Getting students to line up with the center line

In a previous article, "Steve Foley" said:
Bring him/her somewhere with a narrow runway.

Didn't work for me. My instructor would get mad because I'd land entirely
on the left side of the runway at the home airport, so he took me to a
little parachute jumping strip that was probably about 2 feet wider than
the landing gear and 1100 feet long. I'd land perfectly centered on that
tiny runway, and then come back to the home runway and land way on the
left hand side. The problem is that I was lining up on the left hand
edge, so going to a smaller runway didn't transfer.

I forget how I switched to lining up on the middle.

--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
"The way I see it, unless we each conform, unless we obey orders, unless
we follow our leaders blindly, there is no possible way we can remain
free." - John Ashcroft^W^WFrank Burns

The other student, likes to be 10-20 degrees angled left / right of
center line before touching down (ie. side loading)

I used to do this and have seen many students do this. I think the most
common reason is because they're trying to line up the center line of the
plane with the center stripe. In doing so they misjudge what the angle
formed by the stripe, their lateral displacement, and the end of the runway
should look like. Have him line himself up with the stripe or go to a
runway without a centerline.

If not that he might be kicking in rudder at the last minute.



"BoDEAN" wrote in message
...
I'm having an issue with 2 students.

One has a hard time lining up/staying lined up with the center line
(no wind and xwind). I keep telling him "toes forward" and "Have the
center line cut through your body"

Still not grasping it.

The other student, likes to be 10-20 degrees angled left / right of
center line before touching down (ie. side loading)

Any tips?

BoDEAN wrote in news:02bc70155v6jl5inhl070v3hkjbl0b246f@
4ax.com:

I'm having an issue with 2 students.

One has a hard time lining up/staying lined up with the center line
(no wind and xwind). I keep telling him "toes forward" and "Have the
center line cut through your body"


How does the student taxi on the ground? If the student is taxiing
consistently to the left side of the line, then you know he is
overcompensating for the width of the airplane and his seat position. Show
him that his seat is only about 12" from the aircraft axis, which is about
the same thickness as the taxiway line.

I trained at a fairly large field with a very wide runway. The CFI kept
telling me to stay on the centerline and I kept saying there seemed little
point, why not land on the side where I was going to turn off?

So he brought me to a very short and narrow field for practice. THEN I was
right on the centerline. Either that or in the weeds. Enough of that and
eventually I just sort of automatically aim for the center now.



"BoDEAN" wrote in message
...
I'm having an issue with 2 students.

One has a hard time lining up/staying lined up with the center line
(no wind and xwind). I keep telling him "toes forward" and "Have the
center line cut through your body"

In article ,
Bob Noel wrote:
which was (iifc) 26' wide. When I landed on the runway he said "see!,
I knew you could land on the centerline." I replied that I can when
it matters. I still land left of centerline on wide runways.

For me the experience of landing on narrower runways 'stuck' and cured
my laziness about hitting the centerline of a 150' wide runway.

I think my offcenter landings were mostly due to my tendancy to 'settle'
for configurations that are good enough, if not perfect. So if I got
lined up on the left side of the runway with my perfect slip in I wasn't
going to mess with that just to fly over to the centerline and then have
to get the slip dialed in again.

--
Ben Jackson

http://www.ben.com/

EDR erood@rrohio wrote:

Ask the students where they are looking. Probably
just over the nose. Tell them it is like driving a
car... look down the road (runway) to the end or
beyond.

That's what helped me. As a glider pilot (tandem seating) transitioning to
power, everyone said I would be overwhelmed by the radios. The radios were not
a problem ... what gave me the most trouble was sitting on the left side of the
airplane and lining up with the centerline! My instructor on final would say:
"Line yourself up with the centerline" and I'd say, "I *AM*!"--looked like it
to me! Not only did getting my eyes up off the nose and down the runway help
with lining up the aircraft, it also helped solve the problem of flaring too
soon and too high and bouncing. Didn't bounce when doing touch-n-gos, only full
stops -- glider instructor said it was because my eyes were fixated too close
to the airplane on the full stops, whereas doing the T&Gs, you automatically
look down the runway. Made perfect sense. Faking myself out that I was always
going to do T&Gs helped solidify the habit of "eyes down the runway." I still
find it amazing what a big difference a seemingly little thing like that could
make!
--Shirley

"Ben Jackson" wrote in message news:gvBdc.464

Bob Noel wrote:
......I can when
it matters. I still land left of centerline on wide runways.

For me the experience of landing on narrower runways 'stuck' and cured
my laziness about hitting the centerline of a 150' wide runway.

I think my offcenter landings were mostly due to my tendancy to 'settle'
for configurations that are good enough, if not perfect.

You've got it, Ben. Fact is, you could land a Boeing along one side of the
runway if you wanted to. Lots of people settle for adequacy, but you don't
see much of that among people who have developed a sense of discipline and
professionalism.

"Bob Noel" wrote in message

...He took me to TEWMAC,
which was (iifc) 26' wide.

I remember TewMac.... very narrow, with Rt 38 right over the fence, and the
fried clam place right there beside the runway end. Yum! Used to take a
310 in and out of there sometimes years ago. All gone now, nothing but
condos, but the eatery is still there, I think.

BoDEAN wrote:

I'm having an issue with 2 students.

One has a hard time lining up/staying lined up with the center line
(no wind and xwind). I keep telling him "toes forward" and "Have the
center line cut through your body"

Still not grasping it.

The other student, likes to be 10-20 degrees angled left / right of
center line before touching down (ie. side loading)

Any tips?

Pick a day that's not busy. Line the aircraft up properly. Ask the student to look at
the centerline all the way down at the other end of the runway. The student should
then move his/her eyes straight down until the eyes hit some recognizeable portion of
the instrument panel. Tell them to learn that sight picture. For example, whatever is
in front of the right mounting screw for the AI in my Maule is directly in front of
me.

Courtesy of Kenny Lemieux, former CFI.

George Patterson
This marriage is off to a shaky start. The groom just asked the band to
play "Your cheatin' heart", and the bride just requested "Don't come home
a'drinkin' with lovin' on your mind".

7B3 Hampton NH is a turf runway maybe 300 feet wide by 2400 feet long.
In a strong wind I generally land at an angle, into the wind.

And of course it is the precisely the "centerline" that is badly
eroded, because of all the anal pilots aiming for the centerline. So
even on calm days I favor one side or the other, usually the west
because the east side has a small hill about halfway down.


all the best -- Dan Ford
email: (put Cubdriver in subject line)

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