, in a general aviation environment, it’s most likely to happen as a result of trying to fly too slowly

These are the kinds of stalls we’ll concentrate on

Good news: stall recovery techniques don’t change no matter what kind of stall you accomplish

Kinds of Stalls

FAA’s Airplane Flying Handbook discusses these kinds of stalls: Power-on stall Power-off stall Secondary stall Accelerated stall Cross-control stall Elevator trim stall

The first two listed are required maneuvers on your Private Pilot checkride, so we’ll concentrate on them

Stall Setup

Minimum recovery altitude is 1500 AGL What will that altitude be on your altimeter?

Accomplish a descent check; select mixture – rich

Clearing turns!

Power-on Stall

Let’s pretend: We just took off; we’re climbing out, full power, flaps up We set the pitch attitude too high, and failed to notice

indications of impending stall When it finally does stall, we want to recover with

minimum loss of altitudeWe’ll practice these both straight ahead and in

shallow (20 ±10°) turns

Power-on Stall Entry

After setup, throttle back, carb heat out, slow to a speed near takeoff speed

Throttle and carb heat full in, raise nose to about 20-25o nose high Right rudder required as you push in the power

Hold attitude, keep it coordinated, ignore indications of impending stall

This will require constantly moving the yoke back and increasing right rudder as it slows

If turning, opposite aileron will be required to keep bank angle from increasing as you slow

Recover when nose falls due to stall

Stall Recovery

Almost simultaneously, in order of importance: Decrease angle of attack Level the wings Achieve maximum power

Stop descent and begin to accelerateContinue to accelerate and recover

Decrease Angle of Attack

This means “decrease back pressure on the yoke”

Pushing the yoke forward will result in a longer time to recover / more altitude lost in the recovery

Level the Wings

Ailerons will probably still be effective, due to design of your aircraft Wings are designed to stall at the roots first, tips later,

and ailerons are near the tipsRudder will be effective no matter whatUse coordinated aileron and rudder to get

wings level

Achieve Maximum Power

You’re already there; check throttle full inYou’ll need a lot of right rudder to stay

coordinated due to high RPM/low airspeed effects

Stop Descent and Accelerate

Reapply enough back pressure to maximize lift

Stop descent; peek at VSI to confirm

When descent is stopped, ease nose over to accelerate

We want recovery tooccur here

Accelerate and Clean Up

Accelerate level to slightly climbingYou’ll need gradually less rudder as you

accelerateFor our purposes, maneuver is over when you

reach 100 kts/MPH

Power-off Stall

Let’s pretend: We’re in the traffic pattern preparing to land, flaps

down, throttle in idle We set the pitch attitude too high, and failed to notice

indications of impending stall When it finally does stall, we want to recover with

minimum loss of altitudeWe’ll practice these both straight ahead and in

shallow (20 ±10°) turns

Power-off Stall Entry

After setup, throttle back, carb heat out, extend flaps, slow to a speed near final approach speed

Throttle to idle, raise nose higher than normal for a final approach

Hold this abnormally high attitude, ignore indications of impending stall

This will require constantly moving the yoke back; if turning, opposite aileron will be required to keep bank angle from increasing as you slow

Recover when nose falls due to stall

Stall Recovery

Almost simultaneously, in order of importance: Decrease angle of attack Level the wings Achieve maximum power

Stop descent and begin to accelerateContinue to accelerate and clean up flaps

Decrease Angle of Attack

This means “decrease back pressure on the yoke”

Pushing the yoke forward will result in a longer time to recover / more altitude lost in the recovery

Level the Wings

Ailerons will probably still be effective, due to design of your aircraft Wings are designed to stall at the roots first, tips later,

and ailerons are near the tipsRudder will be effective no matter whatUse coordinated aileron and rudder to get

wings level

Achieve Maximum Power

Firewall the throttlePush in carb heat

Technique: stick your left thumb out to catch the carb heat knob as you push the throttle in

You’ll need a lot of right rudder to stay coordinated due to high RPM/low airspeed effects

