Student Pilot Resources

02/21/2021

LISTEN: MAYDAY call from crew of United flight 328

20FEB2021United B772 performing flight UAL328 from Denver to Honolulu was climbing through 13000 feet when the pilots declared MAYDAY reporting a right engin...

01/03/2016

Please do not re-upload parts or the entire video on any platform. No commercial use allowed. Soundtrack: Victory - Two Steps From Hell No handheld footage b...

05/25/2015

Chances are you take a certain amount of pride from flying traffic patterns with near military precision, nailing your target altitude and airspeed and squaring off your turns while taking into account the effects of the wind. Not only does this practice demonstrate what a great pilot you are, but it also makes you predictable — and in the pattern that's always a good thing.

But what if I told you that you've been doing it all wrong — that instead of flying a razor-straight downwind, for example, you should be making quick S-turns and raising and lowering the nose as you go?

If you think about the reasons why, it suddenly makes perfect sense. When climbing on the crosswind leg, for instance, it can be difficult to spot traffic ahead of you. Same goes for the downwind leg, when your view of other airplanes entering the pattern or already in the pattern might be blocked by your own wing.

That's why it's a good idea to rock your wings and lower and raise your nose in the traffic pattern every so often. You don't need to allow your heading and altitude to wander all over the place, but some gentle maneuvering on your part can help ensure that the path ahead is indeed clear of other aircraft.

Credits:
Stephen Pope -FMG
Student Pilot Resources

01/26/2014

☴ Wind Shear and the Temp/Dewpoint Spread ☴

We all know that a very small temperature/dewpoint spread creates the perfect conditions for low visibility. But did you also know that a very high temperature/dewpoint spread associated with convective activity can be an indication of an imminent danger to light airplanes?

When the spread between the air temperature and dewpoint is between 15 and 30 degrees C and convective storms are in the area, that’s a recipe for wind shear.

Wind shear is the difference between wind speed and direction over a short distance in the atmosphere, and can be broken into horizontal and vertical components. The danger of low-level wind shear is that the sudden decrease in airspeed can rob an airplane of lift, possibly leading in extreme cases to an unrecoverable stall.

If the spread between the outside air temperature and dew point is large, then there is a good chance of windshear from microbursts associated with thunderstorms, even if the storms themselves have passed. The point to keep in mind is that in cases when there is convective activity lurking about and you notice the temperature/dewpoint spread is high, you may want to consider delaying your takeoff or landing to give the windshear time to dissipate.

Credits:
Stephen Pope FMG
Student Pilot Resources

01/16/2014

Handling a Takeoff Emergency Σ✈

We recently heard a story involving a student pilot who headed out to the airport for some night solo time and ended up facing his first real emergency.

According to his instructor, the student performed a preflight inspection in the winter chill with a flashlight before climbing aboard and heading out to the active. When he was ready to go, he taxied onto the runway and applied full power. Within seconds he knew something was wrong — the airspeed indicator remained at zero well beyond the point where he should have expected to see a reading.

The student aborted the takeoff on the 3,500-foot runway and taxied back to the ramp, where he shut down and gave his instructor a call. After some discussion and a little detective work, the culprit of the erroneous airspeed readout was discovered. The student had checked the pitot and static ports for obstructions, and even applied pitot heat, but it turns out that ice was lodged fairly deep in the static port. There was no way he could see it, even with his flashlight.

Another clue that something was amiss would have been the altimeter reading, which was way off. Not having ASOS on the field, the student set field elevation in the Kollsman window without giving much thought to the fact that he had to spin the dial more than usual.

As you probably know, a blocked static port is a far more serious condition than a blocked pitot tube. A static system failure will cause the altimeter to remain at its current indication, the vertical speed to remain at zero and the airspeed indicator on takeoff to stay at its current value — not a good situation for a student pilot about to lift off into the darkness.

