Well I have done my first solo, and now have 2 1/2 hours of solo circuits under my belt. Now is the time for an off circuit adventure. There’s me thinking great, navigation, VOR’s, NDB’s, and so on…. ohhhh no, PFL’s come first!
So here I am at 3000ft, done all the checks, all clear below, and there goes the throttle, trim for 70 kts (PA28-161), and select a field. Now at this point I am thinking, the 5 S’s, however no bloddy field in sight that I can see fits the bill.
So anyway, I found one below me, just off the wing, now I think wind direction, where is my pattern going to be, its about 27 and the field is about 25, so not too bad on that one. So remebering the golden rule “aviate, navigate, communicate” I now do my “mayday mayday mayday” call.
At this point I have totally lost my field, forgotten to do the cause checkes, and my instructor is saying where has your downwind leg gone?
I reply, “I dont even know where my field is, let alone downwind!”
So all in all, more practise and revison of all the stages are needed!
Anyone got any useful tips on this one?
Cheers guys and girls,
loz
By: Moggy C - 27th August 2003 at 14:39
1) Putting one over on the instructor.
Turn the aircraft downwind. This extends the choice of fields as your groundspeed is higher and effectively puts you on a downwind leg.
Then do your simulated mayday and checks in one continuous stream. Instructor will try to interject with ‘What Field?’ Don’t give him a chance to get in until you have narrowed down the choice. If pushed gesture in the general direction and say “That one there” or “The brown one”
2) Doing it for real
The constant awareness is key. Always look along your track thinking ‘what if the engine stopped now’ You’ll get used to searching for fields that suit, and once in the overhead you will see how many weren’t really suitable.
The turn to downwind is still important. Some schools don’t teach this. It really does help in visualising the ‘circuit’
Lots of practice. Once you are qualified they actually become more fun and you end up doing them out of choice.
Moggy
And after lots of practice ask yourself “Do I really want to do night and IMC in a single?”
By: Arabella-Cox - 27th August 2003 at 13:24
Re: PFL’s!!
Originally posted by lozhowlett
So all in all, more practise and revison of all the stages are needed!Anyone got any useful tips on this one?
I think you’ve answered your own question – just keep practicing and revising. It’s always good to remind yourself by going through the checklist from time to time – even at home.
Something else that I’ve always found useful is regularly doing a mental “What If…?” assessment while flying. If properly maintained, your engine’s unlikely ever to make you carry out a forced landing for real… but if it ever does, it won’t give you much of a warning, so always be aware of your surroundings, the wind direction, suitable fields to put it down in. And always expect the unexpected.
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August 27, 2003 at 10:53 am