Lesson 6 - Stalls.

10 July 2011   cancelled due to weather.

17 July 2011   Warrior III - VH-TXH

In 12 years of paragliding I'd never intentional stall my paraglider - probably because it collapses into a ball above your head and all hell breaks loose.  But now I had to make a plane stop flying and fall out of the sky.

My lesson is booked for Sunday 10th July but when I wake up and look out the window and it looks like the weather gods have decided I have to wait another week. My first cancelled lesson. 

Stall by Jetfxer

The next week comes around and the weather is looking much better but when I arrived at the airport, I find out Jason is running very late and won't be able to make my lesson.  I'm starting to think this was not meant to be. 

Luckily Fenella has some time before her first lesson, so I’m not going to get out of it - to be honest I was hanging out for a fly. So once again I’m with a different instructor.  

We take-off and head to the training area and it’s time. 

• HASEL check – Height, Area, Secure, Engine and Lookout,
• Carb heat on, Power to idle,
• Keep pulling back to try and maintain height until,
• The stall alarm starts going off, Carb heat off,
• The buffering starts then plane stops flying and nose drops
• Let it drop, apply full power, keep it straight with the rudder
• As the speed builds level out and return to Straight and level flight.

THAT’S IT??? Clearly I’ve seen too many airshows. While I wasn’t expecting a hammer head stall, I was expecting a bit more of a reaction.

The next few were much the same non-event.  We did have one small wing drop but had it quickly under control with opposite rudder.  All in all, another fun day of flying.

Piper Warrior III VH-TXH,  Flight Time 1.2hr (Total 6.7hrs)

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Technical stuff

•      HASEL check – 

o   Height - 3000Ft+

o   Area – No over build up areas, preferably lots of paddocks,

o   Secure – Hatches, Harness and any loose items away,

o   Engine – Oil Temp & Pressure, Fuel Pressure, fuel pump on, carb heat on, and

o   Lookout 360^O clearing turn, (follow by 90^O turn after each stall)

• For the Warrior III VS₁ (Clean Stall Speed) = 50KIAS and VS₀ (Stall Speed with full flaps) =44KIAS
• The Stall angle of attack doesn’t change.  How the Stall speed does.
• Stall Speed is effected by

1.    Weight – VS₀ and VS₁ are measured at Maximum weight.  The stall speed will be lower when the plane is lighter.
              VS = √(current weight/Maximum weight) X VS_{(max weight)}

2.    Change in wing lift profile Ie Using Flaps, Slats, Damage to the wing, Icing etc.  As an example applying flaps increases the lift produced by the wing for the same angle of attack.  Icing on the other hand decrease the lift produced by the wing.

3.    Dynamic wing loading.  The stall stall increases by 2 main manoeuvres to watch out for  

a.    Turns In a turn the lift vector is banked, so more lift is required counter the weight of the aircraft.  Eg in a 60% bank the load factor is 2.  Increase in stall speed is √load factor ie. √2 =1.414.

b.    Drive recovery. Eg in a 2G pull out the load factor is 2 so once again increase in stall speed is √load factor ie. √2 =1.414.

4.    Use of Power. 

a.    Increasing power increases the airflow over the wing root and hence generates more lift.  It also acts at a lower angle of attack. 

b.    In a climb the power trust line is inclined and the vertical component therefore helps “lift” the plane.

• DON’T use the ailerons to pick up a Drop wing at the point of stall.  Using ailerons to try and level the plane will only increase the angle of attack of the dropped wing further.  This will further stall the dropped wing  making it worst.  Use the rudder instead.  The secondary effect of yawing is roll.
• As the Angle of attack increases the Centre of Pressure C_p moves forward.  At the point of stall it moves rapidly backwards, which causes the nose to drop (Which is a good thing)

Lesson 5 - Climbing and Desending Turns.

27 Jun 2011       Warrior III - VH-TYD

Besides learning how to do climbing and descending turns this was a lesson full of "first". 

 Up until now I've been flying first thing on a Sunday morning while is nice at quite at Moorabbin, but due to my daughter's concert I was going to be flying midday on a week day.   Flying Sunday morning has a number of advantages; 1) I can be back home again by 10:30 to spend the rest of the day with the family. 2) I rarely have to wait for other aircraft on the ground or in the circuit. 3) The weather has generally been better (winds lightly, less chance of rain). The only disadvantage has been the extended time in the run-up bay to bring the engine up to the correct operating temperature on cold winter mornings.

