The trouble with a thread like this is most people seem to be only capable of 'absolute' answers rather than 'qualified' answers.
The actual answer to 'full power or partial on GA?' is 'it depends'.
Historically ab initio training has been carried out in very low powered aircraft, Tiger Moths, Austers, Chipmunks, Victa Airtourers, C150/152s and more laterly sundry SAA types..some of which probably have more in common with a Tiger Moth than a C152...it could be argued these aircraft
need full power on a GA close to the ground
however that doesn't define an absolute answer anymore than a P51 torque roll defines the counter argument.
In the middle where
most of us do
most of our flying there is a vaste area of grey requiring two of the less common attributes, (prior) critical thought and common sense, to come up with a reasonable answer...an answer that
depends on
the aircraft and
the conditions.
Too there is a need to have a good starting point...a default setting if you will...that will get you out of trouble when ****s are trumps, a surprise GA in the flare. I am going to suggest that full power
unless you have a good reason for less is a good starting point.
A good reason for less might be you're flying a P51 or one of those turbine Ag aircraft with vaste HP and torque (although the Ag aircraft probably has an offset engine that cancells most of that out)...a/. you don't
need full power or b/. it's application presents
insurmountable control issues.
It is important that the starting point be sensible...a starting point that says I will use
less than full power unless I have a good reason for full power is potentially setting up a dangerous mindset. An example of why is QF1 at BKK...the company culture was (possibly still is) idle reverse
unless you have a good reason for full reverse. If the company culture was full reverse
unless you have a good reason for idle reverse there
may have been a different outcome.
None of the
typical aircraft flown in GA (and yes I have speak from experience) present
insurmountable control issues with the application of full power so that should be the default setting...unless you have a good reason for less.
The famous Cessna pitch up with application of power with full flaps is very real and particularly so with the older variants that had 40 degrees of flap available. I was initially taught what I suspect most people are taught...apply full power and hold the nose attitude while madly trimming out the forces and then retract the flaps...followed by not quite so madly trimming the other way.
Thankfully I flew with another instructor pre first solo who greeted my GA attempt with "Ahh Chuck, WTF are you doing?"
On the next circuit it was full power/flap up/fly aircraft/trim...a revalation....it works even better on the older 'johnson bar' manual flap Cessnas like the 180/185. I do the same thing today in my Bonanza in a GA from the flare...full power/flap up/fly aircraft/trim/gear up.
Would I use full power for a GA at 300-500'? No, probably not....
it would depend.