thx Skidkid, look as though cranes might help after all, at least to lousy useless pilots like me, who wouldnīt feel a 20 knot wind if it came across their living room!
.
Here in Spain, and Iīm not talking only about Madrid, there are more cranes per square metre than anywhere else in Europe!, and usually windsocks are over 30 years old and havenīt been mantained. I might end up looking at the flag on top of the crane, and if itīs been blown by the 30+ knot wind that I havenīt notice yet on final, the direction of the crane will tell me, in the absence of horses, seahorses, shi**ing cows and the lik.
Yep, Iīm crazy enough GOM, and not experienced enough I guess. But this reminds me of one experience I had when I had my PPL some years ago. I was about to get my CPL and went out on the Robbie for a short flight with a new student from Scotland. This was downunda in NZ. We operated from a quite tight LZ, and the take off procedure was to hover taxi from the hangar down a very narrow grass pad not longer than half a soccer field, surrounded by 50 feet tall tress. Well, this particular day we had some 20knot wind, which made the windsock stand as upright as weīd like to have something else, without Viagra
. However, I must admit, my cockiness at the time made me get the direction the other way around. It didnīt matter all the other clues I was getting like:
1) hover-taxiing over very long grass (not IGE) in the direction I thought it was downwind the MP was around 19-20" (two big guys, full load of fuel)i.e., 50% torque.
2)Pedal turn into wind (you stupid!), took full pedal from 90 to 180, and when finished, MP was nearly 24" (touching red line, perhaps).
3)Meanwhile, the guy next to me, having done 3 hours TT, asks me if Iīm possitive about where the wind is coming from. My answer: "Of course, look at the wind sock, it canīt be more easy, you dumb!"
4)No need to say, when I start rolling, the bloody ASI wonīt pick up, the trees are coming, f**k!, this scotish must have eaten a cow this morning, I thought, she doesnīt want to climb, full collective, RPM droping, more f**k.
Anyway, I cleared the trees, donīt know very well how and away we went. We see the Auckland scenery for a bit and head back for base. A couple of times my friend mentions the take off profile and the wind. "Donīt worry, I know what Iīm doing" I was turning from fool to damm stupid by then. So much I was sure (the CFI called it`'mindset' afterwards) that the approach was obviously from the same direction than the take off... And that was the funniest part, watching the ASI show 0, the ground speed highest than in F1, and meeting our best friend: Hello Vortex Ring!, its me the stupid **** that got the wind wrong!!!!!. After a hard landing and a debrief with the CFI, I learnt several lessons that day. And things I thought I already knew were demonstrated to me the hard way.
1)Always trust your instruments!
2)Never rely on just one thing
3)Careful with mindsets, or trying to make the picture fit what you think itīs true, rather than looking at the picture and trying to figure it out. Donīt never ever get confident in a heli(cocky)
4)Vortex Ring IS NOT just a theory thing at the POF book. It does happen! and VERY quickly
5)Cockpit managment: Doesnīt matter how good you are, or you think you are, the pair of eyes sitting next to you can see better than you, more often than not!
6)Wind is like your flying-wife. If you respect him and treat him well, he will give you pleasure, but if you divorce him, heīll become your worst enemy, and you may loose your honour, your house, your pay, your job, and even your life!
Call me a fool, but ever since (some 200 hours later), I still try to get at least 3 hints about the wind, and if is a strong one, 4 better than 3. And I try to update my situational awareness constantly.
So cranes might be one out of many, donīt you think?
Safe flying!
Borja
P.S. Thanks to all.
As always, I learn a lot from you guys, even from people with little experience
