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Topic ListHangar Talk Aerobatic Training | 2009-08-04 11:29:13 | Aerobatic Training | Christopher Waltman
| I tried emailing this message to members, maybe it was too long. In any case, for a debrief on some aerobatic training I had please read on:I'm new to the club so most of you probably don't know me, but I wanted to share a great flying experience I had two weekends ago. In short, I took some spin / aerobatics training from Bruce Everett out of Wings Field (KLOM), which is 6 miles west of Willow Grove (above Philadelphia). It was a great experience, and I'd recommend the training to club members if they are interested. To find out more about my experience (probably too much) please read on: I have my Private Pilot SEL rating, around 60 Hours. Although I've been interested in planes and flying my whole life, I found that when I was up in the air doing maneuvers I was a little nervous, especially during stalls. I knew in the back of my mind my apprehension about stalls was closely related to me never doing a spin (and recovery). I'm the kind of person that remembers stories, and I'd probably heard too many stories about stalls going wrong into spins. In my private training I came close to spinning a couple times (in a 172), but my instructor wasn't eager to spin (He didn't enjoy it). I realized that I had a fear of maneuvering the airplane at low airspeed because of my untested spin recovery skills. Now I have no doubt that the club has instructors who can safety spin students, and the 172 we have can probably be spun in the utility category, but I've been told that we aren't to spin club airplanes and I intend to follow the club rules. I searched the area before finding the club and found that some instructors at Queen City would give you spin training, but it would be part of the CFI curriculum and it would be in a 150 they have. That sounded OK, but I thought it would be even better to seek out specific aerobatics training for a couple reasons: 1) The instructor would be completely competent in not only spins, but other maneuvers, adding safety and additional instruction capability 2) An aerobatic capable airplane would be used, expanding the safety envelope and adding additional capability 3) Parachutes would be worn and the training would be legal aerobatics training. 4) As most aerobatic planes are tail wheel, this could add to a tail wheel cert. While I was searching around I found the EAA's International Aerobatics Club web site http://www.iacusn.org/schools/index.php . In Pennsylvania I found Bruce Everett. I gave Bruce a call and he had nothing but good things to say regarding his experience (international unlimited competition experience) and his equipment (Aerobatic Citabria and Pitts S2B). We set up an appointment for last Saturday morning. Bruce is a mild mannered and friendly guy. He was very professional, and we talked about what my goals for the training were, our experiences flying, and then had an extensive pre-flight brief about the maneuvers. The plan was to use the Citabria. On our flight to the practice area we would do some steep turns and dutch rolls to get to know the airplane, followed by stalls, spins (left and right), and some aileron roll and loop training if time (and stomach) permitted. He would coach and shadow me on the controls, and would talk me through the maneuversThe flight went pretty much to plan. Bruce's Citabria is immaculate, and he did the pre-flight prep before I got there. We walked to the Citabria and he briefed me on emergency exit procedures, fitted me in a parachute, and we climbed in. He was teaching and I was learning right away. Taxiing and Takeoff were great tail wheel training, and he shadowed me on the stick and talked quite a bit to help me get off the ground smoothly. Takeoff and climbout were uneventful, the Citabria handles wonderfullyI'd never done dutch rolls before, but we practiced doing 45 degree banks from left to right without the rudder, and then with the rudder (dutch rolls) to get the feel of the plane. Using rudder correctly makes a big difference! Bruce recommended Dutch Rolls whenver flying a new airplane to get the feel for rudder coordination. It didn't take long to get to the practice area (northeast of limerick power plant). Bruce Had me Power-off stall the airplane to get the feel for it, and then had me hold it in a stall to really soak it in. From there it was time to Spin. Bruce had me do the first one (with his help). Stick Full back to 5 knots above stall, Full Left Rudder, hold it in the spin for two revolutions, then full right rudder, relax the stick, and pull out. The first one had my stomach in my throat! you can go to http://www.youtube.com and search for "citabria spin" to see what it looks like. From there we practiced two more to the left (after some easy flying in-between), and one to the right. By the end it was me doing all the work for entry and recovery. After the spins I asked if we had time for an aileron roll and a loop. He demonstrated an aileron roll then had me do one, I found them easier than the spins sensation wise and a fun challenge. The loop was my favorite maneuver. He shadowed me and talked me through the procedure: "Shallow dive to 130 Kts, pull pull pull pull..ease off [at top] ease off.. ...throttle off...pull pull pull... "... a great maneuver, quite challenging for me and very rewarding. The flight back to the pattern was uneventful and my first tail wheel landing was less than perfect, but I plan to work on that. We had a debrief, but talked more about general flying than our flight, we were constantly briefing / debriefing during the flight. Total cost was $188 (including 1 hour flight plus 1/2 hour ground), well worth it in my opinion. As far as doing it again, I plan on letting my check book recover and I'll probably go back to pursue tailwheel endorsement and more aerobatics in a month or two. I told this story for entertainment, instruction, and as a suggestion for other members to take this training if you want to. I never knew it existed so close to us. Bruce didn't promise me any free flights for this, but he did ask that I mention his services to the club and after my positive experience if I had fun, and I was more than happy to share the story. If you are interested in flying with Bruce he can be reached at baeverett@comcast.net 215-353-3208, feel free to mention you heard it from me. If you want to call me and discuss my experiences here please feel free give me a ring at 570-470-2851 |
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