Despite missing evidence that might have given him pause before he ever started the engine, the student handled the situation admirably by aborting the takeoff and taxiing back for further investigation. All of which goes to show that the preflight inspection really is just that — as long as we’re still on the ground with enough runway in front of us, we should be looking for clues — engine and instrument indications, strange sounds, unusual feeling in the controls — that can alert us to a potential problem before we’re airborne.

Credits:
Stephen Pope -FMG
Student Pilot Resources

01/05/2014

❅ Prepare for Winter ❅

Several places around the country enjoyed the first snowfall of the season this past week. And with temperatures rapidly dropping, you should consider getting ready for the winter season. Whether you are planning on flying or not, here are some tips to keep you and your airplane a little bit happier during the cold, dark months ahead.

Hopefully you are not putting your airplane into hibernation during the winter; but if you are, make sure you talk to your mechanic about pickling the engine. Pickling is slang for a special procedure laid out by engine manufacturers to protect an inactive engine from rust and corrosion. Also, if the airplane will be on the ground for an extended period, it is clearly best to park it in a hangar. If you don't have that option, make sure you get a nice cover to protect the exterior and interior of the airplane.

On the other hand, if you enjoy flying in the cool crisp air the winter months have to offer, you should still have a chat with your mechanic to see if your airplane's engine manufacturer recommends a special oil for the engine or other fluids for other systems designed specifically for cooler climes. There may also be some systems that require attention. The most obvious one is the anti- or de-ice system or systems, if you are fortunate enough to have them. Make sure your anti-ice fluids are full and that there are no leaks. If you have a boot-style system, make sure the boots inflate properly. And if the system is electrical, make sure the panels heat up.

The days are shorter, so carry a flashlight at all times, and make sure the interior and exterior lights and pitot-heat are working. It is also worthwhile to keep a soft cloth handy for wiping off condensation from the inside windows. Since you are likely to use cabin heat, make sure you have a functioning carbon monoxide monitor in the cockpit. And test out the cabin heat before you have to take an extended trip. Keep some extra clothing and a blanket in the airplane in case the heater fails or you end up making a forced landing. You should also keep an insulated engine cover in the airplane to keep the engine warm while you enjoy your $100 hamburger or keep your airplane parked temporarily. An engine preheat system is another item you may want to invest in, if you don't already have access to one.

While these items and others will keep you and your airplane a little more comfortable in the cold, flying in the winter months requires a lot of extra attention in most of our 50 states. But that is a topic for another day.

Credits:
Pia Bergqvist - FMG
Student Pilot Resources

10/28/2013

卍 You’ve lost your engine, now what? What to do in the case of an engine failure?

As aviators we know our airplanes are very capable of flying with an engine failure. You will obviously be descending, some airplanes faster than others, but it still flies just fine.

What will you do if this fateful day comes? Have you thought about it? If not this article will encourage you to do just that.

Engine failures are one of the most fiercely trained events in aviation.
This is for good reason. Although our modern aero engines are very reliable, it wasn’t always that way. And even now the engine represents one of the weaker mechanical links in the system.
So you have trained, been quizzed, mentally rehearsed, and simulated engine failures, but are you really prepared? When was the last time you practiced a simulated engine failure?

✹Disclaimer: this article is to stimulate thought, it is not a replacement for flight instruction. You should consult your instructor, the aircraft pilot operating handbook or airplane flight manual for specific engine failure procedures.

In my mind there are two types of engine failures, low and high altitude, both require their own response.

If you are cruising along at 7500′ and suddenly the fan quits turning you have time and options.
Down low your primary concern is controlling the aircraft all the way to touch down. You chances of surviving go up exponentially if you do. If you have time you might be able to run checklists and troubleshoot, but down really low, like immediately after takeoff, ‼ you MUST fly the airplane ‼, which generally means throwing the nose down to maintain best glide.

