Flight Training - September 2012 - 6

RIGHT SEAT

By Ian J. Twombly
VISIT OUR WEBSITE! http://flighttraining.aopa.org

LEARN THE FULL RANGE OF YOUR AIRCRAFT’S CHARACTERISTICS
irplanes are wonderfully diverse and fascinating machines. Each one behaves a little differently, a fact that adds to the enjoyment and breadth of our unique and exciting activity. Few pursuits bring operator and designer so close together, each infringing on the other’s turf.
Although higher math is by no means required to be a pilot, a layman’s understanding of physics and engineering is. Some pilots take this to the extreme and make piloting an airplane a sort of laboratory to confirm the theoretical aspects of flight, while others kick the tires and light the fires, oblivious to the work that goes into making such complex machines. In the end, all pilots understand the basics: lift, weight, drag, and thrust. The beauty of flight is how those things interact and what the pilot can do to change each. One of the biggest tools in the pilot’s bag of tricks is the flaps. Flaps literally change the shape and characteristic of the wing, giving us more lift and slowing us with more drag. Among their incredible contributions is the ability to make a four-ton airplane moving almost 100 miles an hour stop in less than half a mile. Or the ability to bring a one-ton airplane off the ground in around 100 feet. Well, flaps and a huge engine. Flaps aren’t always a good thing. In many ways they make learning to land more difficult. That additional drag means low- or no-power approaches must be made with the nose down to maintain airspeed. That’s great for visibility and terrain clearance, but the transition from a nose-low attitude to a level attitude for the flare is a tricky maneuver indeed. Try a landing without flaps and you’ll see the difference in action. The relatively flat approach angle of an airplane with no flaps makes for virtually no transition for landing. Just pull the power back and keep pitching up. Of course, every airplane is different. That’s what makes it fun. Some airplanes have three flap settings, some have two, and some have four. Some have an infinite amount, requiring a bit of counting to get a consistent setting. There are four major flap types, and a dozen or so sub types. Once deployed, flaps will immediately change the pitch of every airplane. Which way it changes depends on the airplane. Some pitch up, some pitch down, and some change relatively little. In many ways flaps are like a hot shower—you don’t know how much you depend on them until they’re gone. This month we take the anonymous flap and bring it into the limelight in our cover story, “Give Yourself A Lift,” which begins on page 22. The story covers everything from flaps' basic purpose to how they work on airliners. Sure, maybe we don’t appreciate flaps, but that doesn’t mean we can ignore their impact. To have a true command of your airplane you should experience almost every phase of flight both with and without them. What’s a power-off stall like with no flaps? What’s a steep turn like with the flaps down? And what about landings with flaps up, down, and at every setting in between? Have a good understanding of all these and you’ll be able to predict your airplane’s performance in almost every situation. Better yet, you’ll have the confidence to fly without flaps for those times when they fail you, which they may. Or maybe the airplane you will fly won’t have them. By choice or by design, it’s all fun.
Email Editor Ian Twombly at ian.twombly@ aopa.org; Twitter: ijtwombly; and visit Flight Training on Facebook.

FLAP FUN

Publisher | Craig L. Fuller Senior VP, Media/Editor in Chief | Thomas B. Haines Editor | Ian J. Twombly Editor at Large | Thomas A. Horne Managing Editor | Julie Summers Walker Technical Editors | Mike Collins, Jill W. Tallman Senior Editors | Dave Hirschman, Alton K. Marsh Editorial and Production Assistant | Sylvia Horne Administrative Assistant | Miriam E. Stoner Contributors | Pete Bedell, Greg Brown, LeRoy Cook, Budd Davisson, Rod Machado, Walter Miller, Dan Namowitz, Wayne Phillips, Bob Schmelzer, Jack Williams, Kathy Yodice

