Rod, I am so happy seeing new videos from you. Althow we had never met. I am from Czech Republic. You tought me all the basics for flying. It was from you beeing part of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004. Your great commentaries, great writing, videos and pictures. And the most of it. Was the fun and humor you had put there. (for example while sitting in virtual cocpit of 737 and hearing your first words "you will do good but first you have to remove your hands from your eyes, yes, thats better...). I was never so eager to see and do another lesson there with you. I became pilot some years later, or worked on air traffic controll and instructor. My all basic knowlege goes to you my greatest mentor and teacher ❤❤❤
Thank you so much for that very nice comment! I'm sorry about the late reply. Sometimes I don't see every comment. I sure do appreciate the kind words. Best, Rod Machado
As a 22 year CFI I have always stressed... "If a turn goes bad... LOWER THE NOSE!" I have also stressed that if a turn "starts out bad" that is what "go-arounds" were invented for... and that THERE IS NO SHAME in a go-around. Excellent illustrations and explanation Rod. Thank you.
Thank you, Sky. I like that idea: IF A TURN GOES BAD, LOWER THE NOSE. That's a simple and easy-to-remember phrase. So nice! And thank you for the comment, too. Best, Rod
Years ago I started the difficult road to recurrency of my private pilot license. I tried the Gleim books. Although they were factually accurate they were as dry as dust. I started again with Rod's Private Pilot Handbook and along with his sense of humor he has such an accessible way of explaining both basic and difficult concepts. I especially remember how excellent his chapter on theoretical weather was. As an example his macroscopic explanation of weather was so simply explained in just 2 statements: (Paraphrasing from memory) 1) The sun heats the earth unevenly 2) Weather is the planet's way of distributing the heat And the rest of his teaching follows in the same way. Thanks Rod.
Rod thanks for what you do! I'm currently finishing up on step one of aquiring my PPL with your 40 hr ground school course and I have enjoyed the process so far. Thank you so much for sharing your vast knowledge in that easy to understand way that you do and helping me achieve my childhood dream of becoming a top notch SAFE pilot. I look forward to furthering my knowledge with you. PS thanks for making understanding the weather simple and memorable. Thanks my friend!
Thank You, I was never specifically illustrated and thought this. After ppl I got into that mess twice. One was while trying to take a photo and to stay where I was and circling got tighter and tighter. After I clicked the picture and brought my attention back to flying, I realized that I very nearly clicked my life. Second time was similar but no photos, just turning tighter and tighter to to keep my rented c-150 wing tip over a friends house. All the time loosing altitude. Both times scared me . That was in the 1980’s. Now age 63 and not flying watching your video put my stomach in my throat. I just wanted to give some real examples of how all the relations of aerodynamics can combine on a pilot without having learned or practiced this situation. Thank You! Dan from New Hampshire
Greetings Daniel: Years ago I watched a video of am Alaskan pilot in a Cessna 206 with several passengers on board. The video was shot by a passenger from the rear seat. The pilot was at 500 feet AGL (I suspect), and was circling around a bear on the ground. Apparently unaware of the bank angle and decrease in speed, he stalled the airplane and everyone on board perished in the resulting spin. I doubt that he was aware of his close proximity to the stall, perhaps for the same reason you experienced. It certainly caught him by surprise. Such a shame. Best, Rod
Excellent. WOW! As a PPL student, no one has explained this to me in this detail. Only: stay coordinated, no turns below 65kt on crosswind, not more than 15° bank angle or you stall. OK, I can do that, but why? Now I know why. Thanks. Provocative title. I love it.
Thank you, AJ. Unfortunately, way too many students hear things that are similar to what instructors have told you. Max 15 degrees bank? That's so limiting and unnecessary. I'm so happy you found this video useful. Best, Rod
Great video Rod. My instructor has always drummed into me, the stick or yoke position is the first give-away a stall is imminent. AOA is directly related to stick/yoke position. For example, if the stick is central or forward during the turn, the aircraft is not close to a stall.
