(Jay Masino) wrote in
:

Bertie the Bunyip wrote:
(Jay Masino) wrote in
:

Ol Shy & Bashful wrote:
Why is it so many pilots are afraid of stalls? I see it over an
over when doing flight reviews and checks. Why are pilots so
afraid of flying in the low end of the speed envelope? Isn't that
where the nasty things can happen? Isn't that where a pilot should
be comfortable and competent?
What do you think?

For me, there's no question that it's related to my lingering fear
of heights... even after 21 years of flying. I'll do stalls with
no problems when I'm doing my BFR... I even did spin training when
I was a student, but I can't get passed the sensation that the
aircraft is hardly moving forward. It makes me accutely aware of
how high in the air I am. Having said that, it's never caused
much of a problem. I'm probably the best lander at our airport. I
regularly slip all the way to the ground. I think I'm a fairly
precise flyer. I did well on my Instrument rating. I did well when
I did my taildragger transition (in a Luscombe). I know how to fly
the aircraft with precision in the pattern and avoid a stall close
to the ground. I don't think there has to be a correlation between
comfort doing stalls, and being a good pilot.

If you're flying a Luscombe and afraid of stalls, please stop flying
it. Far too many have been wrecked already.


Actually, I found the stalls in our Luscombe fairly easy.

They are. Especially the metal wing ones. Did you spin it? Did you try
and provoke an inadvertant spin?

That's not
the point I was trying to make. The point is that my lingering fear
of heights make it... lets say "uncomfortable" to do stalls, so I
try my best to avoid them.


If you're not comfortable, you're not safe in a Luscombe.



Bertie

Bertie