Stop Descent and Accelerate

Reapply enough back pressure to maximize lift

Stop descent; peek at VSI to confirm

When descent is stopped, ease nose over to accelerate

We want recovery tooccur here

Accelerate and Clean Up

While level to slightly climbing, raise flaps Aircraft won’t accelerate well with flaps >20o, so

bring them up to 20o right away Flaps full up after Vx

You’ll need gradually less rudder as you accelerate

For our purposes, maneuver is over when you reach 100 kts/MPH

Stall Recovery

PTS standard for recovery: Recognizes and recovers promptly after the stall

occurs by simultaneously reducing the angle of attack, increasing power as appropriate, and leveling the wings to return to a straight-and-level flight attitude with a minimum loss of altitude appropriate for the airplane

Collision Avoidance

Eyeballs are your best collision avoidance toolLook around during your airwork maneuversBack this up with monitoring the radio – BTV

approach will call with any factor traffic he sees

Downwind

Base

Final

Wind

Standard Traffic Pattern

49

45o to Downwind

Prior to Downwind:Clear!SEATS/BELTS/HARNESSES - SECUREFUEL SELECTOR – BOTH ONLIGHTS - ON AS REQMIXTURE - FULL RICH“Descent/ Before Landing Check complete”Appropriate altitude and direction

On Downwind:About 100 mphRadio call if nontoweredMaintain altitudeAppropriate wind correctionAppropriate distance from runway

On Final:Flaps – Landing settingAirspeed – 65 mphAssess glidepathPitch for speed; Power for glidepath

Abeam touchdown point:CARB HEAT – ON“Landing Check Complete”Touchdown point 45o behind wing:

(this drawing not to scale)

RPM - 1500Maintain level flightFlaps (check airspeed below white arc) – 10o

Slow to 80 mph, then let nose fall to maintain 80 mphClear! Turn to base

On base:Radio call if nontoweredApply appropriate wind correction80 mphFlaps – 20o

Assess glidepathLead turn to final to line up with runway

“Knapp State Traffic, Cessna 5749R, left downwind 17, Knapp State”

“Knapp State Traffic, Cessna 5749R, left base 17, touch and go, Knapp State”

49R, 93L

Downwind

Base

Final

Wind

Standard Traffic Pattern

50

45o to Downwind

Prior to Downwind:Clear!SEATS/BELTS/HARNESSES – SECUREFUEL SELECTOR - BOTHLIGHTS - ON AS REQMIXTURE - FULL RICH“Descent /Before LandingCheck complete”Appropriate altitude and direction

On Downwind:About 95 KIASRadio call if nontoweredMaintain altitudeAppropriate wind correctionAppropriate distance from runway

Abeam touchdown point:CARB HEAT – ON“Landing Check Complete”

On Final:Flaps – Landing settingAirspeed – 60 KIASAssess glidepathPitch for speed; Power for glidepath

Touchdown point 45o behind wing:(this drawing not to scale)

RPM - 1500Maintain level flightFlaps (check airspeed below white arc) – 10o

Slow to 75KIAS, then let nose fall to maintain 75KIASClear! Turn to base

On base:Radio call if nontoweredApply appropriate wind correction75 KIASFlaps – 20o

Assess glidepathLead turn to final to line up with runway

“Knapp State Traffic, Cessna 738ZD, left downwind 17, Knapp State”

“Knapp State Traffic, Cessna 738ZD, left base 17, touch and go, Knapp State”

8ZD

Downwind

Base

Final

Wind

Standard Traffic Pattern

51

45o to Downwind

Prior to Downwind:Clear!SEATS/BELTS/HARNESSES - SECUREFUEL SELECTOR - ONLIGHTS - ON AS REQMIXTURE - FULL RICH“Descent /Before LandingCheck complete”Appropriate altitude and direction

On Downwind:About 100 mphRadio call if nontoweredMaintain altitudeAppropriate wind correctionAppropriate distance from runway

Abeam touchdown point:CARB HEAT – ON“Landing Check Complete”

On Final:Flaps – Landing settingAirspeed – 65 mphAssess glidepathPitch for speed; Power for glidepath

Touchdown point 45o behind wing:(this drawing not to scale)

RPM - 1500Maintain level flightFlaps (check airspeed below white arc) – 10o

Slow to 80 mph, then let nose fall to maintain 80 mphClear! Turn to base

On base:Radio call if nontoweredApply appropriate wind correction80 mphFlaps – 20o