The second "first", was a different instructor.  Unfortunately my normal instructor was busy and I really wanted to fly, so I got him to suggest an alternative.  Collin is the head of training for the school so I knew I'd be in good hands.

Collin hands me the keys and maintenance release to TYD and I do to pre-flight walk around as normal.  This is where those "firsts" start to cause "differences" - the tanks aren't full. As I'm normally the first to fly the plane, the tanks are normally full.  This means I need to remember how to set the fuel volumes on the Avidyne EX5000 MFD.

I started her up and taxi to the run-up bay.   Time for the second difference - the engine is already warm. Instead of coming back to the engine checks (Mag, carb heat, & idle checks) after the oil temperature increases to 100C,  I get to do the run-up checks in the normal order.  

Time for the third difference - pre-flight safety brief and radio calls.  Up until this point this is something Jason has always done for me.  Collin seems a little surprised I haven't done them yet - something to follow-up Jason before my next lesson. So with Collin making the calls we taxi out and takeoff for the training area.

First up is Climbing turns.  I've actually been doing these ever flight already when I turn from upwind onto crosswind.  There are a couple of things to watch in addition to a level turn.  As I'm already climbing lift needs to be greater then weight and turning is going to make this worse.  So no more than a Rate 1 turn ie ~15 Deg  bank. The plane wants to increase the angle of bank due to the higher angle of attack and speed of the outer wing so I just need to make sure I'm maintain that bank angle with the ailerons.

After a couple of goes we try out descending turns.  As I'm now descending they is more lee way for generating the vertical components required to balance the weight of the aircraft and the therefore the bank angle can be high - up a medium (15-45 degree) turn.  The tendency for the plane to increase it's angle of bank is also reduced. While the outer wing is going fast it has a lower angle of attack and therefore the difference between the amount of lift is reduced.

After a bit of practice we head back to Moorabbin via Carrum.  Time for the last "difference" for the day - it's busy.  As we approach the reporting point there is another plane also making it's inbound call.  We are "Number 3" for 35L.

Another fun lesson.  Really enjoyed the "differences" and feel like the previous lessons are starting to come together.  I can now climb, descend, turn and fly straight and level.  If I put them all together I can effectively fly to the training area and back.  Once I've learnt how to land, make radio calls, and handle basic emergencies, I'll be able to go solo.  Next lesson - Stalls!

Piper Warrior III VH-TYD,  Flight Time 1.0hr (Total 5.5hrs)

Lesson 4 - Medium Turns.

19 Jun 2011       Warrior VH-TAJ

I've learnt to fly straight and level, climb and descend.  Now it is time to start turns. I arrive it MFS around 8:15, grab the maintenance log and keys to TAJ from Jason, and go out to pre-flight the plane.

Photo Mysid

After completing the run-up, we taxi to 35R for take-off and exit to the training area.  We would be focusing on Rate 1 and medium turns.

• Rate 1 Turn : ~15^o  bank, 2 minutes to complete a for 360. 
• Medium Turn : 15^o - 45^o bank, 1 minute to do a 360.

I read the theory brief before hand and understood then the more I banked the more lift I'd require to maintain level flight.  The extra lift would be coming for a increase in the angle of attack during the turn - in other words I'd need to pull back to maintain level flight.

I also understood that I'd need to counter the adverse yaw due to the change in the relative airflows on the wings.  This would try and flatten my turn. While the outer wing needs to travel further, thus it will travel faster then the inner wing, generate more lift and hence increase the bank of the turn.

So I need to pull back a bit and make sure I maintain the correct angle of bank.

Then lastly there is "Slip" and "Skid".  If I don't use the correct amount of rudder we will either feel like we are falling into the turn - slip or being pushed out of the turn - Skid.  The solution - "step on the ball" or in the glass cockpit keep the little triangle on top of the big triangle.

So now it was time for the practice.  Jason demos the maneuver as always.

• Lookout - Right, Right Centre, Left Centre, Left.  (For a left hand turn and vis-a-versa for a right hand turn)
• Bank - As required
• Balance - Rudder as required to stop slip or skid.
• Back Pressure - pull back to maintain nose attitude and hence level flight
• L.A.P. - Lookout, attitude, performance
• Lookout -  check exit point
• Bank - roll back to level
• Balance - Rudder as required to stop skid and slip as we exit
• Back Pressure - Reduce to maintain nose attitude for level flight.

