Full flap at 500ft in a C152?

[Spunky Monkey]

Then again your arguement is flat...why teach something, that if the engine fails, you have to use a completely different method.
The RAF may teach a method to their cadets, because, they will be flying the aircraft for a matter of months before moving onto a high inertia aircraft, where the tehnique will be relevant.
Your techinque may not be wrong, but has poor value in a light aircraft with little momentum.

[Big Pistons Forever]

IMHO one of the problems with ab intio instruction is a failure to transition from rote canned procedures to assesing the situation and appropriately configuring the aircraft. At the beginning of training the student has to have a consistant template to allow them to have somehting to reference to. So a very methodical step wise approach is appropriate. However as training progresses I coach the student to start adapting to varying conditions by advancing/delaying flap and power reductions with the aim that the aircraft will always cross the threshold on speed and on an appropriate glide path. For advanced post PPL training and CPL students I expect them to be able to fly an approach from power off 1.3 VSO to cruise speed to short final and everything inbetween.

[Canadapilot]

Personally I avoid even mentioning flaps for the first few circuit lessons. I find students are maxed-out with just flying the circuit and I like to see them build up their judgement of an approach without using the "get out of jail free card" of 30/40 degree flaps when coming in high...

[BEagle]

OK, post deleted as it was a bit harsh and cast aspersions inappropriately.

Your reference to

.....poor value in a light aircraft with little momentum.

confirms by whom you were taught as this is one of his pet hobby horses.

Many of us happen to disagree strongly - the method works perfectly well in anything. By the time the student is proficient in flying normal powered approaches, he/she will be very familiar with selecting a touchdown reference point - so when glide approaches (and later, PFLs) are introduced, the IAS/touchdown point assessment technique can be adapted appropriately.

I consider the accumulated wisdom of the Central Flying School to have more cogency in this argument than the opinions of one ex-test pilot.

Back to the thread - the most important point is that the student should NOT be introduced to the circuit before he/she is completly ready - and a standard method should be used by all instructors at the particular Club/School.

[Whopity]

The RAF may teach a method to their cadets, because, they will be flying the aircraft for a matter of months before moving onto a high inertia aircraft, where the technique will be relevant.

Flying Scholarship cadets! Hardly Likely! One of the reasons was to ensure they did not go low on the approach and scare villagers and motorists on the approach path. Constant aspect=equals constant angle= correct glide path.

Personally I avoid even mentioning flaps for the first few circuit lessons

So what are you teaching them then? Remember the law of primacy, where students remember best, the thing they are first shown, so under pressure i.e. an engine failure, there is a high probably they will land flapless! In the UK/JAA syllabus teaching use of approach flap is in Exercise 8(ii) Circuits are 12/13.

[VFE]

Personally I avoid even mentioning flaps for the first few circuit lessons

Well have you taught exercise 4.2 sufficiently?

And are you breaking down the circuit into exercise 12 and exercise 13 instead of "a circuit lesson"?

VFE.

PS: Had an interesting chat with John Farley about the question of approaches following an article he did for a magazine once. Personally, I teach power = height and attitude = airspeed to maintain constant perspective down the approach until flare height.

[BristolScout]

On a purely personal level, I have taught throttle=height, power=speed as the primary method for more years than I care to remember. However, I bought a 3-axis microlight for my own pleasure last year and I slipped, without conscious thought, into power and point in this machine. My best guess as to why is that flying into fairly amorphous fields gives a different set of visual cues to those approaching a defined runway.