Airspeed is everything. This is where the concept of DMMS, Defined Minimum Maneuvering Speed, comes into play along with minimal, (not over 30°), banking in your turns in the pattern. Avoid this scenario in the first place. Great video to show what can happen if you get into this predicament.
Rod, I've been reading your columns and books for over 20 years, and today is the first time I've ever heard your voice. I guess I don't spend enough time on the internet. Watching this video reminds us of the usually poor outcome of manoeuvering flight at low altitude. I wonder if this is the same situation that took down the McSpadden crew. Throwing in that last shot of opposite rudder has killed a lot of pilots.
Thank you for the comment. I'm not sure it matters all that much when backtracking since you want to spend as little time doing it as possible. In other words, backtrack fast and exit the runway as quickly as is reasonable. Best, Rod
Thank you for that comment. Sometimes these concepts are easier to grasp with simulation. I'm pleased to hear that your CFI did cover this with you. Best, Rod Machado
Because of the importance of this matter, I especially appreciate how the narrator pronounces DIE-AGONAL, increasing the understanding the point on a subliminal level.
Greetings Ali: So true. It's very difficult to show this concept in the average training airplane. It's much easier to show it with animation. I do appreciate the comment. Best, Rod
I flew my Citabria for years without concern for angle of bank as much as for G load factor. For example, you can have zero airspeed and a 90 degree bank (zero G as you pivot around a vertical "stall turn") without the wing being stalled. If you have 1G or less load, your stall speeds will not increase over normal.
You know what makes aviation great? The near perfect unforgivingness leaves little room for narcissism amongst pilots. You either see the facts for exactly what they are or meet your eventual doom...so you end up with a more level-headed and mindful demographic.
My instructor got the stall horn to go off with the nose down while doing recovery from hazardous attitudes once. Almost baited me into doing the nose-up recovery procedure!
This is such an important concept, because it is not practiced very often. You simply can not pull back on the yoke because you are too low. Go around is the safest choice
Everything is logical in this video and very well produced. However I must say that I didn't learn anything new even though I have nothing to do with piloting. A similar effect also occurs on motorcycles in sharp turns that's why you engage a little bit of throttle to maintain speed and turn radius. It feels like driving uphill, but the rear wheel gets actually less pressure and might lose traction earlier than expected. All my flying knowledge comes from war thunder PC game and aircrash documentarys. Greetings from Germany!(englisch is not my first language)
Somehow, I knew that since the plane was trimmed to 1.3x the stall speed that I shouldn't pull back on the yoke because that would put me closer to the stall speed. So, I only used the yoke for the ailerons and let the trim take care of the elevator. If I pulled or pushed on the yoke, it was only to get the plane back to the correct airspeed.
I use 1.5Vso as a minimum while maneuvering close to the ground - easy math. This provide 2+g load capability. I randomly ask pilots what speed they need in their airplane to sustain 2Gs. Thus far no one has been able to give me an answer off the top of their head. (Vso *1.41)
Thanks you Rod for the clear description with graphics. I never thought about this below the horizon stall before. Very informative. Sometimes, when I overshoot turning from base to final and realizing I am too high, I tend to lower the nose during the turn. I will keep this instruction in mind next time.
Greetings Satya: Yes, when turning from base to final and steepening the turn, it's always better to release a little back pressure to prevent the stall speed from increasing. The problem is that some pilots will pull aft on the yoke to tighten the turn, which increases the angle of attack (which isn't immediately apparent because the nose raises at a diagonal as stated in the video). The load on their butts also increases which is a sure sign that their stall speed is increasing. No bueno when close to the ground. The rule is: Butt pressure increasing while approaching a stall; release the load on the yoke. Best, Rod
discussion: add up-elevator to a wing that is not level, and you get (more) Yaw moment; aka an aileron-initiated turn. in the situation described, in order to use up-elevator safely the wing must be leveled, first.
I was taught pitch controls the airspeed and power controls the altitude , the importance of coordinated flight and shallow turns in the traffic pattern. I don't do any "real world" flying anymore, but I don't know if this is what kept me out of trouble, or just pure luck. I am just a flight sim "pilot" now.
