Lesson 35 - 2nd Area Solo

29 April 2012

VH-TYD

Moorabbin (YMMB)17L
Weather : 13c Wind 230 5kt, QNH 1025, CAVOK

Time for another area solo :-) So off to the training area for more steep turns, stalls, emergency landings, side slips and enjoying the view.

 

Lesson 26 : Forced Landings

14 February 
Warrior III VH-TYD

Weather QNH 1019; Wind: light S, Temp: 22c 
Runway  17L

Today I would be learning all about forced landing.  One of those things you need to learn but you never actually want to do. The goal of a forced landing is to get onto the ground safely, if the plane can fly again - it's a bonus. 

We start the lesson with the normal routine; Preflight, run up, take off and fly out to the training area.  It had been about 5 weeks since I'd last went to the training area so I need to think hard to remember all the steps - climb to 2500 on downwind leg, change squawk code and radio frequency once outside Class D airspace.

The basic steps for a forced landing are 

1. Come to best glide speed (73kts)
2. Select a suitable landing area and position the plane.
3. Try to restart the engine 
4. Mayday call
5. Passenger Brief
6. Prepare for the landing

The first step seems relatively easy.  If above 73kts use the excess speed to gain height.  If below 73kts stick the nose down to gain 73kts.  However, a couple of things make this a bit harder  - 1) the need to quickly trim the plane at 73kts, this reduces the workload for the other steps,  2) while trimming get started on steps 2 &3.

Step 2 should be easy as I'm over hundreds of large flat paddocks - However it's this step that caused me the most problems and leads to me trying to rush the following steps.  With so many options I became fixated with finding the "best" paddock.   I'd learn later to just pick an area with "ok" paddocks and start heading that way while you get through steps 3, 4 & 5.   (more on this later)


Step 3 -  Two rounds of checks to try and restart the engine.  First the basic CFMS checks (same as EFATO). Carb Heat on, Fuel pump On Change Tanks, Mixture rich, Magneto on both, Master switch On.
  
Next the more detailed Trouble shooting check list - FMOST.

• F Check the fuel levels, check fuel pump on, change tanks if required
• M Mixture learn then back to rich, (Just simulate when practicing)
• O Oil Temperature and Pressure,
• S Switches. Magneto Left, Right and back to both, (Simulated)
• T  Throttle.  Throttle to idle and back to full.  

Hopefully the engine will have restarted at some point, in which case time to head for the nearest airport and land.  If it didn't, then we are going to be making a forced landing and it's time to let someone know.


Step 4 the Mayday call. This part was easy Mayday, Mayday, Mayday, Tango Yankee Delta, Tango Yankee Delta, Tango Yankee Delta, <location>, <Problem>, < Number of people of board> < what I'm going to do>.  Also need to turn on the ELT (Emergency Locator Transmitter) and squawk 7700.

We can't restart the engine so we are going to have to land, someone hopefully knows we are in trouble so time to get everyone on the plane ready - Step 5 The Passenger Brief.  "Glasses off, Remove sharp object, pen, keys from your pockets and place on the floor.  Seat belts tighten and prepare to brace."  Front passenger get a special bit about opening the door  "unlatch just before we land and once we stop open and exit and quickly as possible."


Now all that is left is the landing. So continuing on from Step 2.  While we have been going through steps 3,4 & 5 and maintaining 73kts, we also need to be refining the landing spot and get the plane into position. The goal is a standard left hand circuit which puts at 1500ft AGL abeam the landing point on a downwind leg.

Ideally the landing paddock should be 400+m long, aligned with the wind direction on the ground,  Have a good approach (no/low trees, no power lines, buildings etc.), Clear of stock, ditches, fences, plough lines, rocks etc,  Doesn't slope downhill too much, Near help (houses, road etc). 


The last preparation is a prelanding checks BUSH.  Brakes, undercarriage, Switches off (Master off only once electronic flaps are deployed) fuel off, Harness secure (Hatch unlatched once at ~100feet).  Aim is to complete this during base or early final.

Once Jason has demonstrated all this it was my turn.  Even though I read the brief before the lesson and have gone through the check list dozens of times in my head, I quickly start having problems.

1. Trying to find a paddock and maintain 73kts quickly chew up most of my brain power.  (I fell like I'm back doing my first circuits)
2. 5-6 paddocks look OK as a good landing paddock but none are prefect.  So I start second guessing myself which wastes valuable time.  
3. I'm to close to the paddock on downwind.  This makes my turn from downwind around to final quite steep and I end up losing height or overshooting. 
4. I need to practice my side-slips some more.  I not yet comfortable slipping to lose extra height if required.  (I would have overshoot a couple of time - which is better than undershooting, providing I can slip to lose the extra height)

After 4 attempted forced landing we headed back to Moorabbin.  Jason assured me I'll get plenty of practice over the coming lessons and during my Navigation exercises (after my GFPT) .