Assess glidepathLead turn to final to line up with runway

“Knapp State Traffic, Cessna 5943T, left downwind 17, Knapp State”

“Knapp State Traffic, Cessna 5943T, left base 17, touch and go, Knapp State”

43T

Final Approach

Objective: arrive over the runway numbers On final approach speed Over the runway centerline With the planned flap setting At a height suitable for the roundout/flare maneuver

Final Approach

Flap settings First 200 extension – mostly extra lift Further extension – mostly extra drag

Which is very helpful if you want to descend

Trim changes As you slow, you’ll need to trim nose up. Until… Flaps more than 200 – get less flow over horizontal

stabilizer, resulting in requirement for nose down trim

Final: Airspeed/Aimpoint

Adjust airspeed with nose position; “Pitch for speed” Want to go slower? Nose higher! Want to go faster? Nose lower!

Final: Airspeed/Aimpoint

Adjust aimpoint with power; “Power for glidepath” Too shallow? More power! Too steep? Less power!

And don’t forget to stay on centerline

Common Error on Final

It’s common to get the previous 2 slides backwards Student may just point the nose at the runway

numbers, which results in nose low/higher speed And try to slow by pulling the throttle back

Which doesn’t work because the nose is low All this results in a long, fast landing

Estimating Glidepath

Aim for the runway numbers Shouldn’t be so slow or steep that you lose sight of the

runway numbersThe point at which your flight path intersects

the planet is the point which does not move up or down on your windscreen

Estimating Glidepath

You only have one engine, so why not approach a little steep? That way, if the engine quits on final, you may not have to

settle for landing in the trees just short of the runwayFor normal approaches, use the PAPI/VASI “on

glidepath” indications as a lower limit until nearing flare

The more headwind there is, the steeper your aircraft can approach

Roundout/Flare

A slow, smooth transition from a normal approach attitude to a landing attitude

Gradually round out the flightpath to one that is parallel with, and within a very few inches above, the runway

Look ahead half- to three quarters the way down the runwayBegin at about half a wingspan in altitude

Start a little higher, flare more quickly if steep; lower, less quickly if shallow

Once started, should be a continuous process until the airplane touches down on the ground This means the yoke should be slowly moving throughout the flare

Common Error in the Flare

As you descend below 100 feet, you’ll notice the ground seem to approach you rapidly

Natural tendency is to pull the nose up to slow the rate at which the ground is approaching

This gets you very slow, high above the runwayHold the nose down to maintain final approach

airspeed until it’s time to flare At about half a wingspan in altitude

In the Flare

Level off a few inches above the runwayPower to idle stopAlign nose with runway with rudderTry to keep it from touching down

It’ll eventually touch down anyway if the power is in idle

But you’ll need to continually and slowly keep the yoke coming back as you decelerate

After Touchdown

You’re not done flying! Don’t just release all pressure on the yoke Ease the nosewheel to the runway

Nosewheel steering available after nosewheel touches down

Maintain runway centerline until slowed to taxi speed

Brake as required

Really Bad Common Error

Never try to touch down at a particular place by releasing back pressure in the flare

You will bounce, every time And this can lead to very disappointing results

We’ll go over how to recover from a bounce in later lessons

Touch and Go

Make sure there’s enough runway remaining!While rolling down/correcting to the

centerline: Flaps –up Either trim back to takeoff index or be prepared to

pull back harder to rotate at proper speed Power and carb heat all the way in; hand remains on

throttle Be prepared for left yawing tendency

Rotate at proper speed

Crosswin

d

Upwind

Wind

Remaining in Pattern

65

Upwind leg:Maximum PowerNormal climb speed(Nontowered) Climb straight ahead until 300 ft below pattern altitudeClear! Turn crosswind

On crosswindRoll out with wind correctionClear!Climb to pattern altitudePrepare to do Descent / Before Landing and Landing checklistsTurn downwind

After Landing

When clear of runway…

49R, 93L

After Landing

When clear of runway…

8ZD

After Landing

When clear of runway…

43T

Shutdown Flow

49R, 93L

Shutdown Flow

8ZD

Shutdown Flow

43T