{"id":2957,"date":"2014-08-01T06:50:34","date_gmt":"2014-08-01T13:50:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.mechadigital.net\/?p=2957"},"modified":"2021-08-26T20:37:56","modified_gmt":"2021-08-26T20:37:56","slug":"darwin-base-final-spin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/darwin-base-final-spin\/","title":{"rendered":"Darwin and the Base-to-Final Spin"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Ever since the airplane was invented, we have observed the ways in which pilots have figured out how to kill themselves.\u00a0 Then we\u2019ve trained against those ways.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/140-from-rear-e1406900804387.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2958\" src=\"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/140-from-rear-e1406900804387.jpg\" alt=\"140 from rear\" width=\"550\" height=\"367\" srcset=\"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/140-from-rear-e1406900804387.jpg 550w, https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/140-from-rear-e1406900804387-300x200.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 550px) 100vw, 550px\" \/><\/a>The base-to-final inadvertent spin is certainly toward the top of the list. \u00a0We train pilots to be coordinated because we know that an airplane which is both skidding and stalling is the most likely to spin.\u00a0 I teach spins in two ways and I take care to make sure that everyone who flies with me understands the difference.\u00a0 We spin with attention to the proper entry and a recovery on the same heading we had when we started.\u00a0 That\u2019s an intentional spin and it\u2019s taught as a proficiency maneuver.\u00a0 That is, it increases flying proficiency and is fun to boot. It doesn\u2019t teach a pilot to recognize or avoid an unintentional spin. \u00a0But we also teach the inadvertent spin.\u00a0 We try to re-create the situation that results in a spin during the turn from base to final.\u00a0 We want the student to recognize the skid and the high angle of attack and to be able to avoid the coming spin into the ground.\u00a0 But I\u2019ve noticed that once I\u2019ve demonstrated that maneuver and had my students perform it, they almost all say the same thing:\u00a0 \u201cI just don\u2019t see how you could get in that situation without realizing it!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I agree and I\u2019m beginning to think that this may just be a case of aviation Darwinism.\u00a0 We\u2019ve created an environment where no one washes out of pilot training.\u00a0 If you\u2019ve got enough money, you can eventually get a pilot\u2019s certificate and you\u2019re off to join the gaggle.\u00a0 You can also continue to reproduce, ensuring that the same inability to fly will be inherited by your offspring so that they, too, can do something stupid.\u00a0 That\u2019s where the Darwinism comes in.\u00a0 I\u2019m beginning to wonder if the predisposition for the base-to-final spin isn\u2019t maybe an event that is somehow concocted in the big unknown and cosmic-karmic spirit-world to weed out the unfit-to-fly.\u00a0 Maybe all my students are right.\u00a0 Maybe no one who has any ability to fly safely would ever get themselves into that situation.\u00a0 Maybe the base-to-final spin is nature\u2019s way of weeding out those who would otherwise pass on the bad-flying gene to their offspring.\u00a0 If that\u2019s true, it\u2019s just a tragic shame that so many of those fliers will take some innocent person with them and deprive their loved ones of their own existence (Our responsibility to protect those who put their lives in our hands is an entirely different, and important, subject).<\/p>\n<p>That the base-to-final spin is \u201cAviation Darwinism\u201d is a scary thought, isn\u2019t it?\u00a0 I haven\u2019t totally made up my mind on it, but I\u2019m starting to lean in that direction.\u00a0 It gives me hope to know that my students, all of whom are pretty good fliers will not fall prey to it and will continue with their\u2026<\/p>\n<p>Happy Swooping!<\/p>\n<p>Brian<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;We\u2019ve created an environment where no one washes out of pilot training.  If you\u2019ve got enough money, you can eventually get a pilot\u2019s certificate and you\u2019re off to join the gaggle. &#8220;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2958,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2957"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2957"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2957\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2958"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2957"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2957"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2957"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}