Basically, if the plane's nose wants to go down, let the nose do it and you're safe. Make only SLOW engine power adjustments to get the nose of the aircraft straight
When airspeed is too slow, aircraft have a feature called a 'stall' that automatically starts the recovery process. If the pilot(s) ignore that, then an alert feature called a 'spin' is employed to get their attention. If that fails, the aircraft automatically begins an emergency descent and 'lands' ;-)
Rob can you explain why this occurs. If you apply right rudder, the left wing aoa increases due to the right yaw, relative airflow from the left and the dihedral. But if youre near critical aoa, right rudder will result in the right wing stalling and a right incipient spin may follow. Why doesnt the left wing stall due to aoa above critical?
While waiting for Rod to come by…. Private Pilot thoughts…. Sort of adding to the discussion. Not trying to answer the question…. At that critical moment… flying very close to a stall condition… The right yawing action…. Relatively speaking…. The Left wing tip is moved forwards into the wind, the right wing tip is moved backwards away from the wind… The local air speed over the wing tips is different than the airspeed measured at the pitot tube… The retreating wing stalls and drops first… How much yaw is related to how much rudder input is used, and how fast it gets applied… Wing tip speeds are magnified by how long the wings are from the plane’s center of gravity… See how fast a wing tip can move while taxiing in a circle… compare to the other wing. All it takes for one wing to stall vs. the other… is a few knots…. A very small amount. This is the driving force to maintain coordinated flight… keep the ball centered during the turns… PP thoughts only, not a CFI… Now, let’s wait for Rod to respond… the best real CFI! 😃
Greetings Dave: Ultimately, the receding right wing's angle of attack increases faster than the left wing's angle of attack. Keep in mind that the left wing is also moving up slightly while it moves forward. This makes its increase in angle of attack slightly smaller than the wing that moves aft and downward (the right wing in your example). Nevertheless, this helps explain why both wings are technically stalled in a spin, with one more stalled more than the other. Best, Rod
Aerobatics teaches pilots that pitch attitude (and airspeed) are very poor proxies for angle of attack, which is all the wing cares about. See your wing's Cl curve. I have two angle of attack indicators. One is the light or horn, which on a certified aircraft should activate 5-7 mph above the stall. The other AoA indicator is the position of the stick or yoke. If the pilot is pulling the stick or yoke all the way back, we are probably at a high AoA. If the pilot lets go of the stick or yoke, the ailerons and elevator will trail and the wing will unload and the AoA will decrease. Aircraft don't stall/spin themselves. Pilots force them into these.
Excellent video. I have a question: would you feel the yoke bufetting in this condition? I mean, an stall with the nose lower than horizon. My impression is not once the tail would be out of the turbulent air
Greetings Jumir: Yes, you probably would. If the airflow separation over the wing at the critical angle of attack is turbulent enough, you'll feel the pre-stall buffet. However, not all wings produce "noticeable" turbulence when reaching their critical angle of attack. In other words, some airplanes give you very little physical indication that the wing is about to stall. That said, if the wing produces buffeting when stalling, you'll feel this irrespective of the airplane's attitude as the critical angle of attack is reached. Best, Rod Machado
Greetings Jim: Not the best idea for so many reasons. Consider this. Over the past 20 years we've had four major studies on angle of attack and safety ("The Pegasus Study" being the last) and not one has shown that having an AoA indicator in a GA airplane has any effect on safety. If anything, it's another distracting influence on the pilot. What's a better alternative is to teach the pilot to think in terms of angle of attack while flying airspeed. Hmm, and that's what the FAA told airline pilots to do in a SAFO about 15 years ago when the FAA realized that too many airline pilots were experiencing educational drift on the topic of AoA. Best, Rod
@@Flight-Instructor you don’t need to see AOA to do constant AOA turns. The idea is simply keep the trim setting without applying back stick in the turn. If your descent rate or nose drop is too much, add more power to compensate. As for data to AOA and safety, try looking at T-38 crash rates (constant airspeed peeps) versus T-45 & TA-4 rates (constant AOA peeps). If you do have an AOA indicator, it isn’t “one more thing to look at” as you no longer look at airspeed throughout your pattern. It is a one for one replacement with better as it will have one and only one value of goodness without needing to compensate for load and weight.
