Landing Pattern Defensive Positioning

CHAPTER TWO

T-34C OUT-OF-CONTROL FLIGHT

If a student selects a bad, unprepared field (one that you really can not land in if you

lost the engine), you may let him go to the bad field, but not to the point where you

know you will not be able to make some other good field you have in sight. You do

not want to be in a situation where you are out of altitude and options, have an actual

emergency, and you have set yourself up to prove a point.

During waveoff from a High Altitude Power Loss (HAPL)/Low Altitude Power Loss

(LAPL), there should never be a question about who is doing the waveoff. It will

always be the instructor; therefore, you should take the controls with enough altitude

so that you do not descend below the waveoff altitude. When taking the controls

from the student, anticipate the aircraft being untrimmed, add power, level the wings,

and center the ball. Use the same Waveoff Procedures that are in the Contact FTI.

When climbing out, you should climb for a suitable low key in case of an actual

emergency.

Landing Pattern Defensive Positioning

Landing Pattern errors are contained in the Contact FTI. However, as an instructor, it is

important you maintain a vigilant scan and good situational awareness while in a high traffic

environment where your attention will be divided between trying to teach a young aviator how to

land and knowing where your interval is. Do not trust the student to do this. It is important to

note that students will have bad landings (some more than others) and that is all right. Your task

as an instructor is to know what a bad landing is and what an unsafe landing is; the first is part of

the learning curve, the latter should be waved off. In this syllabus, you will see examples of both

and learn where that line is so that you do not cross it.

Typical errors include:

Not trimming throughout pattern.

ii.

Balloon-fast on final and over flare.

iii.

Porpoise landing-correct by waveoff.

iv.

Stall prior to touch down.

Overshoot/Undershoot final.

vi.

Low/High.

vii. Slow/Fast.

viii. Poor crosswind correction/Crab landing.

ix.

Late/Early transition at the 180 position.

UNUSUAL ATTITUDES AND OUT-OF-CONTROL FLIGHT 2-13