Flying Slow

steve.t wrote:

I think I want to try this slow flight, at altitude, and see if by
slipping I can get that door shut and latched bottom and top. And
would
you suggest using full flaps at that point?


I've done this several times in a Cherokee 180 and it works just
fine. Just slow down, extend full flaps and bring the airspeed go just
above the stall (pretend you're doing minimum controllable airspeed on
the private pilot PTS). At that speed, you won't even need to slip.
Just push the door into the (now light) slipstream and give it a firm
pull. It should close without a problem. At that speed, low pressure
will not be exerting much pull on the door and you should be able to
secure the top latch easily.

Caveat : If the door pops with a passenger, I highly recommend that
you have the passenger lean back while you close it yourself. I had a
passenger last year that got over-excited about getting the top latch
closed and he twisted it right off (while latching it in the process).
When we got back to the airport, I had to crawl out the baggage
compartment door and let him out using the exterior latch. The fix
cost about $150 with parts and labor.