(Robert M. Gary) wrote
In most of these planes, if you don't bring them in too hot, the flare
only lasts a couple seconds at most.

In most of what planes? In the Cub, I agree with you. It CAN be
landed by looking out the side, and in fact that's how I was taught to
land it. In the Cub, you can actually see the main gear by looking
out the side.

Basically, there are the "Look to the side" people and the "Look
straight ahead and use peripheral vision" people. I've been taught
both ways (with the "Look to the side" method being taught first),
have used both ways, and I'm now squarely in the "Look straight ahead
and use peripheral vision" camp. One particular airplane made me a
believer.

That airplane was the Starduster Too. Due to the mission as well as
some design quirks (it's a homebuilt) it needed to come down final at
90-95 mph. Touchdown would occur around 70-75 (my best guess) in the
three point attitude. Wheel landings were impossible - even if you
pushed the stick full forward, the tailwheel would still come down
immediately. Full stall in free air was just over 60 mph.

The first instructor to try to check me out in the plane was of the
"Look to the side" school, and tried to teach me that way. All he
really succeeded in doing two hours was convincing me the plane was
unsafe. I took another shot with another instructor a while later,
and he taught me the "Look straight ahead and use peripheral vision"
method. In 90 minutes I soloed the airplane.

He also explained that looking out to the side does work with some
taildraggers, but not others. For example, (at least according to
him) nobody lands a Pitts by looking out to the side.

I tried looking out the side of teh 'Duster a couple of times on
landing, and discovered that it just doesn't work. You can't get
enough attitude and altitude cues to flare properly. Visibility is
terrible - there is no way to see the main gear, or much of anything
else.

I suppose that without that airplane (and the instructor who taught me
to fly it) I would still be looking out to the side - but I now
consider it to be an inferior method of limited application.

Michael