✹Down low
I cannot express enough how quickly you will need to react to an engine out within the first 1000′ of climb. Consider this:

⋆You are nose up already at an airspeed near best glide (or below)
⋆Not taking swift action to get the nose down will result in an airspeed less than best glide or best L/D (best lift to drag ratio)

⋆Getting slow can obviously produce a stall, but lets say you get the nose down, but your are 10 knots slower than best glide, depending on your aircraft and the conditions, you will likely be experiencing sink rates that cause you to reflexively want to pull back more. This could lead to a stall/spin

⋆Close to the ground (within a few hundred feet – not in the flare) it is going to be hard to overcome your senses to push the nose down further to recover lost airspeed and maintain positive control

⋆You will be tempted to turn back to the runway; depending on the aircraft and the specific situation, this has statistically proven to be a bad idea. Folks lose control and spin in; it’s far better to land ahead under control off airport

✹Partial power?
What about a rough running engine that’s still making some power. Will you use it to get to a runway or a suitable off-airport location or will you squander it and end up worse off than if it would have quit entirely?

In all cases, fly the aircraft. The reason engine failures hurt people is that they generally don’t fly the airplane to the landing site. USAir Flight 1549 (Miracle on the Hudson) was a success because they flew the airplane all the way to the touch down. If you quit flying or ignore the laws of physics and don’t manage your energy, survival is unlikely.

If you have it pictured in your mind and at least mentally rehearse it, you are less likely to falter in the heat of battle. My best advise is to grab an instructor and do some engine failure practice. This will boost your confidence, teach you something you probably didn’t know, and make you better, safer pilot.

Remember – Pitch for best glide and fly it to the ground (don’t forget to flare). Hitting houses or trees upright and in control is far better than stalling and spinning in vertically from any altitude.

Did I mention, “fly the airplane”?

Credits:
Brent Owens IFB
Student Pilot Resources

10/11/2013

Stall Spin Awareness: What Your Instructor Should Be Telling You ✈

⌘ Stall/Spin Awareness

The industry has not done a good job keeping people from spinning into the ground. In this short article I will distill down the essence of the problem and hopefully provide another perspective that might keep you out of trouble.

⌘ History Lesson

Although we have failed to eliminate stall/spin accidents, it is not for a lack of trying from everyone in the industry. There are hundreds of books and articles on the subject and it’s a pretty major portion of our primary training – or at least it feels major when you are doing it. For all this we are doing better; these kinds of accidents were much more prevalent in the past than they are today.

⌘ Why?

The reason we still see these kinds of events is that we don’t really train to avoid stalls and spins. Most of the training is to show you how to get into a stall; and recover to satisfy your checkride – no spins. The spin becomes the boogie man because we don’t expose primary students to it. (We barely expose instructors to spins). This creates unnecessary anxiety that can turn up when you find yourself inadvertently in a spin – read panic. Also, we don’t teach you what it will look like when you get into an unintentional stall; safe to say that it won’t be straight and level flight or a mild 20 degree bank.

⌘ Redacted Aerodynamics

Stalls occur when the airfoil reaches it’s critical angle of attack. What does that mean in english? In simple terms, it means that the angle between the relative wind (not the horizon) and the airfoil have become so acute that the airflow can’t stay attached and lift is lost. It can happen going straight up or straight down – the attitude relative to the horizon is irrelevant. But we are trained that it happens with the nose above the horizon – totally not true. Also, you can stall at any airspeed. We train in a one G environment which equates to the airplane’s published stall speed (usually at gross weight), but as you add G loading the speed that you stall goes up.

This stuff is really subtle when you encounter it in the real world.