VH-TYD Piper Warrior III  - Forced Landings - 1.3hrs Dual, (Total time 28.3 hrs)

 
View Forced Landings 14/02/2012 11:46 AM in a larger map

Lesson 18 - Intro to Cross wind landings

November 14th

Warrior III VH-TYD

Weather QNH: 1007, Wind: 206-260deg Crosswind upto 10kts, Temp: 18C Clear skies.

Runway  31R

Just as my landings are improving it was time to introduce crosswind landings.  I don't know what was with me, but is was also going to be a day of "little" errors.

My first error for the day was during the start up checks.  As I finished the checks, Jason asked that question you knows means you stuffed up - "Did you miss anything?".   A quick visual scan quickly told me what it was Mixture Rich. How did I miss that?

Next was my first radio call.  Today we were using 31R which is not a runway I've used much.  So when I make my taxi request I ask to go to 35R.  After being corrected by Moorabbin ground, I confirmed I want 31R, and get my taxi clearance.

Then I did it again!! The read back was "Taxi bravo, cleared to cross 35L,35R and 22, hold at Bravo 31R Tango Yankee Delta".   By time I got to the end, I stuffed up and said ... "Hold at Bravo 35R"  Like I said, not my day.

So finially we get to the holding point, complete the last checks and were cleared for take off.  Being 31R my usually landmarks are all wrong, so my first downwind track looks more like I'm using 35R.  After get new reference points sorted out they look a lot better.

First we did a couple of flapless landings to get into the grove - they were probably the best landings I've done so far.

Next Jason demos the finer points of cross wind landings.  The wind is coming from the left so;

1. We crab into the wind so our track is straight down the center line.   (crabbing is something you do a lot when paragliding, so I'm comfortable travelling sideways across the ground.)
2. Just before touch down, we apply left aileron and right rudder so the plane is now in a side-slip. (Banked left but nose now aimed straight down the center line.) Remembering to be free and easy on the controls to adjust for wind changes.
3. When we land the left (into wind) wheel will touch first, then the right and finally the nose wheel.
4. Before the nose wheel touches down - neutralise the rudder so the nose wheel is straight down the runway.  
5. Keep the alieron turned left during the roll/taxi

Simple - ha!  I can see this is going to need a lot of practice. I manage to do another 4 landings before it was time to call it quits.   While I got the plane down ok it wasn't always pretty.

Once again another long read back - "cleared to turn right onto echo and onto alpha 1, cleared to cross 35R, and 35L, Tango Yankee Delta",  This time I managed to get it right but from now on I must remember to have the airport map in my hand before I make the taxi request.



View Circuits, Flapless, Intro to crosswind in a larger map

VH-TYD Piper Warrior III  - Circuits 1.1hrs Dual (Total time 19.4hrs)

---

Things to watch in the future.

1. Take the time to make sure every item on the check list has been completed.
2. Watch the radio calls - worth noting down runway, QNH, winds, and ATIS code.
3. Take extra care to get my bearing right for the first circuit of the day (Especially when using a different runway)
4. Have the taxiway map ready for taxi calls.

Lesson 13 – Circuits (5)

1 October 2011

VH-TYD

Off for more circuits today, and while I’m not progressing as fast as I'd like, at least it is progress.  Jason would be back in the right seat today after he managed to shift some other lessons around.  We would be using 13L and the weather was looking ok.

Moorabbin's runways

As we taxied out of the northern run-up bay, the RVAC formation team taxied in.  They were heading out to the training area to practice and I must admit, they look pretty cool just taxing around together.

Today's lesson was a lot better.  I managed a couple of ok landings and that felt really nice – very exciting!!  I’m starting to realise just how high I’ve been flaring, and how important it is to get the speed right on final. But not everything is perfect. 

Firstly, I forgot to do my pre landing checks a few times when I became distracted by other traffic and trying to maintain 1000ft on downwind.

 I’m still jerking the yoke back during the flare.  It is not a smooth round out more a series of sharp pull backs followed by pauses as the plane balloons.

I’m also getting too low on my turn from base to final.  I should still be at least 500ft AGL when I stabilized on final.   The fact the plane in front is doing a very late turn on to base and hence we have a long final only makes matter worst.  I need to use a lot of power to maintain height on final,

And lastly on one occasion I forgot to fully close the throttle before the flare.  This of course resulted in the plane ballooning.

I general things are starting to look up. I’ve managed a couple of ok landings and getting closer on the rest. 

VH-TYD – Piper Warrior III 1.2hr (total 14.0 hr)

---

Things to watch in the future.

1. Remember to do my pre-landing checks early,
2. Smooth round-out, don’t jerk the controls,
3. Remember to fully close the throttle before I start the round-out,
4. Watch my height on base .  I’m starting the turn to base to low.
5. Get out the runway map before I request the taxi to the apron.  (Today’s read back was – “Turn right onto echo, cleared to cross 35R, turn on to alpha 1, cleared to cross 35L to the main apron”)

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)