VINTAGE INSTRUCTOR
THE
BY DOUG STEWART
Maintaining proficiency On Sunday evening I taxied up to the pumps and filled the tanks of my Super Cruiser with 100LL after a day of enjoying flight with my best friend and not having to engage in any instruction. The next morning I went to those same pumps to meet a client, who had just arrived for two days of intense instrument flight rules training. I gulped in astonishment as I got there. The fuel had risen 65 cents, quite literally, overnight. Every one of us has had to deal with rising fuel prices. Much has been written about the numerous ways we can reduce our fuel usage, including simple actions like using a handheld transceiver to get a clearance and the ATIS or AWOS/ ASOS before starting the engine. That can yield significant savings over a year’s worth of flying. And if the engine is equipped with a mixture control, leaning for all ground operation as well as any time you are carrying less than 75 percent power aloft will produce considerable savings in fuel. And speaking of power, most of us flying vintage and antique aircraft are not flying them to travel anywhere; we’re flying for the pure joy of being aloft in aircraft of an earlier era. So why fly at high power settings? Fifty-five percent power will do quite well, extending the time we are up in the air for any given amount of fuel. But what of the pilots who are dealing with the rapidly rising costs of fuel by cutting down on their flying? What are the effects and
32 SEPTEMBER 2008
implications of taking that less lofty approach? To be certain, the overall proficiency level of the average pilot will suffer. It is quite possible that we will see a slow rise in accident rates, and concurrent with that will be a rise in insurance premiums. Sounds like a nasty Catch-22 to me. Now we will have a hard time not only affording the fuel, but also the costs of higher insurance. However, there is a way we can ensure that our flight proficiency levels don’t slip, even if our flight hours might suffer from the increased costs of flying. And that way, quite simply, is to spend as much time in the air as we possibly can, in endeavors that will sustain or, even better yet, increase our proficiency. As an example, if you choose to fly to get a hamburger that onceupon-a-time cost only $100, make every effort on that flight to maintain your altitude at plus or minus 50 feet. I’ve worked my way to trying to achieve a standard of plus or minus 20 feet. I haven’t succeeded in accomplishing that target on a long flight, but it makes me a better pilot as I strive to realize that goal. While you are on that burger run, fly from one navigation station (VOR) to another doing your utmost to keep the course deviation indicator (CDI) centered, particularly whenever you are within 5 miles of the VOR. Oh…you say you don’t have a navigation radio in your airplane? Well, I’d be willing to bet you have a handheld GPS
on board. In that case, I challenge you to set the CDI scale to 1/25th of a mile and then never let the CDI go to full-scale deflection. Another good challenge would be to leave the GPS behind and fly the entire route by pilotage. When was the last time you tried that? At some point during the flight, why not practice some slow flight? Try to achieve the standards set forth in the practical test standards (PTS) for virtually every certificate, and by that I mean flight at a speed that will yield a stall if either the power is reduced or the angle of attack is increased. If the winds aloft are blowing at a speed that exceeds the slowest speed at which you can fly your airplane, see if you can “hover” or, better yet, fly backward. That’s one of the more fun things I like to do, and I can’t help but wonder what air traffic controllers must think when they see my ground speed slow to zero, and then slowly increase a few knots in the opposite direction, and then as I add a little power again slow to zero, and then increase in the direction I was originally flying. I chuckle as I wonder if the person behind the radarscope thinks my target is a helicopter rather than the beautiful PA-12 that it is. And all the while this exercise is making me a better pilot. If you have taken the effort to fly at your slowest possible speed, why not also use this opportunity to practice some stalls. Use the techniques I described a couple of
issues ago. In fact, why not take it a few steps further, and on one of the power-off stalls, hold the airplane in a stall and wake your feet up as you perform a “falling leaf” stall, keeping the wings level with the use of rudder alone. Once you have regained cruise speed, why not practice some steep turns? After looking for traffic, roll into a bank of 50-55 degrees, and as you fly through 360 degrees of heading, endeavor to maintain better than plus or minus 50 feet. (If you can do that, you will be exceeding the current standards for a commercial pilot certificate.) Then, to kick it up a notch, as you complete 360 degrees, immediately roll into a 360 in the opposite direction. Will you still be able to maintain that altitude standard through the transition? If you can’t, then practice it until you can! If the wind is blowing on the day you choose to fly, don’t let it deter you from flying. In fact, seek out an airport where the wind will be a crosswind to practice takeoffs and landings. If the wind exceeds your personal minimums, then it would behoove you to find an instructor who is qualified in your aircraft to help you gain proficiency in crosswinds that would normally keep you on the ground. Remember that there might be a time when you will need those skills, even though you might not choose to normally fly in those conditions. As an example, what if the gust front of the thunderstorm you are racing home gets to the airport at the same time that you arrive? Having taken the time to practice in similar conditions will have you prepared. If you are instrument-rated, and your airplane instrument-equipped, be sure to spend some time practicing approaches—preferably in instrument meteorological conditions, but if not, then with the Foggles on and a safety pilot on board. If your vintage pride and joy has an autopilot, then practice those approaches both coupled as well as hand flown. Fly the approaches to minimums
before you “look,” and then be sure to practice not only landing out of the approach without going below the glide slope, but “going missed” as well. Both skills require practice to remain proficient. Please remember one other valuable tool to maintain proficiency. That tool is a flight simulator. No, you don’t have to go to FlightSafety or SimCom. Your home computer can certainly suffice. There are numerous programs available (and they’re not all that expensive) that can serve as excellent tools in maintaining your proficiency. It is true that you cannot log any of the time spent on most home computers, especially if there is no flight instructor present to conduct the training; however, the time spent—especially if you set up challenges such as winds, turbulence, and minimum ceilings (if you’re practicing instrument approaches)—will be worth every moment, as it can definitely serve to increase your proficiency.
It might be virtually impossible to land that simulated airplane on the centerline (yet alone on the runway) when you’ve created high, gusting crosswinds, but if you can achieve it on the simulator, especially repeatedly, I can guarantee that you will find it a piece of cake when you do it in a real airplane. So, as you can see, there are many ways to ensure that we maintain our proficiency, even if we cannot afford to fly as frequently as we did before the price of fuel went into the stratosphere. Please endeavor to do something on each and every flight that will help to sustain or, better yet, improve your proficiency. Even when there are…blue skies and tail winds. Doug Stewart is the 2004 National CFI of the Year, a NAFI Master Instructor, and a designated pilot examiner. He operates DSFI Inc. (www. DSFlight.com) based at the Columbia County Airport (1B1).
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 33