☠ 3 Deadly Sins

☒ Sloppy Base-to-final Turn

This is where I believe the majority of us law-abiding citizens get into trouble. I personally lost a friend to this scenario. Here’s the setup: You overshoot the turn to final, maybe you have a little wind pushing you on base leg so you find yourself overshooting final and horsing it around the corner and feeding in left rudder (assuming left traffic pattern) to point the nose at the runway and the next thing you know you have roll-coupled the airplane into a incipient spin with no room to recover. It is vitally important that you not skid this turn and simultaneous load up Gs while letting your airspeed decay. I’m not talking about slips – you can do those all day long with outside rudder, good airspeed control and no G loading to help get down. Bottom line, if you find yourself way out of position, it’s time to go around for another approach; resist the temptation to salvage it.

☒ Engine Out Loss of Airspeed

This one is not common because our engines are so reliable, but if you find yourself in a low energy state (like on takeoff) with an engine out, you must push the nose down aggressively to avoid a stall and maintain speed. Also, as you are setting up for an off-field landing you have to manage your energy appropriately. Turns are fine, but watch the G loading. Observe your airspeed. It is far better to land under control in the trees wings level than to stall and spin into an open field.

☒ Hot Do***ng

This is a senseless way to crash, but it happens every year. You decide you want to do some low passes with a corresponding aggressive pull-up, maybe throw in a bank for good measure and you have a recipe for disaster. Ironically this stall more closely resembles one of the stalls we learned in training – the power on stall. You just pull and load up the airplane until it’s out of energy. As the accelerated stall occurs and it quits flying, it usually happens without much warning; couple that with the torque of full power, a spin is almost guaranteed. Remember you were doing a “low” pass so recovery isn’t likely before contacting terra firma.
This is a relatively short discussion of a long topic, but I felt that a few points on the subject could help our awareness.

I highly recommend an emergency maneuver course or some aerobatic lessons – you will learn a ton and your confidence (and competence) will double.
Want to know more about stall/spin aerodynamics, roll-coupling, and actual spin recovery? Check out Rich Stowell or Gordon Penner’s works. These guys are both experts in the field and they have a real passion for teaching.

Credits:
Brent Owens - IFB
Student Pilot Resources

10/02/2013

Pattern Work: Touch-and-goes for increased proficiency ✈✪✈

In my days as an instructor I spent a lot of time in the traffic pattern doing dozens of touch-and-goes. Today, I still feel like this is one of the best places to refine our craft and maintain proficiency – notice I didn’t say currency, but that’s a topic for another day.

Why?
Once you have the basics down, the traffic pattern brings everything together. It’s a profusion of maneuvers all executed with a an element of time compression and relative to a fixed spot on the ground.

Let’s break it down

1❊ On takeoff you are controlling the aircraft by pitch attitude and that continues as you maintain your climb airspeed. At the same time you are tracking the centreline of the runway, correcting for wind – ground reference maneuvering.

2❊ Your crosswind legs begins with a coordinated turn with airspeed still in control with the rollout putting you on a track that is perpendicular to the upwind leg you just flew.

3❊ Downwind brings about another smooth turn and a level-off at your pattern altitude. Again your ground track must be precisely maintained. You’ll be accelerating at this point so power begins to come back as you maintain altitude simultaneously. Then the checklist comes out. A downwind radio call would be appropriate, if at an uncontrolled field. You can see there’s a lot going on.

4❊ Abeam the numbers power is reduced, flaps are applied at the appropriate speeds and you commence a coordinated turn to base as you decelerate. Again maintaining a track over the ground to put you in the best position on final.

5❊ Final approach is all about fine-turning. Airspeed control is critical as well as precise ground track on the extended centreline of the runway. You will have to maintain your vertical path by either power or slipping.

6❊ The flare. This is the part everyone focuses on and it’s really just the culmination of everything up to this point. But it does take some muscle memory to do well since you are have to take in a great deal of external inputs and process them quickly to get the correct outcome. Generally, this is within the first 500′ of the runway, at stall inches from the surface, and tracking straight.

