Lazy Eight's

wrote in message
oups.com...
Of course not. But unless you had a reasonable airspeed so that lots
of 'up' was available in the airplane's kinetic energy, it would be
mostly a climbing steeply banked turn, wouldn't it? And having an idea
of what that turn diameter would be would be a useful hint when you
either saw canyon walls closing in on you, or you were making a turn
over the East River in NYC, wouldn't it?

The walls could be concrete with windows in them.

So I think the lesson might be if you're in a cruise configuration be
sure there's nothing solid within a half mile in the direction you're
turning, and pay attention to the wind direction.

The other option is to be some kind of a macho hero, but airplanes
should die of old age, not transitioned from something beautiful and
aloft into a compressed mess containing bodies in a couple of seconds.


A little trading of airspeed for altitude, and possibly back again, can make
a lot more difference than you seems to believe. You can also make a huge
difference without doing anything which might be regarded as acrobatic.
Therefore, you are free to practice those non acrobatic maneuvers for
proficiency--which will let you know what the airplane can safely
accomplish, both turning into the wind and turning out of the wind.

OTOH, like Jim, if my arse is on the line, I will do whatever appears
necessary, acrobatic or not--especially in any circumstance where I am "dead
anyway"!

Peter