Stalling

[Cloudwatcher]

I've got stalling coming up soon and I must
admit (reluctantly)that I'm a bit nervous.
Can anybody give me a bit of advice and perhaps calm my nerves, please.

CW

[flying snapper]

I did stalling about a fortnight ago and it really is not as bad as you imagine! All you should remember is not to turn the yoke! Apply full power and push the yoke centrally forward. That will get you out of it! If you move the ailerons to the right or left you could go into a spin (allbeit slowly).
Don't worry it is a skoosh!

[FlyFreeWbe]

Mate!! :p There's absolutely nothing worrying about stalling [pay closer attention when checking the aircraft ;) ] at all! Tell your FI about it too, I mean if your nervous, it's gonna be way harder.
When I did it, I wasn't really expecting to plumet out of the sky some thousand feet and land with a BBOOOMM or anything. No seriously, It's all very controlled, you'll only end up losing around 100 to 500 feet depending on how long you maintain it.
It's them spins you wanna look out for. I chickened out and just did insipient spins. Better than throwing up I say!! :D

Oh and when he says to pith the nose down..don't actully push it down, but relax on the pulling (of the yoke) and it'll go down gradually.
G'luck !! :cool:

[Dotun]

Its fun, the warning sound going off like the movies and everything. On a serious note, make sure you have enough height to recover. :cool:

[kopbhoy2]

This brings me back...I'll admit to nearly sh*tting myself when I went to do stalls for the first time, it is a little scary to say the least...

Anyway...get the old Trevor Thom book out and read up on it. Get a ground briefing beforehand, and know the procedure off by heart before you attempt it - checklist, recovery etc. No doubt your instructor will demonstrate one for you first, then give it a shot, once you've done a few of them you really will wonder what all the fuss was about!

Best of luck!

[You want it when?]

Ex 10 (a+b) - I've recently completed them, with many more to go! Stalling is simple, you should practice it from 3000 feet so no worries if you totaly bollox it up - really it is just a simple matter of following the directions.

In the clean low power stall - straight and level I tried to recover too quickly and entered a -ve G pushover, all told we lost about 400' but by the third one I was around the 100' mark which is a pass. The base turn stall was trickier as you have to maintain the turn angle and descent to build the recovery speed, before you roll wings level and climb out. +ve ROC before retracting flaps is a must!

The rule drummed into me was lack of airspeed casues stalls. Keep above the stall speed, maintain the correct angles of attack and all your stalls will be practice ones.

Good luck, remember it's supposed to be fun (and you're paying - if not happy or confident then return to base and relax.)

Now spinning worries me... :p

[topunicyclist]

Just wondering.......has anyone got into a stall by accident? Not wishing to name and shame and all that, but would be interested to hear other people's experiences.....

[foghorn]

Don't worry about stalling. Your average training type by nature of its design is usually not fully stalled during a 'full stall' anyway - the wing tips are often still flying. This makes them have very benign stall characteristics (which is one of the reasons they're chosen for training!)

Try the PA28 for instance. Its stall characteristics are so benign as to make it a real non-event. Get into a fully developed stall and it just happily mushes down at about 1,000 fpm. No wing drop, no surprises, nothing really. The C172 is also pretty benign. The AA5 favoured by Cabair school can be a bit more of a handful but is fine as long as you control any wing-drop with the rudder (without picking up the wing).

Now, if you want more fun during your PPL training, ask your instructor to do the optional spin training (as long as your type is cleared for them).

[Airborne Hamster]

There are two secrets.Firstly,a good Instructor.If he's relaxed and not nervous about his Students doing stalls(or anything else for that matter)then this will rub off on the Student(pardon the expression)For most Instructors this comes with experience.

Second,remember you're nowhere near the ground.If you do it wrong the first time which many do(and this is normal,you're doing something you've never done before!),your Instructor will take the aeroplane off you in good time and recover it.

Don't worry,trust yourself and trust him.
In 3000hrs of teaching people to fly(and many have many times this)I only had one Student who resolutely refused to stall an aeroplane.Sadly they never achieved a PPL.

Good luck with the Licence.

[Golden Monkey]

Hey, chaps, in all seriousness you MUST have a crack at spins if you get the option. It was mandatory on my PPL course and is the most fun you can have in a light aircraft (with the obligatory clothes on).

It can be scary at first when you're just spectating but when you actually get hands on it's REALLY entertaining. You should make the most of the chance while you have it! (and it will liven up your instructor's day too). It's actually a relatively gentle maneouver and is a LOT nicer to practice than pulling G in Spiral Dive recoveries, despite what appearences suggest. Go on, live a little, you can NEVER have too much knowledge of how aircraft handle in different conditions!

Re: Stalls - it varies a LOT between types. As mentioned by others, stable aircraft like Cessnas and Warriors (and a Katana, from memory) have very, well . . , dull stall characteristics and it really is nothing to worry about. There are no dramatics to catch you out. Something entertaining like a Tomahawk can present more of a challenge but hey, you've got someone experienced sitting next to you and you're there to learn confidence in all situations.

You'll be fine!

[IanBowden]

Did them the other day in the warrior, i wan't nervous cos i've done them before in gliders with the Air Cadets a few years back, more scary in gliders cos you've got no engine, it was a case of, there's the stall, recover, and straight onto downwind before we went down in a field!

Don't worry, a bit more fun the some of the other stuff and not scary really, you don't really feel the drop either!

Ian

[Luke SkyToddler]

Nothing really to add to the above, except that it does get easier, honest ... I was sh!t scared of the things for all of my PPL and half my CPL at least, sort of blagged my way through the PPL flight test but never felt fully comfortable with them until I had about 150 hours, when I decided one day to just harden up, take the bull by the horns and go and do some proper aeros with an instructor. Shock treatment of a phobia I think they call that :D

Anyway stalls (and worse) are now my bread and butter, my full time job is currently instructing military cadet pilots on the RAF Flying Scholarship. If you would have told me that when I had 50 hours, I would have laughed in your face ...

