Pitch + Power settings

Jaybird180

Jaybird180

Final Approach
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Jaybird180
Cap'n Ron was so nice to make a chart with the power settings for approaches for my airplane (with a nice PIC sticker on the panel). It was there long before my butt ever sat in the left seat.

I'd like to know a little about the procedure for determining those numbers on my own. This has been a question on my mind ever since my primary CFI instructed me to use 2200 RPM in the pattern and go 1500RPM abeam the touchdown point.
 
There are some good articles out there, but the answer is that you just fly the plane and figure it out. You'll want to develop a setting for cruise climb, cruise descent, approach speed (slow cruise), approach climb, and approach descent. Generally use 500fpm on the climb/descent, except the approach descent, you'll want to tailor that to an ILS glideslope. I'd think around 90kts and 1800rpm would be a starting point.
 
Yep. Figure out what your profiles might be i.e.:

Initial climb 90 KIAS 500 FPM
cruise climb 110 KIAS 500 FPM
cruise descent 120 KIAS 500 FPM
Initial approach 100 KIAS level
final approach 90 KIAS level
Non-precision descent 90 KIAS 700 fpm
precision descent 90 KIAS 400 fpm.

Basically set airspeed with trim, then set climb/descent with power, and write it down.
 
Jaybird180 said:
Cap'n Ron was so nice to make a chart with the power settings for approaches for my airplane (with a nice PIC sticker on the panel). It was there long before my butt ever sat in the left seat.
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Actually, my trainee at the time did all the work -- I just wrote it all down while he flew.
 
Do you do this exercise with each trainee as standard part of the curriculum?
 
Ron Levy said:
Actually, my trainee at the time did all the work -- I just wrote it all down while he flew.
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TMetzinger said:
Yep. Figure out what your profiles might be i.e.:

Initial climb 90 KIAS 500 FPM
cruise climb 110 KIAS 500 FPM
cruise descent 120 KIAS 500 FPM
Initial approach 100 KIAS level
final approach 90 KIAS level
Non-precision descent 90 KIAS 700 fpm
precision descent 90 KIAS 400 fpm.

Basically set airspeed with trim, then set climb/descent with power, and write it down.
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Sounds simple enough
 
I believe any good Instrument training includes this process. Jesse and I did this in the first two flights in December. There were minor differences once back up here at altitude.
 
Jaybird180 said:
Sounds simple enough
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The only part of the process requiring contemplation is what you choose the target airspeeds to be for each phase (and whether or not to approach with flaps).

Jaybird - not only Ron. Most CFIIs I know will do this exercise.
 
Early on in my IR training I went out and got all the numbers for my plane.
 
midlifeflyer said:
Jaybird - not only Ron. Most CFIIs I know will do this exercise.
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Right. It's PIC-standard, and described in Peter Dogan's very popular Instrument Flight Training Manual. But finding one in your airplane in my handwriting on a PIC-logo card -- that's special! :D
 
It comes right out of an early chapter in Dogan's book. I've got a similar PIC table from my using another PIC instructor for my Instrument rating. I actually added a second line in the approach settings so I have the option of flying the approaches with the gear up or down (until the FAF). The Navion gear speed is kinda low for dragging around on the approaches early (87 knots).
 
Ron Levy said:
That's a bit more in-depth than the way Dogan wrote it (we only have six lines), so I wouldn't want to do initial IR training with it, but it's certainly good for someone looking to expand their envelope.
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I've seen a lot of different versions of this. As with some mnemonics, there is a tendency to over-complicate what is intended to be a simple quick-reference.
 
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