GAZOO
Pre-takeoff checklist
Being a pilot does not mean you need to know math.... Noted
Started Tailwheel Training Today
- Thread starter X3 Skier
- Start date
steingar
Taxi to Parking
The easy stuff always come fist, the harder stuff takes longer.
Dav8or
Final Approach
...it Does! There are more to science than just transportation. The phones and games you mention are miracles in and of themselves... in just 25 years! Also look to the medical industry. They're now doing out patient heart surgery and procedures that used to be risky are common place. We're driving robots on the planet Mars. Submarines are taking pictures and data from depths of the sea that used to be impossible. All in all, the digital revolution is pretty amazing and it's ramifications still aren't known. We're in the middle of major change in man's history right now. It's all a matter of perspective.
X3 Skier
En-Route
Short day today. Preflight, run up, takeoff, lightning strike about a mile away out of a small not so dark cumulus cloud, return to downwind, fly the pattern and land.
Cloud dissipated in about 15 minutes but enough excitement for the day so back at it Thursday.
Cheers
Cloud dissipated in about 15 minutes but enough excitement for the day so back at it Thursday.
Cheers
X3 Skier
En-Route
Good 1.2 hours to day after yesterday was scrubbed with 500' ceiling.
Pattern work, 8 TO/Lndg with about 10-15 gust to 20 but right down the runway. Some forward slips, all three point landings and a 10 knot gust from 90 degrees on touch down on the last one. No problem.
Scheduled four days next week and I hope I don't need all of them.
Cheers
Pattern work, 8 TO/Lndg with about 10-15 gust to 20 but right down the runway. Some forward slips, all three point landings and a 10 knot gust from 90 degrees on touch down on the last one. No problem.
Scheduled four days next week and I hope I don't need all of them.
Cheers
MBDiagMan
Final Approach
Banking wings into a cross wind is one skill that helps to bring to TW from nosewheel flying.
Sounds like you're having fun. Soloing my TW plane was one of the most self gratifying things I've done in aviation. Probably THE most gratifying.
Enjoy!
Sounds like you're having fun. Soloing my TW plane was one of the most self gratifying things I've done in aviation. Probably THE most gratifying.
Enjoy!
X3 Skier
En-Route
0.9 today with pattern work. Slight cross wind and landing down hill makes for interesting times. The runway (8) has a pretty good slope on one end before going flat.
TO's take more technique that I thought might be required but it's in the groove now. Landings are coming around little by little with about 50% right on and the rest "acceptable".
Cheers
X3 Skier
En-Route
1.1 today with a 5-7 crosswind and 80F. I think I got a good feel for the TO and landing thing down but not overconfident.
Might as well include a BFR while we are at it by a move onto other things and to complete the checkout for the rental like more slips, off field / emergency landings, go arounds etc.
Cheers
Might as well include a BFR while we are at it by a move onto other things and to complete the checkout for the rental like more slips, off field / emergency landings, go arounds etc.
Cheers
Attachments
X3 Skier
En-Route
Two more hours this week. First day was pretty poor landing on my part as I was to aggressive on pulling the stick back in the last foot or so rather than easing it back until planted firmly.
One thing that seems to be throwing me off is the Champs oleos tend to fool me as to actual good ground contact. The sounds are something I have to get better used to or be able to tune them out completely and concentrate on smooth back stick in the final couple of feet.
I also guess I heard so much about getting the tail planted, I tended to over control with the result of bouncing or even some very minor PIO with fore and aft stick motions.
The second day was much better with my CFI saying he might even consider me a Tailwheel pilot after making a few really smooth TO and landings. The "breakthru" if I can call it that was fast reaction is required but smooth application is essential. I knew that and fly that way in tri gear machines but all the anxiety about ground loops and other horrendous disaster lurking right around the corner bugged me.
The boogie man of a Tailwheel being difficult to handle near and on the ground caused me to correct using fast and large inputs rather than reacting quickly but not with the rapid and large motions that tend to force the airplane to react much more than needed. Once I calmed down on the control, things went much better. As the CFI said, I was always ahead of the airplane but the control inputs caused more work than is required.
The Champ is in for a 100 Hour tomorrow so we will switch to the J-3 Cub. It will require some familiarization but it is good to try another classic.
I hope I can get this down in the next 2-3 hours as I was almost ready for sign off when I lost my bearings the first day this week. Of course with the boomers rolling through the area almost every day, it tends to play hell with a schedule.
Cheers
One thing that seems to be throwing me off is the Champs oleos tend to fool me as to actual good ground contact. The sounds are something I have to get better used to or be able to tune them out completely and concentrate on smooth back stick in the final couple of feet.
I also guess I heard so much about getting the tail planted, I tended to over control with the result of bouncing or even some very minor PIO with fore and aft stick motions.
The second day was much better with my CFI saying he might even consider me a Tailwheel pilot after making a few really smooth TO and landings. The "breakthru" if I can call it that was fast reaction is required but smooth application is essential. I knew that and fly that way in tri gear machines but all the anxiety about ground loops and other horrendous disaster lurking right around the corner bugged me.
The boogie man of a Tailwheel being difficult to handle near and on the ground caused me to correct using fast and large inputs rather than reacting quickly but not with the rapid and large motions that tend to force the airplane to react much more than needed. Once I calmed down on the control, things went much better. As the CFI said, I was always ahead of the airplane but the control inputs caused more work than is required.
The Champ is in for a 100 Hour tomorrow so we will switch to the J-3 Cub. It will require some familiarization but it is good to try another classic.
I hope I can get this down in the next 2-3 hours as I was almost ready for sign off when I lost my bearings the first day this week. Of course with the boomers rolling through the area almost every day, it tends to play hell with a schedule.