(I admit to being totally gash at flying them, but I'm quite partial to doing a few of the old aero's myself now. If only I had a bit more time and money to sort an aerobatic instructor rating properly ... it's on the xmas wish list)

[g-okay]

LUKE, WHERE ON GODS WEE EARTH DO YOU TEACH THE FLYING SCHOL CADETS, ONLY I WAS ONE A YEAR AGO. ;)

[Human Factor]

It's not so much pushing the yoke/stick forward as releasing the back pressure .....

Otherwise, enjoy it. It will increase your confidence in the machine. Oh yes, and do it at 3000' AGL + !!

[B747-SP]

Don't forget your HASELL Checks. If you do this check your saftey will be guaranteed.

What aircraft are you flying anyway. If its a PA 28 Cherokee, Warrior, you won't feel a thing, if its a C150/152, its a bit more fun. :)

[Do28]

Treat stalls in the same manner that you would a tax audit. If you are prepared and informed ahead of time, there is very little to worry about. Just be sure you are comfortable with them and the recovery technique before you move on. It should be a controlled event. I also highly recommend spin training. I used to give it in a Decathalon. Everyone who tried it, loved it. Just be sure to land dirty side down afterward. Fly safe.

If at first you don't succeed, skydiving probably isn't for you.

[Steepturn]

It is natural to be nervous in my opinion (I know I was)as you are intentionaly putting the aircraft into an unnatural state. I did it in a C152 and the instructor did it first and I was not very keen, but when you are in control you realize you can recover quite easily. The same deal with spins, I did't like the feeling with the instructor doing it, especially seeing ground insted of sky! But after me trying it I wanted to do more, the drawback is having to climb again and do the hazel check. Good luck I'm sure you'll do great.

[Cloudwatcher]

Thanx for all your advice, Im still nervous but it's comforting to know that I'm not the only one. Anyway definately feel a bit more comfortable and I feel sure I will cope.
The aircraft I fly by the way is a Warrior,
Which judging by some of the comments is quite benign anyway.
When I'm in control I feel fine , I guess this is normal......Oh and I do have faith in my instructer.. so onwards and upwards as someone said!

[Golden Monkey]

I have to agree with Steepturn. I'm glad it's not just me who's a useless passenger! When you're trying these things with an instructor demonstrating I think it's natural to feel nervous, because control of the aircraft is out of your hands and what goes on may be contrary to your natural instincts. Just make sure you keep your hands and feet off the controls when you're being taught, difficult though it is!

When the correct proceedure is sucessfully demonstrated and you are given control it gets MUCH better. I'll swear blind that you don't feel the sensations of movement nearly so much when you're actually in control, and they can actually be very enjoyable.

It's worth reiterating that the Warrior is a pussycat and is probably a good aircraft in which to ease yourself into such things. You'll barely notice!

When you're confident, ask to do some aeros in an Aerobat/Tomahawk or somesuch. It actually makes you feel much more secure knowing you and your aircraft can quite happily do such things. Or perhaps that's just me.

[hasell]

Cloudwatcher,
I too was a bit fearful of this exercise before doing it. This is what worked for me.

During the lesson, I tried to keep as calm as possible. Then I let my instructor go thru one or two stalls first. Whilst he was performing them, I forgot the panic and got on with the thinking and learning aspect ie. why is this happening, what do I do to correct this situation.
When it was my first go, guess what happenend? ...the thinking and logic went straight out the window and I over-reacted in pushing the control column forward. Second go, I nailed it. From there on in...we did stalls for 1.4 hours and I just felt alot better and confident about recovery from them.
Morale of this tale -it won't be as bad as you think it is. Just keep a clear head and be confident.
Good luck mate!

[kiwi_boy]

I was a bit worried at first, thinking that stalling was like on computer games - Going straight up then plumeting towards the ground with the altimiter spining round and round and round - but its nothing like that. Depending on the a/c your flying - the nose attitude wont even be all that high either. I assume that youll be doing basic stalls so youll hopefully come back, wonder why you were so concerend and then be over confident when it comes to wing drop stalls like I was - then S$#*! yourself not expecting to be in the attitude your in - but youll find out soon enough :)

Through interst - what are you flying - I did stalls in a Tomahawk and wing drop stalls in the 172.

All the best anyway!!!

[ 27 July 2001: Message edited by: kiwi_boy ]

[ 27 July 2001: Message edited by: kiwi_boy ]

[Cloudwatcher]

I'm flying the PA-28 Warrior, It's a great aircraft to learn in (for me anyway).
Went for my lesson yesterday and after all this fuss didn't do stalling after all !
However I did perform my first take off....Brilliant....Almost completed a landing aswell, the instructer took control over the threshold.
Stalling is coming up DEFINATELY next, so I told my instructer of my concerns and like you guys he said it's nothing to worry about and once completed my confidence in the aircraft will increase.
What'the weather like in New Zealand... it's great here at the moment but virtually no horizon....too hazy!
see ya
CW

[Golden Monkey]

Kiwi_boy, you should have done wing drop stalls in a Tomahawk, can be extremely quick . . , not far off a spin entry :) Some people hate that aeroplane but I really like it, it's very "hands on"!

Thanks for your link re: New Zealand aviation on the other thread, by the way. That's a nice site, I shall look into it.

Cloudwatcher, well done on the t/o and landing! Let us know what you think when you've done your stalling, I'm sure you'll find it refreshingly un-worrysome. Enjoy!