Easy right - Ha.  As soon as I tried it all the theory became just that, theory.  To me a good smooth turn seems to be all about feel and involves a complex dance using your hands and feet.  Me first few where more connected straight lines then smooth curves.  The good news was the more I tried the smooth it became.  The bad news was as soon as than happened, we would change direction or angle of bank for the turn.

In no time it was time to return to Moorabbin via Carrum and land on 35L.  Another great lesson - Need to watch my back pressure in the turn and more practice on my balance isn't going to hurt.  While I noticed the 2 week break made me a little rusty my Straight & Level, climbs and descents all feel more coordinated by the end of the lesson.


 Piper Warrior III VH-TAJ,  Flight Time 1.1hr (Total 4.5hrs)



As always the above is my interruption of general theory and my own experience.  I'm NOT an instructor and this is NOT instruction. Find a good instructor and learn to fly from someone who knows what they are doing. 

Lesson 3 - Climbing and Descending.

5 Jun 2011       Warrior VH-TXH

Today we are taking out VH-TXH again for my 3rd lesson - Climbing and Descending.  Last week I learnt about Power, Attitude and Speed configurations for straight and level.  Today I'm going to learn the configurations for climbs and descents.

(Photo : Mikebert4 )

A 8:30 start, run-up and taxi out to 35R for take-off to the training area.

There are 3 basic climb configurations I need to remember;

• Best angle of climb - when you want to get over something. eg over trees or a hill near the end of a runway - Full Power, Horizon near the bottom corner of the front window, 63knots.
• Best rate of climb is used to gain height in the shortest amount of time.  It is the climb configuration we use when taking off from Moorabbin.  Full power, Nose on the horizon, 79knots, and finally 
• Cruise climb which is a compromise between gaining height and covering distance. Full power, 85knots (I've forgotten the attitude - will have to ask Jason next lesson)

So once I get the plane into the required configuration we need to keep on top of our scan  L.A.P - Lookout, Attitude, Performance.

• Lookout - keep my focus outside the plane looking for other aircraft and drop the nose every 500ft to check nothing in front of the plane, 
• Attitude - maintain the correct attitude. If the plane is trim correctly it should almost do it by itself, and 
• Performance - a quick scan to check IAS, RPM, Oil temperature and pressure, heading, climb rate etc

Then there is the transition back to Straight & Level.   Unlike going into a climb or a descent I need to let the get the right Attitude, Let the Speed increase and then adjust the Power and Trim so A.S.P.T.  Makes sense when I think about it.

After practicing a few climbs its time for descents. 2 key configurations for me to remember; Best Glide and Cruise descent.

• Best Glide Power Idle, Speed 73 kts,  Attitude whatever is required to maintain 73kts.  This is a very important configuration.  Its the one I'll use if we have engine failure.  
• Cruise descent Power 2200rpm, Speed 105kts, Attitude about 6 fingers between the dash and horizon.  This configuration will simplify the ETA calculate on cross country flights.

When entering a descent I need to remember to bleed some speed before I setup the correct attitude (this is done by keeping the nose up until we are close to the required speed).   Almost P.S.A.T

So after practicing a few descents it was time to head back via GMH.  GMH is a distinctive factory with a flat saw tooth roof in Dandendong.  We Descend to 1500ft and contact Moorabbin and report.  We are directed to report at "Parkmore" which is a shopping centre between GMH and Moorabbin. We descend to 1000ft and report Parkmore.  We are given clearance to join base for 35R number 2.   We quickly spot the proceeding aircraft and follow it into land.  While I fly most of the approach, Jason is managing the radio, checks, etc. and handles the actual landing.  Worth checking out CASA On Track.

Another great lesson.  I'm really enjoy the challenge and while nothing I do is smooth or instinctive, I can already see the improvement  in my Straight and level flying when compared to last week.

Piper Warrior III VH-TXH,  Flight Time 1.2hr (Total 3.4hrs)

Lesson 2 - Straight and level.

29 May 2011 

(Photo : João Alcântara )

 

Forecast was for morning fog - luckily I woke up to clear day. Today we were taking out VH-TXH a 2009 Warrior III with a "Glass cockpit" for lesson number 2 - Straight and level flight.  I'd read all the theory and were keen to get back in the air again.

Out to the plane for the pre-flight inspection.  I'd gone through this in my head a number of times over the last week and was happy when I managed to do it without missing anything.  I hopped into the plane and run thought the pre-start checks and started it up.  After-start checks are all good and it's time for the dreaded taxing.    

