Flight Training - March/April 2021 - 32

It feels like it's in a landing attitude when the
wheels are on the ground. To get the airplane
in the proper landing attitude requires an
exaggerated nose-up attitude of approximately
10 degrees, and the pilot was reluctant to raise
the nose that high because he was worried
about dragging the tail.
Once he saw the video, his concern about
a tail strike went away and he started making
consistently excellent landings. The camera
provided the proof he needed to see that his
initial perception was wrong.
Next, I attached the cameras to a Cessna
180 Skywagon that AOPA Air Safety Institute
Senior Vice President Richard McSpadden had
recently begun flying. He felt confident flying
the demanding airplane in light winds but
wanted to gain experience in more challenging
conditions. With a GoPro camera mounted a
few inches ahead of the tailwheel and looking
forward, the wide-angle lens showed both
main wheels, and the wings from tip to tip.
McSpadden made four takeoffs and
landings with a quartering headwind gusting
to 20 knots. A second camera with audio
recorded his comments and observations
during the 45-minute flight. Afterward, I
asked him what he expected to see on the
video, and his answer was succinct and, as it
turned out, accurate.
" I'm anticipating two good landings, two
bad landings, and lots of bounces in between, "
McSpadden said. " All of the touchdowns were
left of the centerline, and most of them drifted
further left on rollout. "
The camera captured pretty much
exactly that.
McSpadden and I reviewed the video
on a wide-screen monitor, and he'd slow it
down and replay key sections. The audio was
helpful, too, because it showed his perceptions
of what the airplane was doing in the moment
matched the reality of what was taking place
where the rubber met the runway.
" I'm surprised that the bounces, on tape,
don't look as bad as they felt when they were
actually happening, " the former U.S. Air Force
pilot said. " I can see what I've got to do to
eliminate them. "
There's an old saying that every landing
improves-in the pilot's mind, anyway-the
farther they taxi away from the touchdown
zone. By the time they get to the ramp, just
about every landing is perfectly fine. But POV
cameras allow us to see things as they really
happened. We can be clinical and dispassionate, and we don't have to rely on our faulty
memories. They call it a license to learn-and
video from POV cameras can teach us a lot. FT
dave.hirschman@aopa.org
32  FLIGHT TRAINING MARCH/APRIL 2021

A tail-mounted POV camera
provides a detailed view of what
happens before and after the
rubber meets the runway. The
camera records ground track,
lineup, flap position, lateral
drift, and pitch attitude at
touchdown-all of which can
be reviewed and replayed
endlessly. On cold winter days
like this, however, camera
batteries can lose power quickly.
(Note the pole-mounted POV
camera on the left wing.)
Flight Training - March/April 2021

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