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Old 1st November 2002 | 10:51
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FlyingForFun

Why do it if it's not fun?
20 Anniversary
 
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 4,782
Likes: 12
From: Bournemouth
The best advice is to get some sun-glasses. They don't even need to be expensive.

I wear glasses when I fly. I bought a £5 pair of "clip-on" sunglasses, which clip over the top of my regular glasses. They are hinged, so I can lift them up when I'm not flying into the sun, and fold them down when I turn around. Never had any problem with them, unless it's very hazy, too, in which case the viz into the sun can get below VMC and you should stay on the ground.

It's always worth getting a RIS if viz is bad for whatever reason, including a setting sun. Doesn't mean you don't have to look for traffic, of course, but it adds an extra pair of eyes when they're most needed.

The only time I've ever had problems with the sun, by the way, was when checking out on a new type (actually, a new variation of a type I was familiar with - I was checking out on a T-tail Arrow, having had plenty of experience on Warriors). I just couldn't get the flare right. After about 1/2 hour of bouncing down the runway, my instructor decided my problems weren't being helped by the fact I was landing directly into the sun. We moved to a different airfield with a different runway orientation, and the problem was solved - my landings were, well, no worse than usual. Once I was more familiar with the handling of the aircraft, even landing into the sun wasn't a problem any more.

FFF
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