Originally Posted by
hans brinker
I want to clarify my statement about ground speed vs airspeed and kinetic energy was in reference to a steady wind. I was trying to keep it simple enough for widescreen, but I think that might be an impossible goal. Obviously if you descend/climb into a different wind direction or speed it will affect the performance until a new equilibrium has been reached. Even in light planes inertia isn’t zero, but that has nothing to do with the assertion that turning to final if there’s a steady state tailwind would require a power change.
Hans, Widescreen happens to be correct.
A change of vector is a shear. Period. If you change your track relative to a steady wind, you are introducing a shear through the change in vector, your inertial mass has to accelerate or decelerate. That shows up as an airspeed change. There is a lag in the change of GS for an instantaneous change, and then it is simply sematics.