A

Design Director | Michael E. Kline Art Directors | Elizabeth Z. Jones, Jill C. Benton Senior Photographer | Mike Fizer Photographer | Chris Rose

eMedia VP | Chris Ward eMedia Managing Editor | Alyssa J. Miller eMedia Editor | Sarah Brown Web Designer | William Rockenbaugh Web Production Manager | Lezlie Ramsey VP Advertising | Carol L. Dodds Advertising Production Manager | Brenda D. Ridgley Advertising Sales and Marketing Manager | Liz Tarver Online Advertising Manager | Michael Wilcox Advertising Coordinator | Donna Stoner Advertising Representative | The Orison B. Curpier Co., Inc. East | 732-946-0130 Central, International | 607-547-2591 South Central, West | 214-789-6094 Editorial and Advertising Offices 421 Aviation Way, Frederick, MD 21701 301-695-2350 / FAX 301-695-2180 email: flighttraining@aopa.org
Copyright © 2012, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. All rights reserved. No part of this monthly magazine may be reproduced or translated, stored in a database or retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other means, except as expressly permitted by the publisher; requests should be directed to the editor. This publication is presented with the understanding that the information it contains comes from many sources for which there can be no warranty or responsibility by the publisher as to accuracy, originality, or completeness. It is presented with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering product endorsements or providing instruction as a substitute for appropriate training by qualified sources. Flight Training will consider unsolicited submissions. All manuscripts and contributions should be sent to flighttraining@aopa.org. Reasonable care will be taken in handling manuscripts, but the magazine assumes no responsibility for material submitted.

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Flight Training - September 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Flight Training - September 2012

Flight Training - September 2012
Contents
President’s Perspective
Right Seat
Letters
Flying Low and Slow
How It Works
Success Story AOPA Summit News
After the Checkride
ASI News Tech Tip
Since You Asked
Training Products News
Flying Carpet
Give Yourself a Lift
Radiohead
Everything I Know About Flying I Learned in the Traffic Pattern
Technique
Weather
Checkride
Flight Lesson
Drone Incoming
Career Advisor
Tech Talk
You Can Do It
The Landing 'Time Machine'
Advertiser Index
Debrief
Flight Training - September 2012 - Flight Training - September 2012
Flight Training - September 2012 - Cover2
Flight Training - September 2012 - Contents
Flight Training - September 2012 - 2
Flight Training - September 2012 - 3
Flight Training - September 2012 - President’s Perspective
Flight Training - September 2012 - 5
Flight Training - September 2012 - Right Seat
Flight Training - September 2012 - 7
Flight Training - September 2012 - Letters
Flight Training - September 2012 - 9
Flight Training - September 2012 - Flying Low and Slow
Flight Training - September 2012 - 11
Flight Training - September 2012 - How It Works
Flight Training - September 2012 - Success Story AOPA Summit News
Flight Training - September 2012 - After the Checkride
Flight Training - September 2012 - ASI News Tech Tip
Flight Training - September 2012 - Since You Asked
Flight Training - September 2012 - 17
Flight Training - September 2012 - Training Products News
Flight Training - September 2012 - 19
Flight Training - September 2012 - Flying Carpet
Flight Training - September 2012 - 21
Flight Training - September 2012 - Give Yourself a Lift
Flight Training - September 2012 - 23
Flight Training - September 2012 - 24
Flight Training - September 2012 - 25
Flight Training - September 2012 - 26
Flight Training - September 2012 - 27
Flight Training - September 2012 - Radiohead
Flight Training - September 2012 - 29
Flight Training - September 2012 - 30
Flight Training - September 2012 - 31
Flight Training - September 2012 - Everything I Know About Flying I Learned in the Traffic Pattern
Flight Training - September 2012 - 33
Flight Training - September 2012 - 34
Flight Training - September 2012 - 35
Flight Training - September 2012 - Technique
Flight Training - September 2012 - 37
Flight Training - September 2012 - Weather
Flight Training - September 2012 - 39
Flight Training - September 2012 - 40
Flight Training - September 2012 - Checkride
Flight Training - September 2012 - 42
Flight Training - September 2012 - 43
Flight Training - September 2012 - Flight Lesson
Flight Training - September 2012 - Drone Incoming
Flight Training - September 2012 - Career Advisor
Flight Training - September 2012 - 47
Flight Training - September 2012 - Tech Talk
Flight Training - September 2012 - You Can Do It
Flight Training - September 2012 - The Landing 'Time Machine'
Flight Training - September 2012 - 51
Flight Training - September 2012 - Advertiser Index
Flight Training - September 2012 - 53
Flight Training - September 2012 - 54
Flight Training - September 2012 - 55
Flight Training - September 2012 - Debrief
Flight Training - September 2012 - Cover3
Flight Training - September 2012 - Cover4
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