Flight Training - January/February 2023 - 45

to 30 degrees. Note the slight additional
back-pressure required-without using
trim-to maintain altitude as the bank
angle and load factor increase. Add power
as necessary, perhaps another 50 rpm.
Stay at that bank angle until you can
observe and consistently hold the new
pitch attitude.
When you're ready to try a " real " steep
turn-again, without rolling back to wings
level-smoothly increase the bank angle
to 45 degrees. As before, add back-pressure
without using trim to establish the
pitch attitude required to hold altitude.
Smoothly increase power as needed. Practice
decreasing and increasing the bank
angle plus or minus 5 degrees to vary the
lift vector and maintain altitude. Note the
pitch attitude and power setting required
to fly level at 45 degrees of bank. You'll
find that you're flying a steep turn within
standards without all the fuss typically
associated with the maneuver, and you'll
have time to meet the other goals of the
maneuver, such as looking for traffic.
To roll out of a steep turn, reverse the
RENTER
ADVIS RY:
FLYING UNINSURED
IS A FINANCIAL RISK
process. Smoothly reduce the bank angle
from 45 to 30 degrees, then to 20 degrees,
and finally to wings-level, while decreasing
pitch and power to maintain altitude and
airspeed. At first, don't obsess about ending
on a specific heading. Focus instead on
the sight picture, power settings, and the
feel of the control pressures as you return
to wings-level flight.
After practicing this incremental
technique a few times, you can go directly
from straight-and-level to 30 degrees of
bank or all the way to 45 degrees, because
you know the pitch and power targets. And
you'll be able to anticipate smoothly rolling
out of steep turns on the starting heading,
without ballooning or accelerating.
If sustained turns make you woozy, take
breaks before transitioning from shallow
banks to the ACS standard of 45 degrees (or
50 degrees for commercial maneuvers).
Pilots find this approach to steep turns
helps them quickly master the maneuver,
regardless of the type of aircraft. Because
the changes in pitch and power are incremental,
steep turns don't feel rushed, and
the gradually increasing control forces are
easy to manage without trim.
Most important, they understand the
purpose of practicing steep turns. FT
BRUCE WILLIAMS is a flight instructor in
Seattle, Washington.
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888.255.2672
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Flight Training - January/February 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Flight Training - January/February 2023
