{"id":3993,"date":"2016-08-26T16:14:01","date_gmt":"2016-08-26T23:14:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.mechadigital.net\/?p=3993"},"modified":"2021-08-26T20:37:54","modified_gmt":"2021-08-26T20:37:54","slug":"162-hands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/162-hands\/","title":{"rendered":"#162 Hands"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Hands\"
My daughter, Janet’s, hand in mine. Hers is much larger now.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I think it was during the filming of Dawn Flight back in 1974 that I first became aware of the distinctive look of an aviator\u2019s hands.\u00a0 Tim Saltonstall flew the Cessna 180 which we used both as a towplane and a camera ship.\u00a0 Later it would be the first airplane out of which I would leap to become a skydiver.<\/h3>\n

\u00a0But coming back from a filming mission during the production of \u201cDawn Flight\u201d, I happened to become aware of Tim\u2019s hands.\u00a0 His fingers curled sensitively around the Cessna\u2019s control wheel as he gradually flared the airplane in its landing back on the broken up strip at Pope Valley. \u00a0Tim held the control wheel of that 180 with both hands.\u00a0 I insist that students flare with one hand on the throttle in case they need a spurt of power.\u00a0 But, you know, once you<\/h3>\n
\"DSCN4045\"
Cindy Renea’s light grip on the control wheel of the Cessna 140.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

have some experience, that little spurt of power won\u2019t be needed.\u00a0 Tim didn\u2019t need it and that was why he could caress that control wheel with both of those hands. Years later, I would notice the same distinctive sensitivity in the hands of another airman in a totally different aircraft.\u00a0 It was about 1995 and the airman was Bob Hosking as he flew with incredible artistry in the Schweizer 300 Helicopter billed as \u201cOtto\u201d, one of the most successful air show comedy acts to hit the aerial theater\u2019s stage.\u00a0 As the rotor blades whirled overhead, every little nuance of tracking was reflected in the light touch of Bob\u2019s hand on the cyclic.\u00a0 It was obvious to me that what I was watching was the result of thousands of hours of experience and learning.<\/h3>\n

I\u2019m often asked about the difference between a control wheel and a stick.\u00a0 Seems<\/h3>\n
\"DSCN4886\"
A flight instructor’s light grip on the rear stick of a Tandem Cub.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

like everyone prefers the stick.\u00a0 Can\u2019t say I blame them.\u00a0 Sticks are nicer for \u201cstick and rudder\u201d flying.\u00a0 Although when you\u2019re flying an instrument approach, you\u2019re usually very grateful to have a lap in which to put the approach plate.\u00a0 Or maybe you put that approach plate under a clip on your control wheel.\u00a0 Try THAT with a stick.<\/h3>\n

I spend most of my time in a Cessna 140.\u00a0 It has arguably the worst designed control wheel of most airplanes.\u00a0 But that\u2019s what it has, so we deal with it.\u00a0 Many students ask me how they should hold it.\u00a0 I guess it all depends.\u00a0 When I was a student pilot, I was taught to hold the outer edge of the wheel while my other hand clutched the throttle.\u00a0 As soon as my instructor, Dwight Thomas, soloed me, I grasped that wheel right at the joint of the shaft, just like he always did.<\/h3>\n
\"DSCN3437\"
An unorthodox grip on the throttle of an older Piper.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I still tend to put my hand around the middle of the yoke where the shaft is attached.\u00a0 That works okay for me until I have to execute a slow roll, in which a little more leverage is required, so I move my hand to the outermost part of the wheel.<\/h3>\n

I don\u2019t think you\u2019d ever see hands like Tim\u2019s or Bob\u2019s if you were watching a student pilot.\u00a0 Their hands just haven\u2019t yet had a chance to develop the sensitivity that can only come with experience.\u00a0 But why the hands?\u00a0 Those who know me, know how much importance I place on the use of feet to feel the rudder and input it with the speed and precision that it takes to keep the airplane heading straight on takeoff and landing and to coordinate every turn, compensating exactly for<\/h3>\n
\"DSCN5583\"
An applicant cheats, with the pre-takeoff acronym written on her hand.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

adverse yaw as the aviator feels the coordination or lack of it through the seat of his pants or the subtle movement of his body.\u00a0 So why didn\u2019t I write about feet?\u00a0 Hmmm, maybe it\u2019s because our feet are way down there in the gloom of the footwell.\u00a0 And they are normally encased in shoes, making it even harder to appreciate the movement of those feet on the rudder pedals.<\/h3>\n

Geez, maybe I should have chosen to write about butts.\u00a0 After all, that\u2019s what a lot of people feel in order to coordinate those turns. \u00a0But would you have read an article I wrote about pilots\u2019 bottoms?\u00a0 Somehow I doubt it.\u00a0 Naw, I\u2019ll stick with hands.<\/h3>\n

Happy Swooping\u2026 and, as the late Bill Warren would have said, \u201cfeel yer butt\u201d!<\/h3>\n

<\/h3>\n

Brian<\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I think it was during the filming of Dawn Flight back in 1974 that I first became aware of the distinctive look of an aviator\u2019s hands.\u00a0 Tim Saltonstall flew the Cessna 180 which we used both as a towplane and a camera ship.\u00a0 Later it would be the first airplane out of which I would […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3999,"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":[35,38,67,173],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3993"}],"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=3993"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3993\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3999"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3993"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3993"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3993"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}