Rod, I am so happy seeing new videos from you. Althow we had never met. I am from Czech Republic. You tought me all the basics for flying. It was from you beeing part of Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004. Your great commentaries, great writing, videos and pictures. And the most of it. Was the fun and humor you had put there. (for example while sitting in virtual cocpit of 737 and hearing your first words "you will do good but first you have to remove your hands from your eyes, yes, thats better...). I was never so eager to see and do another lesson there with you. I became pilot some years later, or worked on air traffic controll and instructor. My all basic knowlege goes to you my greatest mentor and teacher ❤❤❤
Thank you so much for that very nice comment! I'm sorry about the late reply. Sometimes I don't see every comment. I sure do appreciate the kind words.
Best,
Rod Machado
As a 22 year CFI I have always stressed... "If a turn goes bad... LOWER THE NOSE!" I have also stressed that if a turn "starts out bad" that is what "go-arounds" were invented for... and that THERE IS NO SHAME in a go-around. Excellent illustrations and explanation Rod. Thank you.
Thank you, Sky. I like that idea: IF A TURN GOES BAD, LOWER THE NOSE. That's a simple and easy-to-remember phrase. So nice! And thank you for the comment, too.
Best,
Rod
Try a go around from a steep turn because an overshooting turning final at 400 agl. Surprice.
Rod, that was an excellent depiction of nose-down banking stalls. Thank you, sir! 😊
Greetings Nathan:
Thank you. I do appreciate the comment very much.
Best,
Rod
Now, more than ever, we need these types of videos... We have to get ahead of this increase in mishaps, close calls, etc... Thank you, Rod!
My pleasure Ozzyln. Thank you for the comment.
Best,
Rod
Too many people dying; The FAA & AOPA should distribute this video to all active pilots and students....👍👍
Years ago I started the difficult road to recurrency of my private pilot license.
I tried the Gleim books. Although they were factually accurate they were as dry as dust.
I started again with Rod's Private Pilot Handbook and along with his sense of humor he has such an accessible way of explaining both basic and difficult concepts. I especially remember how excellent his chapter on theoretical weather was.
As an example his macroscopic explanation of weather was so simply explained in just 2 statements:
(Paraphrasing from memory)
1) The sun heats the earth unevenly
2) Weather is the planet's way of distributing the heat
And the rest of his teaching follows in the same way.
Thanks Rod.
Thank you so much for that generous comment. I sure do appreciate it!!!
Best,
Rod
Rod thanks for what you do! I'm currently finishing up on step one of aquiring my PPL with your 40 hr ground school course and I have enjoyed the process so far. Thank you so much for sharing your vast knowledge in that easy to understand way that you do and helping me achieve my childhood dream of becoming a top notch SAFE pilot. I look forward to furthering my knowledge with you.
PS thanks for making understanding the weather simple and memorable.
Thanks my friend!
Thank you, Christian. I sure do appreciate those very kind words.
Best,
Rod
Thank You, I was never specifically illustrated and thought this. After ppl I got into that mess twice. One was while trying to take a photo and to stay where I was and circling got tighter and tighter. After I clicked the picture and brought my attention back to flying, I realized that I very nearly clicked my life. Second time was similar but no photos, just turning tighter and tighter to to keep my rented c-150 wing tip over a friends house. All the time loosing altitude. Both times scared me . That was in the 1980’s. Now age 63 and not flying watching your video put my stomach in my throat. I just wanted to give some real examples of how all the relations of aerodynamics can combine on a pilot without having learned or practiced this situation. Thank You! Dan from New Hampshire
Greetings Daniel:
Years ago I watched a video of am Alaskan pilot in a Cessna 206 with several passengers on board. The video was shot by a passenger from the rear seat. The pilot was at 500 feet AGL (I suspect), and was circling around a bear on the ground. Apparently unaware of the bank angle and decrease in speed, he stalled the airplane and everyone on board perished in the resulting spin. I doubt that he was aware of his close proximity to the stall, perhaps for the same reason you experienced. It certainly caught him by surprise. Such a shame.