Last week I'd snaked all over the place but after visualizing using my feet to steer over the week, today was a lot better - I only managed a couple of major "S" turns.   Run-up/ pre take-off checks go well and after Jason deals with the radio calls we taxi and hold at taxiway alpha 35R for the line-up checks

Once cleared, the take-off seems a bit smoother.  I'm holding the centreline better and rotate just after 60kts.  We climb to 500ft, turn of to crosswind up to 1000ft, turn on to down wind and continue to climb to just under 2000ft.  While we are within the Moorabbin class D airspace (3NMiles) we have to stay below 2500ft.  Once clear f class D airspace we switch to Melbourne Radar and climb to 4000ft in the training area.

Now the fun begins.  First we start with "Normal cruise" 2500rpm, 4 fingers between the top of the dash and the horizon, 105-110knots IAS.  Jason shows my and explains PAST - Power, Attitude, Speed, Trim.  Now it's my turn 

1. Set the power to 2500rpm - This seems to take forever and requires much more throttle  movement than I thought would be required.
2. Adjust my attitude to "4 fingers".  - Now the power seems to have change ?  so fiddle with that again.
3. Check airspeed (target 105-110kts) - this is were I started to come unstuck.  I tried to adjust the attitude to get my 105 -110kts and found myself see-sawing between 90-120.  Jason helpful tells me to look outside and get the "picture" right and stop chasing the airspeed indicator.   When I do this it finally settles down to 105kts
4. Lastly trim - Trimming the aircraft seemed to take Jason about 2 seconds.  It seemed to take me 2 minutes!!  I was using small movements, Jason was using "handfuls"

Next "Slow cruise". 2000rpm, 2 fingers and 80 knots.   So once again a demo by Jason followed by me trying it.  Once again I start to chase the airspeed until I remembered to look outside and focus on the picture again.  Once again trimming takes forever.

Third is the "Fast cruise" 2600rpm 5 fingers and 120knots.  Used if we are in a hurry   Each new throttle setting and attitude picture is taking a while to get right - I can only hope this is going to get easier.

Lastly the "Precautionary Cruise" 2200rpm + 2 stages of flaps, 4 fingers (same as normal cruise) and 80kts. (same as slow cruise).  Used when following a slower plane in the circuit while maintaining better visibility.

Once I've had a go at each one, Jason gets me to transition from one to another.  By now power and attitude setting are becoming a jumbled mess in my head.  I'm also consistently trimming for a slow climb.  Coming from paragliders, where climbing was good, this wasn't bothering me but Jason tells me it's not good and I need to be able to stay with +-100ft of a given altitude in Straight and level flight.

All to soon the lesson is over again.  Back to Moorabbin, land and taxi back to MFS.  A lot to think about - PAST, and the different power and attitude setting for the 4 different S&L configurations.  But on the plus side my taxing was better than last week, I remembered all the pre-flight inspection and I was getting quicker at setting up each configuration by the end.  

All in all another fun days flying.

Piper Warrior III VH-TXH,  Flight Time 1.1hr (Total 2.1hrs)

Lesson 1 - Effects of controls.

22 May 2011 

One word - Fantastic!!
Woke up and jumped out of bed and had a quick look out the window to check the weather.  All was looking good for my first flying lesson.  I'd decided early Sunday mornings were the best time for me, so showered, dressed, grabbed breakfast and was out the door before anyone else was up. 

Photo MFS

It's only a 15 minute drive to the airport, so I was soon parked at Moorabbin Flying Services and meeting my new instructor, Jason.  After a bit of paper work we sat down for a quick briefing about the plane I'd be flying and an outline of the "effects of controls" lesson.

My first flight was to be in VH-TAE a 2004 Piper Warrior III with an analog cockpit. Jason takes me out to the aircraft and walks me through the Pre-flight checks - can see I'm going to need to study up on this over the next week.

Then it was time to hop into the aircraft.  At this point I'm still half thinking "Ok, sat back while he runs through all the checks, taxis, takes off and flies as out to the training area for my lesson" - WRONG! He hands me the checklist and gets me to start running through them,  pointing out the various instruments, switches, etc I need to be looking at. 

Time to start the plane and to taxi out to the run-up bay.  OK, who's idea was it to use your feet to steer a plane on the ground?  I'm sure the controllers sitting in the tower can easily spot the brand new pilots by the amount the planes snakes along the taxiways.  Lets just say there was plenty of room for improvement.

