| |
|
|
OCTOBER 2008 Volume 2, Issue 10 |
 |
 |
 |
| |
 Welcome
to Reach For The Sky, EAA's monthly
e-newsletter written and created for people who
are interested in learning how to fly. This
month Certificated Flight Instructor Steve Krog
breaks down the various causes that require you
to abort a landing, and then explains how to
perform the proper maneuvers to do it safely.
"A Personal View" features a story
from flight student Leroy Brandt who after many
years - and finding inspiration through friends
- finally goes for it and earns his sport pilot
certificate.
As always, feel
free to forward your copy to someone who might
like to receive the newsletter. And remember,
you don't need to be an EAA member to subscribe.
Note: If you're a
pilot just starting out and would like to share
your story, or if you have a question about flight-training,
drop us an e-mail at LearnToFly@eaa.org.
In
this issue ...
- Handling
Aborted Landings, by Steve Krog, CFI,
Editor
- What You're
Asking: Questions for your instructor
- A Personal
View: Jump In, Just Do It, and Get It
Done Quickly, by Steve Krog
- Aviation
Glossary: Learning the language of
flight
- This
Month's Poll: How old were you when you
had your first airplane ride?
Handling
Aborted Landings
By Steve Krog
 The
need to discontinue a landing may arise at any
point in the landing process, but the most
critical go-around will usually be one started
when you are very close to the ground. It is
always better to initiate a go-around rather
than touching down while drifting across the
runway or making a hard drop-in landing from a
high flare and roundout, or bounced landing.
Whether you’re
a student pilot or a pro, you won’t always
make perfect approaches and landings.
Occasionally it may be advisable for safety
reasons to discontinue the landing approach and
make another approach under more favorable
conditions. Therefore, it is important that you
know what to do when this situation occurs.
Read
more
|
Q&A:
What you're asking
|
| Common
questions for the instructor from beginning flight students
Q.
Can I take a passenger with me once I
have a sport pilot certificate?
A. Yes
you can, but the sport pilot certificate
limits your flight to aircraft with only
two seats, one for you and one for a
passenger.
Q: I
am a sport pilot. If I get my 3rd class
medical and work on my private pilot
rating, how do I solo a Cessna 172?
Since I have no student license
(replaced by the sport pilot
certificate) does the instructor just
make a logbook solo authorization? The
medical will just be a medical
certificate, not a student license.
A: Once
a pilot holds a pilot certificate there
is no longer a need for a separate
student pilot certificate. The flight
instructor will simply make a specific
endorsement in your pilot logbook that
will authorize you to solo the aircraft
for which you do not hold an appropriate
certificate or rating.
More
questions
|
|
|
A Personal
View - Jump
in, just do it, and get it done quickly |
|
| By
Steve Krog
 “Jump
in, just do it, and get it done quickly. I
didn’t pursue flying lessons in this manner
and it took me years to finally get the job done
and earn my sport pilot license,” offers Leroy
Brandt. “I guess it was a bit of fear of
flying, too, I’m afraid of heights but flying
is all together different than climbing a
ladder, fortunately. I was also working full
time and raising a family so both time and money
were short.”
Brandt started
flying model airplanes in 1965 following his
discharge from the military, flying
run-of-the-mill models for many years. In the
1980s he began building giant scale model
airplanes and traveled all over the United
States demonstrating them. When Leroy wasn’t
demonstrating these beautiful models, he
practiced flying them at the Lodi Airport, a
small grass strip in central Wisconsin. It was
there that he met and became good friends with
Richard “Doc” Knutson and his son, Dan, well
known airplane restorers. Read
more
|
|
|
|
elevator
- A horizontal, movable control surface on the
tail of an airplane that changes its pitch and
therefore, angle of attack.
landing gear -
The wheels, floats, skis, and all of the
attachments that support the airplane when it is
resting on the ground or water.
maximum takeoff weight
- The maximum weight of any aircraft on takeoff
without exceeding its load factor. (MTOW)
radial engine -
A reciprocating aircraft engine in which all of
the cylinders are arranged radially, or
spoke-like, around a small crankcase. Also
referred to as round engines.
uncontrolled spin
- A spin in an airplane in which the controls
are of little or no use in effecting a recovery.
more
glossary terms >>
|
|
Last
month's poll: We
asked, "What/who influenced your decision
to learn to fly?" The majority of you (65
percent) said you "just wanted to do
it." The second highest response was
"mother/father" with 18 percent of the
votes, followed by "another pilot"
with 7 percent. A "grandparent,"
"friend" "brother/sister"
and "Young Eagles flight" had the
lowest responses with each fewer than 5 percent.
Got an idea for a new
aviation-related poll question? Send an e-mail
to dheimos@eaa.org
and you might see it in an upcoming edition of Reach
for the Sky.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Did you know .
. .
|
|
One of the smallest
recognized airplanes is the Stits Sky Baby, built in
1952 by EAA member Ray Stits and Robert Starr of
California. The Sky Baby has a wingspan of seven feet, two
inches and is less than 10 feet long (9 feet, 10 inches).
It weighs in at 452 pounds.
The fastest airplane
ever is the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird. The airplane set
a number of records, including: Absolute Speed Over a
Straight Course, 2,070.101 mph. That record was set on May
1, 1965. Talk about extreme speed!
On March 8, 1910,
Madame la Baronne de Laroche became the first woman to
earn a Pilot Certificate.
|
|
|
A moment to
join, a lifetime to fly
|
 If
you’re preparing to become a pilot, the EAA
community is here for you. Membership gives you
access to the collective passion, knowledge,
experience, and support of 170,000 members
worldwide. You'll get to participate in EAA
events, connect with fellow members, and have
access to the tools and resources to get you
airborne. Join the fun by visiting http://www.eaa.org/membership/benefits.asp
today.
|
|
|
Reach for the Sky - EAA's Guide to Learning
to Fly and Light-Sport Aircraft
|
 EAA’s
guide to learning to fly and light-sport aircraft
is a resource to help anyone take the first
steps toward becoming a pilot. Whether you want to
have fun in a powered parachute or one day want to
command a Mars mission, Reach for the Sky is a
great place to start. It is
available
as a PDF
that will take a few minutes to download with a
high-speed connection.
|
|
|
|