Best,
Rod
Excellent. WOW! As a PPL student, no one has explained this to me in this detail. Only: stay coordinated, no turns below 65kt on crosswind, not more than 15° bank angle or you stall. OK, I can do that, but why? Now I know why. Thanks. Provocative title. I love it.
Thank you, AJ. Unfortunately, way too many students hear things that are similar to what instructors have told you. Max 15 degrees bank? That's so limiting and unnecessary. I'm so happy you found this video useful.
Best,
Rod
Great video Rod. My instructor has always drummed into me, the stick or yoke position is the first give-away a stall is imminent. AOA is directly related to stick/yoke position. For example, if the stick is central or forward during the turn, the aircraft is not close to a stall.
i learned how to fly with you and martha king in 2004. it is nice to see you again after all this years..
That seems like decades ago. Thank you for the comment.
Best,
Rod
Airspeed is everything. This is where the concept of DMMS, Defined Minimum Maneuvering Speed, comes into play along with minimal, (not over 30°), banking in your turns in the pattern. Avoid this scenario in the first place. Great video to show what can happen if you get into this predicament.
Rod, I've been reading your columns and books for over 20 years, and today is the first time I've ever heard your voice. I guess I don't spend enough time on the internet. Watching this video reminds us of the usually poor outcome of manoeuvering flight at low altitude. I wonder if this is the same situation that took down the McSpadden crew. Throwing in that last shot of opposite rudder has killed a lot of pilots.
So true. Thanks for the comment, Corey.
Best,
Rod
Thanks for these videos !!!! A question : backtracking runway : side or centerline ? Thanks a lot 👍👍👍
Thank you for the comment. I'm not sure it matters all that much when backtracking since you want to spend as little time doing it as possible. In other words, backtrack fast and exit the runway as quickly as is reasonable.
Best,
Rod
Great points Rod. Keep up the good work revolving around aerodynamic forces.
I just covered this with my CFI last week but this video made things make a lot more sense.
Thank you for that comment. Sometimes these concepts are easier to grasp with simulation. I'm pleased to hear that your CFI did cover this with you.
Best,
Rod Machado
Hey,Rod, learned how to fly from you in flight simulator x I'm delighted to discover you're a real person.
Thank you. I am real...at least I think I am. :)
Best,
Rod
Because of the importance of this matter, I especially appreciate how the narrator pronounces DIE-AGONAL, increasing the understanding the point on a subliminal level.
Well done,still awake!!
Thank you, Mike!
Rod
This concept is hard to grasp for me, but thanks to you Rod. Awesome explanation of stall below the horizon.
Greetings Ali:
So true. It's very difficult to show this concept in the average training airplane. It's much easier to show it with animation. I do appreciate the comment.
Best,
Rod
Great video!
Wow.. this is the best video I have seen on this
Thank you, Jake!
I flew my Citabria for years without concern for angle of bank as much as for G load factor. For example, you can have zero airspeed and a 90 degree bank (zero G as you pivot around a vertical "stall turn") without the wing being stalled. If you have 1G or less load, your stall speeds will not increase over normal.
Thank you, AeroM. I appreciate the comment.
Best,
Rod
Excellent! The elevator is the AOA control. Lower the dang nose and keep it coordinated!
Excellent explanation of a critical phase of the approach. Thanks👍👍👍
Thank you, Richard. I do appreciate it very much.
Best,
Rod
Great presentation Rod!
I enjoy your videos, thank you.
Rod, really appreciate your work!
Thank you, Dwayne! Much appreciated.
Best,
Rod
Thank you
You know what makes aviation great? The near perfect unforgivingness leaves little room for narcissism amongst pilots.
