Flight Training - July 2021 - 6

ALWAYS LEARNING BY KOLLIN STAGNITO
ONLINE RESOURCES
Vice President of Publications/Editor
KOLLIN STAGNITO is a commercial
pilot and advanced ground instructor.
He learned to fly at North Central State
Airport in Smithfield, Rhode Island.
kollin.stagnito@aopa.org
ASI Safety Tip: Taxi Controls
airsafetyinstitute.org/videos/taxicontrols
Technique: Crosswind Taxi Tips
aopa.org/ft/crosswindtaxi
TAXI DRAMA
During primary training, my instructor would repeatedly tell
me to slow down while taxiing. " Don't taxi the airplane any
faster than you can walk, " he'd say. I'll confess taxiing that slowly
seemed unnecessary. A recent episode revealed the
wisdom of his advice.
The flight started in Chicago, where the winds had not yet ramped up to their
forecast maximum of 19 gusting 29 knots (19G29KT). My destination, Springfield-Beckley
Municipal Airport (SGH), just east of Dayton, Ohio, forecast winds to
max out at 15G25. This was within my personal minimums, so I was confident I could
complete the flight safely.
Fifty miles west of Dayton, I checked Springfield's aviation routine weather report
(METAR) using ADS-B and was surprised to learn the wind had increased to 22G33-
stronger than I had ever flown in my lightweight Cessna 140. I considered landing
short of my destination or turning around, but airports in my immediate vicinity
reported the same conditions, and the stronger-than-forecast winds now stretched all
the way back to Chicago. Although I had two hours of fuel remaining to find calmer
weather, I decided to continue to my planned destination. I wasn't too concerned
about the landing; I had chosen Springfield because it had a runway aligned with the
forecast wind. My concern was taxiing after landing.
Winds gusting to 33 knots will make taxiing more challenging. Control surface
positioning is key to preventing your wing or tail from being lifted by a strong gust,
possibly resulting in a wingtip or prop strike-or veering off the taxiway into a ditch.
Slowing down to walking speed will further help you maintain control of your airplane,
particularly if the wind is blowing directly across the taxiway. This is because
6
FLIGHT TRAINING JULY 2021
your airplane will tend to weathervane
into strong winds while taxiing-making it
difficult to stay on the centerline. Maintaining
a slow taxi speed is important in
a Cessna Skyhawk or Piper Archer, and
essential in an airplane with a non-steerable,
free-castering nosewheel (such as a
Van's RV-12) or in any tailwheel airplane.
These airplanes will more easily pivot
around their center of gravity to face the
wind, and your primary tools to prevent
that are slow taxi speed and gentle differential
braking. Frequent taps on the brakes
are far better than constant pressure on
the brakes to prevent them from overheating
and becoming less effective. When you
are taxiing toward the departure end of
the runway, make sure you leave enough
room to stop the airplane before the end of
the taxiway. A 33-knot push from behind
adds a lot of force to overcome.
After landing at Springfield, I used
every technique described here to keep
my airplane on the taxiway in the howling
wind. As I crept toward the FBO ramp, my
airplane's wings rocking back and forth,
the ground marshaller directed me toward
a parking spot that required a right turn.
However, the wind from my left was so
strong, I couldn't turn the airplane right
even with nearly full engine power and a
lot of pressure on the right brake-the airplane
just wanted to weathervane left into
the wind. Tailwheel instructors emphasize
it's easier to turn into the wind than away
from it while taxiing. I considered trying
a 270-degree turn to the left to end up
taxiing right, but realized in that moment
that if I was having this much difficulty, I
really should just point the nose into the
wind, shut down, and ask for help getting
the airplane secured.
Although I wouldn't have embarked
on this trip had I known the winds would
be so strong, sometimes conditions arise
while airborne we cannot predict before
committing to flight. I now fully appreciate
my instructor's admonishments during
primary training to slow to a walk while
taxiing, which helped me ever-so-slowly
reach a tiedown spot with the airplane
undamaged. FT
http://www.airsafetyinstitute.org/videos/taxicontrols http://www.aopa.org/ft/crosswindtaxi
Flight Training - July 2021

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