Today was PACKED. I had two supposed-to-be two-hour lessons, but Batelle wanted to make up for the botched lesson the other day, so we got 3 hours in across the two hours. I really wish I worked closer to this airport. Then, I could fit in lessons during the week a lot easier. Ambitious goal: get my license by my 30th birthday (May 20, 2017). I think I can do it.
Dumb mistake of the day (all things considering, not that bad): I forgot mixture full rich on starting up. As we were taxiing out, I told Batelle that I couldn’t believe I did that, and she was like, “Don’t think like that! You’ll never make that mistake again. Plus, you have to let things go as you are flying. Don’t dwell on the past during a flight - always think about what you’re going to do next. Otherwise, mistakes tend to build on mistakes.” Sound advice, and something I need to take to heart.
Here’s what we covered today: crosswind takeoffs, more slow flight practice, more power off stall practice, power on stalls, ground reference maneuvers (turns around a point, s-turns across a road, pattern work), forward slips, side slips, and one landing. I’m definitely processing everything we covered today, and I feel like my mind is going to process everything as I sleep tonight. I can’t wait for things to get to the “muscle-memory” stage, and I don’t have to think about what I’m doing as much.
More detail. This is mostly for me, so you can skip ahead if the meaty stuff that follows gets boring. If it’s in caps, it’s something I especially need to remember for next time.
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Cross wind takeoffs:
Keep the upwind wing from rising with aileron! Don’t let the wind pick up the wing. Dance on the pedals as always, but you’ll have to work on the opposite rudder more to keep the plane going straight. Push straight forward with the stick as before, so that you keep the upwind wing down! Don’t center the stick on the push forward. When you lift off, start leveling the wings, and crab a bit with the crosswind in the climb.
Power on stalls:
Starting from level flight or slow flight, throw in full throttle and pitch up to climb, maintaining nose high attitude in the climb. Continue to pitch up slowly and hold higher than climb attitude, while keeping right rudder in and the WINGS LEVEL to not enter a spin. When the stall is entered, lower the nose attitude, hold it, and then level the wings. Sharkie isn’t actually that rough in the power on stall, so I definitely want to feel a power on stall in a 172, for reference.
Power off stalls:
Starting from level flight or slow flight, carb heat hot, and pull back power to 1700 RPM. Pitch up to maintain altitude with airspeed around 65 MPH. Maintain nose-high attitude and airspeed for a few seconds. Then, pull back power to idle and maintain a constant descent rate of 65 MPH (as in glide to landing) for a few seconds. Then, pitch up smoothly until the stall is entered. Reduce angle of attack immediately, in almost a simultaneous motion with carb heat cold and full throttle. As airspeed increases, keep nose attitude out of the stall, but test shallow climb attitude quickly and then level flight before climbing back to altitude.
IN SETTING UP THE STALLS FOR CHECK RIDES, REMEMBER LEFT RUDDER IN DESCENT/LOW POWER AND RIGHT RUDDER IN CLIMB/HIGH POWER. THAT DAMN P-FACTOR. KEEP THE WINGS LEVEL. BREAK THE STALL BY REDUCING ANGLE OF ATTACK BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO LEVEL WINGS.
Slow flight:
Adjust climb and descent with power and adjust airspeed with pitch.
Forward Slips:
Coordinated aileron and rudder, but opposites! Steepen the descent with a larger bank angle. This is a maneuver that allows you to control descent rate while maintaining heading, which is extremely useful in planes with no flaps. Also super fun.
Side Slips:
Opposite aileron and rudder again, but adjusting rudder pressure without compensating on the stick allows you to adjust heading (I may be wrong and need a refresher on this one).
Ground reference maneuvers:
Basically, turns from a downwind heading should be steeper, and shallow out as you turn upwind. For turns relative to a reference point, keep a constant radius by keeping the point at the same position between the leading and trailing edges of the wing, at the same position along the length of the wing.
The landing!
Batelle had me fly the pattern at South County at traffic pattern altitude, and then had me fly back to KRHV and set up the approach. Rudder action to keep the nose pointed at the numbers, and aileron to keep the wings level. We did a full stall landing, pulling the power back to idle with carb heat, and pitching the nose up and holding attitude in the flare to let the plane gently come to the ground in a three-point landing. I think it was mostly luck, but Batelle said she wasn’t doing that much. Feels good. Anyway, I know I’m going to have to practice a ton of different types of landings, and they’ll be trickier in a tailwheel plane. The day definitely ended on a good note, though.
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When I was checking Sharkie back in, several instructors were in the club, chatting about camping plans for the weekend. It’s a really nice community here.
No lessons until next Thursday, so I’m kinda bummed about that. BUT I reserved the Champ for an hour, so I’m going to get some hand propping action!
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