Originally Posted by
Judd
If you are talking about retracting the flap from full down to up in one go in a Cessna 152, you shouldn't normally lose more than 100 feet of altitude providing you adjust the nose attitude up to cover the slight sink. Your instructor sounds like a panic merchant if he shouted loudly and snatched the flap lever out of your hand then climbed to a "safe" altitude. What did your instructor consider a "safe" altitude? Sounds like the instructor needs retraining.
It is only a Cessna 152 for goodness sake. Check the C152 Cessna Information manual where it states: In a baulked landing (go-around) climb the wing flap setting should be reduced to 20 degrees immediately after full power is supplied. Upon reaching a safe airspeed 55 knots wing flaps retract slowly.
He's not a panic merchant at all, he's a sensible guy who is safety conscious and taught me many things other instructors never pay attention too. I trust him over anyone else at the academy and at the end of the day, you weren't there and I don't have a robotic memory to give you a second by second account so you'll just have to trust that it was appropriate to the situation rather than being an armchair commentator.
Its "just" a 152 until you cock up and risk your own and/or someone else's life because you've not understood the impact of your actions. I'm well aware what the manual states and they don't reach it any differently, but that's not what I was talking about.