If you are doing a touch-and-go, that means you are still focused and you have to keep flying the airplane. The flaps have to be retracted as you maintain centreline. There is some controversy around touch-and-goes and some are preaching that it’s too risky and everyone should do a full-stop. To me, it depends. There are too many variables to say definitively you need to stop each time. There are times that I feel that is appropriate and other times that I feel a touch-and-go can be executed without significant risk – you have to the arbitrator of that decision, unless you are a student and then it may be the school or instructor’s call.

So you can see than in about :06 minutes you can complete most of the elements that are necessary to safely fly the airplane. Doing an hour of these will not only make you more proficient it will increase your confidence as well.

Credits:
Brent - IFB
Student Pilot Resources

09/23/2013

✈ Do Dutch Rolls Support Pilots Land Airplanes Improved?

Landing is the most difficult maneuver most pilots will ever execute. It is no surprise that landing is the most dangerous couple of moments of any trip. I stumbled on an exercise that shortened the time that I necessary to teach landings and substantially enhanced my students’ landing skills far more than I ever believed feasible. It has come to be known as the ‘Slow Dutch Roll.’

A Dutch roll is a rhythmic maneuver that most instructors agree is about as valuable as patting your head while rubbing your tummy. In contrast, the Slow Dutch Roll proved to be a really powerful tool.

When executing an ordinary Dutch roll, you maintain the nose of the airplane pointed at a speck on the horizon while quickly wagging your wings with your ailerons and holding the nose steady with your rudder pedals.

When you move the stick to the left, the nose wants to swing to the right forcing you to step on the left rudder pedal, but not rather as significantly as you would in a turn. Then, as the bank increases, you have to step on the other pedal to maintain the nose steady. And so the exercise continues. But to what purpose?

My colleagues and I don’t like this exercise for two factors. Initially, aileron – rudder coordination should be focused on keeping the ball in the center. To place it differently, a great pilot could place a cup of coffee on the instrument panel and go through a series of turns in each directions with out sloshing the coffee. He or she would have to coordinate the ailerons and rudder appropriately to succeed. Throughout a Dutch roll, the coffee would be all more than the cockpit. Our second objection is that, in addition to teaching bad habits, there is fundamentally no region of usual flight where the pilot would execute a regular Dutch roll. We view an ordinary Dutch roll as somewhere in between worthless and counterproductive.

In contrast, the Slow Dutch Roll (SDR) teaches you abilities required in practically every single takeoff and landing as well as some other very beneficial abilities.

I do not hold a patent or copyright on the SDR. It wouldn’t surprise me if some other flight instructor found it just before I did. But it tends to make much better pilots. I would like as a lot of pilots and instructors as doable to know about it and use it.

SDR, significantly like the classic Dutch roll, needs you to aim the nose at a point and preserve it there whilst altering the angle of bank. By executing it really slowly, it teaches you, among other factors, precisely controlled crosswind landings and takeoffs.

To get the maximum benefit from SDR, you ought to practice it at continual altitude and many airspeeds like slow flight with wheels down and flaps extended. Then do the similar factor when gliding rather than at continuous altitude, ultimately practicing SDR at speeds just above a stall with the airplane configured for landing. Depending on your ability, you could start SDR practice by just attempting to maintain the airplane’s heading continual as you modify the angle of bank slowly.

I recommend not only changing the angle of bank slowly, but holding bank continual for as long as 30 seconds or more. You could be shocked at what takes place in the course of these periods of continual bank. With a wing down but the airplane not turning, the wing’s lift will start to move the airplane in the direction of the bank. As it accelerates to the side, the relative wind direction modifications. This wind shift calls for you to adjust the position of both rudder and aileron controls to preserve continual bank and heading.

This continuous transform in manage position though sustaining a constant attitude is the added bonus of SDR. It teaches that essential skill that all very good pilots have. To be a excellent pilot, you ought to be in a position to fly the airplane by putting it in the suitable attitude regardless of where the controls are. If you should move the controls continuously to sustain the proper attitude, you will neither know nor care you just concentrate on keeping the appropriate attitude. With SDR, you can practice this ability at a secure, low-tension altitude rather than throughout landings.