You either see the facts for exactly what they are or meet your eventual doom...so you end up with a more level-headed and mindful demographic.
Very true. Mother Nature doesn't grade on a curve when it comes to aviation.
My instructor got the stall horn to go off with the nose down while doing recovery from hazardous attitudes once. Almost baited me into doing the nose-up recovery procedure!
That's a powerful lesson, Erich. Congrats to your instructor, too.
Best,
Rod
This is such an important concept, because it is not practiced very often. You simply can not pull back on the yoke because you are too low. Go around is the safest choice
As usual you explain it perfectly! Thanks❤
Thank you very much, L. I do appreciate your leaving a comment, too.
Best,
Rod
Everything is logical in this video and very well produced.
However I must say that I didn't learn anything new even though I have nothing to do with piloting. A similar effect also occurs on motorcycles in sharp turns that's why you engage a little bit of throttle to maintain speed and turn radius. It feels like driving uphill, but the rear wheel gets actually less pressure and might lose traction earlier than expected.
All my flying knowledge comes from war thunder PC game and aircrash documentarys. Greetings from Germany!(englisch is not my first language)
Somehow, I knew that since the plane was trimmed to 1.3x the stall speed that I shouldn't pull back on the yoke because that would put me closer to the stall speed. So, I only used the yoke for the ailerons and let the trim take care of the elevator. If I pulled or pushed on the yoke, it was only to get the plane back to the correct airspeed.
Exactly. Excellent advice.😊
I use 1.5Vso as a minimum while maneuvering close to the ground - easy math. This provide 2+g load capability. I randomly ask pilots what speed they need in their airplane to sustain 2Gs. Thus far no one has been able to give me an answer off the top of their head. (Vso *1.41)
That's a good number to know. I like it.
Best,
Rod
Thanks you Rod for the clear description with graphics. I never thought about this below the horizon stall before. Very informative. Sometimes, when I overshoot turning from base to final and realizing I am too high, I tend to lower the nose during the turn. I will keep this instruction in mind next time.
Greetings Satya:
Yes, when turning from base to final and steepening the turn, it's always better to release a little back pressure to prevent the stall speed from increasing. The problem is that some pilots will pull aft on the yoke to tighten the turn, which increases the angle of attack (which isn't immediately apparent because the nose raises at a diagonal as stated in the video). The load on their butts also increases which is a sure sign that their stall speed is increasing. No bueno when close to the ground. The rule is: Butt pressure increasing while approaching a stall; release the load on the yoke.
Best,
Rod
@@Flight-Instructor Thanks for your quick response. I have watched many of your previous videos.
we learned in the video on how to recover but how to avoid?
Ah, another video for another time.
discussion: add up-elevator to a wing that is not level, and you get (more) Yaw moment; aka an aileron-initiated turn. in the situation described, in order to use up-elevator safely the wing must be leveled, first.
I remember him from msfs!!! And john n martha king miss those days
I was taught pitch controls the airspeed and power controls the altitude , the importance of coordinated flight and shallow turns in the traffic pattern. I don't do any "real world" flying anymore, but I don't know if this is what kept me out of trouble, or just pure luck. I am just a flight sim "pilot" now.
This concept is nicely learned by flying one of them combat flight simulators.... terrestrial, not the Klingon one. Qapla'
Yeh heard that one from glider pilots talking about the lower airspeed but stall is caused by aoa not airspeed.
Exceeding the critical angle of attack is the issue here. You are correct.
Rod
Basically, if the plane's nose wants to go down, let the nose do it and you're safe.
Make only SLOW engine power adjustments to get the nose of the aircraft straight
When airspeed is too slow, aircraft have a feature called a 'stall' that automatically starts the recovery process. If the pilot(s) ignore that, then an alert feature called a 'spin' is employed to get their attention. If that fails, the aircraft automatically begins an emergency descent and 'lands' ;-)
Rob can you explain why this occurs.
If you apply right rudder, the left wing aoa increases due to the right yaw, relative airflow from the left and the dihedral.
