The Tailwheeler\u2019s Journal #10
\n\u201cThe Cowboy Way\u201d
\nThe country music group, \u201cRiders in the Sky\u201d has a running gag. When one of them points out that something \u201cmight be the easy way\u2026\u201d, knowledgeable audience members call out in unison, \u201cbut it wouldn\u2019t be THE COWBOY way!\u201d
\nWe who fly are constantly faced with a similar choice. We can do our landing approaches the easy way (stabilized approaches, big patterns, gradual flap application) with no challenge to our flying skills and thus no improvement in them OR we can do them the CHALLENGING way (swooping short approaches with power off accuracy and all the flaps at once on short final) with an attendant increases in our skills.
\nMany general aviation pilots will question my attitude toward their methods: \u201cWhy do you think airliners fly stabilized approaches? They assure proper speed, configuration and accuracy at the bottom of the approach. All that hooey you preach is fine for your little planes but there\u2019s a solid reason for the wide pattern, gradual flap application and stabilized approach\u201d.
\nI think such a challenge makes my case. Are you flying a 767? Well -trained DC3 pilots flew the swooping approach into Berlin during the Airlift. C-130 pilots used it into Saigon during the Vietnam War. I\u2019m addressing single engine pilots, for whom the swooping, dynamic approach should be a piece of cake\u2026 if they practice.
\nFlap usage is a major part of this subject. I\u2019m working with a respected colleague on a future issue of the Journal that will address this controversial subject. You\u2019ll see it soon.
\nHow does safety enter into the equation? The quest for increased pilot skills need not compromise safety. Start with gradually shrinking your pattern size. If you\u2019ve always flown big patterns and stabilized approaches and would like to learn to be more competent, just take it bit by bit. Set up some parameters that are reasonable. Start practicing some power-off overhead approaches. Practice descending steep turns at altitude, then start gradually moving your pattern in closer so that eventually you can fly a downwind-to-final turn with minimal distance on final. Don\u2019t try to do it all at once. In the end you\u2019ll be a more competent, safer airman.
\nDon\u2019t confuse perception with reality. I fly out of a resort airport. In the resort business we learn that perception is often treated as more important than reality. Unfortunately that often applies to flying as well. I know some pilots who are considered really safe by others. That perception is the result of their cautious methods, including shallow banked turns, long gradual approaches and professional-sounding radio usage. Some of them are ticking time bombs. The \u201ccautious\u201d pilot will be hard-pressed to fly his way
\nout of a tough situation caused by traffic, weather or mechanical failure. He simply hasn\u2019t enough practice. That\u2019s reality, not perception.
\nOther people who fly airplanes will see us practicing these more difficult approaches and other maneuvers. They will often call us \u201cCowboys\u201d (what a coincidence, huh?). That\u2019s okay. When the chips are down and a high degree of piloting skill is required, I\u2019d rather be with the guy who can do it \u201cthe cowboy way\u201d.
\nHappy Swooping!
\nBrian<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Tailwheeler\u2019s Journal #10 \u201cThe Cowboy Way\u201d The country music group, \u201cRiders in the Sky\u201d has a running gag. When one of them points out that something \u201cmight be the easy way\u2026\u201d, knowledgeable audience members call out in unison, \u201cbut it wouldn\u2019t be THE COWBOY way!\u201d We who fly are constantly faced with a similar […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","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\/85"}],"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=85"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=85"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=85"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tailwheelersjournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=85"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}