Run-up checks then off to holding point Alpha 35R for the Pre-takeoff checks.  All I can say is thank god for checklists.  In Paragliding there was only a few basic checks (Check your lines, glider, and harness and undamaged, your helmet, chest strap, leg straps, glider correctly attached to harness, speedbar, reserve, altimeter, and as you start to launch check the glider has come up clean and looks right), there seems to be 10 times as may for a plane.

Jason gets clearance from the tower for takeoff and we are ready to go.  I "snake" the plane out on to runway and turn for takeoff.  Full power and we start charging down the runway.  60kts Jason tells me to pull back and we are airborne.  By now my brain is going at a million miles an hour, heading, nose on the horizon, airspeed, keep the wings level...How am I suppose to do all this and all the things I can see Jason doing for me!

We turn crosswind, then on to downwind and off to the training area.  Once we are there Jason runs me through the primary and secondary effects of all the control inputs; turn the yoke left - bank left & yaw left; Left rudder - yaw left & roll left: Pull pack on the yoke - pitch up: Power on - pitch up and yaw to the left.

 After what seemed like a very few minutes we started heading back to Moorabbin to land.  Once on the ground I did some more snaking back to the school and ran through the shut down checklist.

What a day!!!  I'm buzzing with excitement and already can't wait until next week.  However there plenty for to think about before then - Pre-flight inspections, Relaxing while I'm taxiing and smoother inputs, The effects of all the controls and pre-reading for my next lesson - "Straight and Level".





Piper Warrior III VH-TAE,  Flight Time 1.0hr (Total 1.0hrs)

Getting Started

So after 12 years of paragliding why did I decide to start learning to fly a plane?

1. Kids! Paragliding is a very time intensive and very weather dependent sport.  To go flying I'd normal drive 4 hours to Bright for the weekend on the off chance it was flyable. If I did fly I'd maybe fly for an hour or two.  With 3 young kids in the back, it didn't seem worth it any more.
2. I've always wanted to fly a light plane. Ever since I was a kid of loved planes. I made model planes, I joined the Air Cadets, and went Gliding in a sailplane a couple of times and also claimed I was going to be Pilot when I grew up.
3. Moorabbin Airport is only 15 minutes for home. So for 15mins travel I could get a guaranteed hours flying vs 4 hrs travel for maybe an hour.  

So maybe it was time to start training for my PPL.

I started talking to a few people about the idea, starting with a paragliding friend who has his PPL and a share in a plane at Moorabbin.  He gave me 2 good pieces of advise

1.  go for a flight with him (I was sold on the idea after that) and 
2. book at least a lesson a week as after family and weather is taken into account you'll probably average a lesson a fortnight.  (If you book a lesson every 2 weeks and one gets cancelled then it will be a month between lessons and you'll spend the first half of the lesson remember what you did last time)

I also discovered another paragliding friend, Owen,  was also thinking I've getting his PPL.  There is nothing better than learning with like minded friends to share the experience with.

Now the only issue was picking a school and money (when isn't it).

Right from the start I was leaning towards Moorabbin Flying Services for a few reasons

1. They have newer planes.  While a bit more expensive, the idea of learning in a new plane gave me the perception of greater safety and few problems.  
2.  Owen had started his lesson and recommended his instructor. (This has turned out to be a great recommendation)
3. Another one of my paragliding friends brother is the CEO. Like to keep it in the family if I can :-)

After putting it off for another few months my wife and kids got me a voucher for my first lesson and my student license for Xmas/birthday, so no excuses. I gave MFS a call and booked in my first lesson.  Let the adventure begin.

Welcome

Ever since I was a kid I've wanted to fly!  While I managed a couple of flights in a sailplane and even a flight in a CT4 Airtrainer it wasn't until 1998 I started doing any flying on a regular basis.  While I couldn't afford GA flying at the time, I took up paragliding.   However after 12 years, over 400 logged hours and the birth of 3 kids it was time to move on to fulfill my dream of getting my Private Pilot's License.

I've decided to blog about my flying for 2 reasons 1) It helps cement what I've learnt in my 40 year old brain and 2) I feel a lot can be learnt from sharing experience.  I know I've loved reading/hearing about everyone else flying stories.

While I'm currently just finished my 8th lesson, I'm going to start this blog back at lesson one and take you on the whole journey (I may even throw it a few post about my past flying experiences.)  

So stay tuned for lesson 1 - coming soon.