AGAZINE - Midwest Flyer

Aerobatic Training Can Make You A Better & Safer Pilot
by Michael C. Love
When
pilots
think
about aerobatics,
quite often images
of Sean D. Tucker
or Patty Wagstaff
tossing their planes
around the sky at
Michael C. Love
EAA AirVenture in
Oshkosh, Wis. come to mind. We have
the vision of a tumbling aircraft trailing
smoke and the engine singing out its
high rpm song. Audiences hold their
collective breath as they watch these
high-performance machines and their
pilots execute seemingly impossible
maneuvers, wondering what it would
be like to fly a plane like that.
Believe it or not, aerobatics are
not only for air show pilots; you can
experience the fun of aerobatic flight
very easily. Pilots decide to learn
aerobatics for a number of reasons that
can range from wanting to become
more comfortable with unusual
attitude recovery, to a curiosity about
what they see at air shows. Any reason
is a good one and in the end, everyone
has fun learning to fly an airplane
through aerobatic maneuvers.
The first question many
prospective aerobatic students ask is,
“What’s learning aerobatics like?”
Aerobatics is like going on the best
roller coaster ride in the world, and
you get to control what it does.
You get to see the world from a
Walter Thurow
Mankato, Minnesota
507-625-6006
flymankato.com
Aircraft Maintenance ★ Avionics Sales & Service
Aircraft Rental ★
Flight Training
Private thru ATP
North Star Aviation is the official flight school
for Minnesota State University.
Fl i g h t Sa f e t y
very different perspective. There is
nothing like looking up and seeing
the ground! During the course of
learning aerobatics you also begin
to understand what airplanes are
actually capable of and how they
behave beyond the 45-degree bank
steep turns we do during that flight
review every two years. As you gain
experience with aerobatic maneuvers
and unusual attitudes, training stalls
lose the mystique that surrounded
them during Private Pilot training, and
spins become just another maneuver
in an airplane.
The second question I often
hear is, “Will I be able to handle
the G forces during an aerobatic
maneuver?” The answer to that is a
resounding yes! First, let’s talk a little
about what Gs are, and what they do
to the body.
When we are sitting in a chair,
we are under one force of gravity, or
1 G. When we do a 60-degree bank
in a level, coordinated turn, we are
pulling 2 Gs. As we experience G
AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2010 MIDWEST FLYER MAGAZINE 9
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1/26/09 8:00:29 PM