Cessna transitioning

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Legiox

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RatherBflying
I learned on a DA-20 when getting my PPL. Now I'm in IFR training on the C172. I just started today and only have 1 hr in the plane. For some reason the 172 really kicked my butt in landings today. I'm just not use to the different stick configuration. Any tips on transitioning to this aircraft?
 
Yeah RatherB,
I just got checked out in an Archer moving from my trainer, a DA20 and am experiencing the same thing. There is a little learning curve because your field of vision in the Diamond is much greater that the limited view you get with the Cessna. I find myself transitioning to level and then flairing later in the Archer and touch down sooner than expected. I think the larger FOV in the Diamond made my feel closer to the ground than I actually was. You may not be experiencing the same thing but, check out my last landing Saturday where I just barely leveled out before touchdown. http://youtu.be/nZNT8lDv2qk
 
Just get used to it, the big difference is the DA20 floats a lot more than that 172.
 
Spend a hour or two in the pattern, anyone worthy of a licenses should be able to land a 172/150/2 after a couple hours.
 
Initially, every plane feels very, very different.

I recall even moving from a 150 to a 172 felt weird.

With more experience in different types, I guarantee they all begin to feel pretty much the same, albeit each with their own quirks.

One "gotcha" is having memorized and internalized the sight picture for a single plane. Move to a plane with a higher or lower panel and all the pitch cues seem "off".

This will breed a controversy, but you may have gotten away with looking over the nose when flaring in a DA20 and are trying to do the same thing in the 172. For people of average stature, in the full stall attitude a 172 panel will block your view down the runway and you may need to consciously shift your view to the side. Don't do that and you may be literally blind right before touchdown.

Anyway, good luck, and this too shall pass.
 
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Thanks for tips. My CFI said we will devote next training period to nothing but pattern work to get me familiar with the AC. I just had a hard time today dealing with the high wing/different stick configuration, pushing and pulling throttle (instead of whats in the diamond), and overall "heavy feel i got from the aircraft. Hopefully after this this week i will feel more comfortable in it.
 
FastEddieB said:
This will breed a controversy, but you may have gotten away with looking over the nose when flaring in a DA20 and are trying to do the same thing in the 172. For people of average stature, in the full stall attitude a 172 panel will block your view down the runway and you may need to consciously shift your view to the side. Don't do that and you may be literally blind right before touchdown.
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Consider the controversy bred.

You don't actually need to shift your view when landing a 172, although some might. You should have a point on the extended centerline past the end of the runway to focus your vision on. Use your peripheral vision to judge distance to the ground and continue to hold the nose at that point. This will result in a good landing if done correctly.

Of course, there are variations in pilot technique. Just don't try to change your center of focus if it makes you uncomfortable.

Also, a 172 floats much less than a low wing. I once flew an archer and it felt like I was landing on a bubble.
 
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Give it some time - each plane is a little different. I seem to think it took me about 10 hours before I was really, really comfortable in the 172 and the first 5-10 landings were a little on the ugly side.
 
Gucci Pilot said:
Practice makes perfect
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...but a good instructor can shorten the time needed to get there. Not much more I can say to help without sitting in the right seat and watching you fly other than that you should get enough transition training (and maybe solo practice) to be proficient and reasonably comfortable in the 172 before you start the first IR lesson.
 
Hire a god instructor,after a few landings ,they can diagnose the problem. Then go out and practice. The 172 is a very pilot friendly airplane.
 
I did essentially this transition. I trained in a DA-20, got checked out in the 172, and then bought part of a Cessna 177B. The biggest tip I can tell you is just to make sure that you are hitting your airspeed on final. (That should really have been driven home training in the DA20 anyway, so you should already have a big leg up.) Second, forget about the word "flare." Just think of leveling off just above the runway. When you think "flare", you then to pull up too high, and you balloon. If you just bring your nose up to level, then you can just fly down the runway, and let the speed bleed off. As that is happening, your goal should be to just try to keep the plane from landing, and gradually pulling back as you need to in order to prevent the plane from touching down. Eventually, you won't be able to any more, and the plane will just gently set down, nose high.

It really won't take you that long to make the transition.
 
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Gucci Pilot said:
Did I say anything about him doing it solo?
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You said "Practice makes perfect." Nothing there about having or not having an instructor aboard. I was merely suggesting that you don't get better just by practicing unless you know what to practice, and that's where an instructor comes in.
 
Don't sweat it too much - it'll come with practice. I've rented different 172s from my flight school, and even though the stack/control configuration is the same, and the sight picture is the same, the 'stiffness' of the yoke differs. The first couple of landings in a 172 I haven't flown in a while are not very smooth until I get a good feel for the movement of the yoke, but by the 3rd one it's smoothed out.
 
A day in the pattern with a good CFI should get your set in the Cessna.
 
I had about 150 hours in a Cherokee 140 before trying a 172M. I flew with an instructor for about an hour and a half in about 15 knot crosswinds and was signed off.. It definitely is less forgiving than my Cherokee.. I have put alot more hours on it now and feel comfortable in both now.
 
I've never flown anything other than a 172, but I'm on the average side in height, and find it helpful to fly with the seat jacked up as much as it will go. Helps with the sight picture on landing.
 
Make sure you have the seat at about the same setting for every flight. It's adjustable unlike the diamond so your sight picture can change if the seat isn't in the same spot. Sounds stupid but it makes a difference
 
Catalo said:
Make sure you have the seat at about the same setting for every flight. It's adjustable unlike the diamond so your sight picture can change if the seat isn't in the same spot. Sounds stupid but it makes a difference
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It's not stupid at all, and i very much agree! I've flown with the seat lower than I am used to and my landings will usually suck more than usual!:D
 
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