Having mastered SDR, you have mastered 90% of the skill needed to make secure, precise landings. In a light plane in certain, you should maintain the airplane pointed at the far finish of the runway while keeping the wind from blowing you off the runway. By mastering SDR, you have mastered the controlled sideslip required in the vast majority of landings. By mastering SDR you have also mastered the art of attitude flying. You have learned to place the airplane in the attitude that you want and hold it there regardless of wind shifts and diminishing airspeed – an totally crucial ability in protected, smooth and precise landings.

Credits:
Amir Modarres
PPTO
Student Pilot Resources

09/23/2013

✈ Aviate, Navigate, Enunciate!

Airtime on aviation frequencies, whether you are communicating on a clearance, ground, tower, departure, en route, arrival or CTAF frequency, should be kept to a minimum. You need to make yourself understood in a quick, concise manner. You do this by using certain wording that all pilots should be accustomed with. But if you speak too quickly or not clearly enough, the controller may perceive a word as something completely different. Take the time to enunciate each number and word fully. You should also make sure to use ICAO’s recommended pronunciation of letters and numbers.

ICAO’s guide for pronunciation of letters is well known and widely used. It is extremely rare to hear a pilot use anything but the correct language to identify the letters in their N-number. I’ve never heard anyone say Bob instead of Bravo or Sam instead of Sierra. But I rarely hear pilots or even controllers use the proper pronunciation for numbers. How many times have you said nine instead of niner?

There are three numbers that have distinct sounds in aviation: three is tree, five is fife and nine is niner. These distinct ways to pronounce numbers were created for a reason. For example, if you say five on a scratchy radio it could easily sound as nine. If you are not already using the recommended pronunciation, it is time to start.

While you should always make an effort to speak clearly and concisely, it is particularly important if you are flying an older airplane with radio equipment that does not have the crispest sound. Don’t talk too slowly, but make sure that you articulate each word fully, emphasizing sounds that don’t come through very easily, such as p-sounds and t-sounds at the end of a word. Clear communication eliminates the need for the controller to use the avoidable request: Say again?

Credits:
Pia Bergqvist -FMG
Student Pilot Resources

09/18/2013

✯ Emphasize the Debrief ✯

When you’re learning to fly, the cockpit experience can be overwhelming. Precision maneuvers for the Private, Instrument, Commercial and ATP certificates require certain parameters that can, at times, be difficult to achieve. For the Private Pilot applicant there are many new components to learn in the cockpit: instruments, radio communications, airspace and weather, not to mention simply flying the airplane. And for the Instrument student there is constant communication and a laundry list of tasks that need to be completed during the flight.

While the cockpit is a great classroom, it is important to review the lesson after the airplane is parked. No matter what certificate you are training for, you should insist that your instructor does a full debrief each time you fly.

You may think that debriefing is a waste of time and ground instruction dollars. But it is likely to be the opposite. The debrief is an opportunity to reinforce the components of the flight that went well and discuss the best way to correct the segments that were not so successful. There are no distractions during the debrief, making it a great time to ask your instructor questions about things that came up during the flight. While flying there are too many distractions for questions to be answered effectively.

Jot down each question that comes up during your training flight on your notepad, unless it is a simple question that can be answered very quickly. Don’t think that you will remember the question after the flight. You may or may not. It is much better to have the questions in front of you when you debrief. A good instructor takes notes during the entire flight. It is the only way for him or her to enable a thorough and effective debrief. You should also take notes during the debrief and review those notes at home.

And once the debrief is complete, you should expect your instructor to tell you what you can do in preparation for the next lesson. If you take the time to follow his or her instructions and thoroughly review the notes from your debrief before your next lesson, your training experience is likely to become much more effective.

Credits:
Pia Bergqvist - FMG
Student Pilot Resources