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Old 22nd Aug 2012, 12:06
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John Farley

Do a Hover - it avoids G
 
Join Date: Oct 1999
Location: Chichester West Sussex UK
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Let us try to get better teachers to young pilots
A good point, however what they teach needs careful consideration.

Being up in the air some way above the ground with an aircraft strapped to your back is essentially a practical problem not a theoretical one.

In my view pilots need to be taught the factors that affect lift not the theory of lift. They may well be interested in the theory – and why not for goodness sake – but not at the expense of thoroughly understanding the factors that determine the lift available when they are flying.

The lift equation contains all the factors but only one term in that equation (the lift coefficient) is available for the pilot to vary in order to adjust the lift during the normal course of flying. It is the lift coefficient that is controlled by pulling and pushing on the stick (or wheel) as that varies the Angle of Attack on which the value of the lift coefficient depends.

Only Angle of Attack not speed makes a wing stall. Believing in that and living your life by it is vital to junior (and senior) pilots . The theory of how lift happens will not help you when turning finals. Only a proper appreciation of how to control lift will keep you alive.
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