But if youre near critical aoa, right rudder will result in the right wing stalling and a right incipient spin may follow.
Why doesnt the left wing stall due to aoa above critical?
While waiting for Rod to come by….
Private Pilot thoughts…. Sort of adding to the discussion. Not trying to answer the question….
At that critical moment… flying very close to a stall condition…
The right yawing action…. Relatively speaking…. The Left wing tip is moved forwards into the wind, the right wing tip is moved backwards away from the wind…
The local air speed over the wing tips is different than the airspeed measured at the pitot tube…
The retreating wing stalls and drops first…
How much yaw is related to how much rudder input is used, and how fast it gets applied…
Wing tip speeds are magnified by how long the wings are from the plane’s center of gravity…
See how fast a wing tip can move while taxiing in a circle… compare to the other wing.
All it takes for one wing to stall vs. the other… is a few knots…. A very small amount.
This is the driving force to maintain coordinated flight… keep the ball centered during the turns…
PP thoughts only, not a CFI…
Now, let’s wait for Rod to respond… the best real CFI! 😃
Greetings Dave:
Ultimately, the receding right wing's angle of attack increases faster than the left wing's angle of attack. Keep in mind that the left wing is also moving up slightly while it moves forward. This makes its increase in angle of attack slightly smaller than the wing that moves aft and downward (the right wing in your example). Nevertheless, this helps explain why both wings are technically stalled in a spin, with one more stalled more than the other.
Best,
Rod
Swim fins with a tuxedo... Hmm....The last guy to do that was Sean Connery in Goldfinger
Aerobatics teaches pilots that pitch attitude (and airspeed) are very poor proxies for angle of attack, which is all the wing cares about. See your wing's Cl curve.
I have two angle of attack indicators. One is the light or horn, which on a certified aircraft should activate 5-7 mph above the stall. The other AoA indicator is the position of the stick or yoke. If the pilot is pulling the stick or yoke all the way back, we are probably at a high AoA. If the pilot lets go of the stick or yoke, the ailerons and elevator will trail and the wing will unload and the AoA will decrease. Aircraft don't stall/spin themselves. Pilots force them into these.
Excellent video. I have a question: would you feel the yoke bufetting in this condition? I mean, an stall with the nose lower than horizon. My impression is not once the tail would be out of the turbulent air
Greetings Jumir:
Yes, you probably would. If the airflow separation over the wing at the critical angle of attack is turbulent enough, you'll feel the pre-stall buffet. However, not all wings produce "noticeable" turbulence when reaching their critical angle of attack. In other words, some airplanes give you very little physical indication that the wing is about to stall. That said, if the wing produces buffeting when stalling, you'll feel this irrespective of the airplane's attitude as the critical angle of attack is reached.
Best,
Rod Machado
And this is exactly why you don't want to turn back to the runway when your engine quits after takeoff.
we could teach constant AOA turns instead of constant airspeed in slow flight and for landing patterns, this would help avoid here.
Greetings Jim:
Not the best idea for so many reasons. Consider this. Over the past 20 years we've had four major studies on angle of attack and safety ("The Pegasus Study" being the last) and not one has shown that having an AoA indicator in a GA airplane has any effect on safety. If anything, it's another distracting influence on the pilot. What's a better alternative is to teach the pilot to think in terms of angle of attack while flying airspeed. Hmm, and that's what the FAA told airline pilots to do in a SAFO about 15 years ago when the FAA realized that too many airline pilots were experiencing educational drift on the topic of AoA.
Best,
Rod
@@Flight-Instructor you don’t need to see AOA to do constant AOA turns. The idea is simply keep the trim setting without applying back stick in the turn. If your descent rate or nose drop is too much, add more power to compensate. As for data to AOA and safety, try looking at T-38 crash rates (constant airspeed peeps) versus T-45 & TA-4 rates (constant AOA peeps). If you do have an AOA indicator, it isn’t “one more thing to look at” as you no longer look at airspeed throughout your pattern. It is a one for one replacement with better as it will have one and only one value of goodness without needing to compensate for load and weight.