Cheers
Silvaire
En-Route
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Silvaire
You're going to find the J3 to be quite different from the Champ. For one thing you'll be sitting in the back seat and although you might "think" you'd rater be sitting in the front seat believe me, you don't. Watch the contortions your instructor has to go through just to get up there and how he looks like a folded up pocket knife while he's in there and you'll see what I mean.
Being in the back seat also means that pitch changes are going to look radical because the picture out the front windscreen is going to look completely different from one attitude to the next and finally, especially if you have a portly instructor, it means that you basically aren't gonna be able to see squat out the front when you flare to land,
It's a wonderful airplane though, you'll thoroughly enjoy it once you get used to it.
Being in the back seat also means that pitch changes are going to look radical because the picture out the front windscreen is going to look completely different from one attitude to the next and finally, especially if you have a portly instructor, it means that you basically aren't gonna be able to see squat out the front when you flare to land,
It's a wonderful airplane though, you'll thoroughly enjoy it once you get used to it.
X3 Skier
En-Route
Flew the Cub today and as expected, except for the view, ingress and egress and interior room, pretty similar to flying the Champ. Same 60 MPH up and down, same power (or lack thereof) same stalls, similar control feel.
The landing was the big difference of course with essentially zero forward view which was actually a real benefit. My CFI has been harping on looking out the side to judge round out and when to smoothly rotate to three point attitude when we were flying the Champ. Since that was the only view in the Cub, it helped to improve my scan.
Being forced to use both sides also triggered something about my habits learned flying left seat in the Warrior. Since it's easier to see straight ahead and to the left for runway edge, that's generally where I have been primarily looking when landing the Champ. I found that after a landing or two in the Cub, it was a not a problem to look to both sides with the zero forward view.
When we get back in a week from a family vacation and the Champ 100 hour is done, landings should be a piece of cake with the improved scan, he says foolishly.
Cheers
The landing was the big difference of course with essentially zero forward view which was actually a real benefit. My CFI has been harping on looking out the side to judge round out and when to smoothly rotate to three point attitude when we were flying the Champ. Since that was the only view in the Cub, it helped to improve my scan.
Being forced to use both sides also triggered something about my habits learned flying left seat in the Warrior. Since it's easier to see straight ahead and to the left for runway edge, that's generally where I have been primarily looking when landing the Champ. I found that after a landing or two in the Cub, it was a not a problem to look to both sides with the zero forward view.
When we get back in a week from a family vacation and the Champ 100 hour is done, landings should be a piece of cake with the improved scan, he says foolishly.
Cheers
CRAZEDpilot
Pre-Flight
Excellent you have those habits already formed! When you throw 850's or 26" or 31" Alaska Bushwheel shoes onto a plane it becomes a requirement as you see nothing but prop until you have the guts to start doing forward stick tail lifts on takeoff roll etc. That's when the run really begins in a tailwheel! Congrats on all your great work and keep flyin safe!
dell30rb
Final Approach
We recently moved our cub to a turf field and i've definitely found its easy to lift the tail at a much lower speed than on asphalt. Usually on pavement I want some speed before I lift the tail.
On the takeoff roll I put in a hefty amount of forward stick so I can get some visibility and also save the tailwheel some abuse. The edge of the field is not easy to see and the treeline goes from wide/narrow so its difficult to judge without being able to see over the nose.
Its definitely important (and fun) to learn how to lift the tail at low speed with propwash but be aware that asphalt is less forgiving!
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It comes up easier on grass because of the extra drag on the main wheels. Grass or pavement, you still want to exercise the same forethought regarding when to raise the tail. There's little practical reason to do it quickly at low speed. And on days when there's a strong x-wind - especially from the left, you'll not want to raise the tail at a very low speed.
X3 Skier
En-Route
After almost two weeks since my last flight due to weather and vacation, back at it today. Best day so far!
7 practically perfect TO and Landings including a couple of pretty good slips on final for practice in a steep approach. The last slip on final was a screw up as a good crosswind sprung up and got me flustered by the drift off cernterline. The CFI took the stick and did a demo on how to recover from a bad approach. I would have gone around before it got too bad but it was good to see a pro in action.
As the man said, fast but smooth reactions are the basic key. It finally locked in and life is good. No over controlling as I did at the start but it is seems ingrained now how fast to react and use smooth and definite action but don't get hamfisted.
Cheers
7 practically perfect TO and Landings including a couple of pretty good slips on final for practice in a steep approach. The last slip on final was a screw up as a good crosswind sprung up and got me flustered by the drift off cernterline. The CFI took the stick and did a demo on how to recover from a bad approach. I would have gone around before it got too bad but it was good to see a pro in action.
As the man said, fast but smooth reactions are the basic key. It finally locked in and life is good. No over controlling as I did at the start but it is seems ingrained now how fast to react and use smooth and definite action but don't get hamfisted.
Cheers
X3 Skier
En-Route
After various rain outs and conflicts, today was the day. Flew from Red Stewart to Hook Field for a couple of landings on their grass runway and then back to Red Stewart. CFI never touched the controls and basically was an observer. I did manage to wander a bit on the way back since I had done no "planning" but eventually found both fields.
Logbook signed with the TW endorsement and life is good.
Cheers
Logbook signed with the TW endorsement and life is good.
Cheers
flhrci
Final Approach
Congrats! Now you can get that Pitts S-2 you always wanted!
David
David
X3 Skier
En-Route
mikegreen
Pre-takeoff checklist
Actually, I can start building the OneX in a tail dragger config.
Cheers
If you end up looking or buying something around Dayton, let me know! Been looking for something to partner on...
-Mike
X3 Skier
En-Route