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AvCan Experts Tell Us Grass Runways are Bad

Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 3:57 am
by Colonel
As usual, the AvCan experts don't have a clue.  Despite
their thousands of nosewheel hours, they don't know that
grass is much more tolerant of yaw and cushions the landing.

Geneseo NY has a 4700 foot grass runway.  I've seen jets
use it.  Probably wasn't the AvCan experts flying.

Hey, I remember a Bonanza pilot crashing there, a few
years back.  He couldn't flare his aircraft.  Maybe the AvCan
pilots do fly there sometimes.

Here's a B-17 on the grass runway at Geneseo:

[img width=500 height=341]http://users.vermontel.net/~tomh/images ... 124485.jpg[/img]

I'll let the experts tell us how that's a bad thing.

Here's the Lancaster on grass at Geneseo.  More
bad people, I guess:

[img width=500 height=281]https://i.ytimg.com/vi/GyFSdwC--F8/maxresdefault.jpg[/img]

Of course, there are P-51's, P-40's, T-6's and
every other warbird you can think of - Spitfire,
Hurricane, you name it - operating off the grass
at Geneseo.

None of those pilots know as much as an AvCan
expert. 

Here's Rob Holland on the grass at Geneseo:

[img width=500 height=333]https://farm1.staticflickr.com/347/1952 ... bf49_b.jpg[/img]

Not much of a stick compared to the AvCan crowd.

Re: AvCan Experts Tell Us Grass Runways are Bad

Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 12:12 pm
by Eric Janson
Which Forum?

Nothing worse then searching through all the garbage threads over there...

Re: AvCan Experts Tell Us Grass Runways are Bad

Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 12:44 pm
by Liquid Charlie
Wonder what would have happened at the battle of briton

Re: AvCan Experts Tell Us Grass Runways are Bad

Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 4:26 pm
by David MacRay
I landed on grass in a 172 once. It was dry and nicely maintained so not exactly a daring maneuver. Pretty fun actually.

You might want to avoid it if you have white walls. You could get grass stains.

Re: AvCan Experts Tell Us Grass Runways are Bad

Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 7:55 pm
by Colonel
Must be an AvCan expert doing jumper dumping
near me.  Ripped the tail off, exceeding Vne
during an inadvertent stall recovery.

Re: AvCan Experts Tell Us Grass Runways are Bad

Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 8:24 pm
by Liquid Charlie
I spent many years scraping meadow muffins off the bottom of my wings. Grass Strip !! any farmers field could qualify and did on many occasions. I have landed in farm fields to get gas from a service station on the road. Landing on developing subdivision roads around Georgetown to see a buddy. Where has all the adventure gone? damn!!!!

Re: AvCan Experts Tell Us Grass Runways are Bad

Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 8:46 pm
by Chuck Ellsworth
Ignorance is the reason so many pilots side with the crowd that think grass fields are dangerous.


When the vast majority of flight instructors have never been exposed to anything more daunting than a Cessna 172 on runways designed for jet operations you can not really blame the instructors.


They are ignorant on the subject because the flight training industry wants them to be ignorant.


It is really that simple.

Re: AvCan Experts Tell Us Grass Runways are Bad

Posted: Tue Jul 26, 2016 11:38 pm
by Chuck Ellsworth
[quote]What does the flight training industry systematically have to gain from a population of ignorant pilots? [/quote]


A simplified easy to manipulate group of flight instructors willing to do anything except think, that fly for less than slave wages.


[quote][font=verdana][size=0px](And what do they potentially lose?)[/size][/font][/quote]


A country full of pilots that were properly trained that actually do understand how an airplane fly's.


Instead of a county full of poorly trained pilots that do not understand how to fly.  .















Re: AvCan Experts Tell Us Grass Runways are Bad

Posted: Wed Jul 27, 2016 1:43 am
by vanNostrum
I'm wondering if this days FTU/Flying Clubs allow their students/members to operate out of grass strips
In the early 80s with a fresh PPL I learn a lot  going many times to a small grass strip SE of Ottawa near Sarsfield [ for those that may know the area ] and practice soft field  TO and landings
The 150/72 lightly loaded  performed very well
.The Rockliffe FC  allowed us to do this until someone clip a telephone wire on approach and that was the end of it
  Eventually I went to the OFC  where  we were allowed to use CPR2 [Embrun-Russell ] 2200' turf
Don't know if now days it is the same policy




Re: AvCan Experts Tell Us Grass Runways are Bad

Posted: Wed Jul 27, 2016 1:51 am
by ScudRunner-d95
I learned out of grass field on a tail dragger no less, didn't like pavement all that much usually meant idiots doing 10 mile circuits. Come to think of it I spent pretty much most of my early career operating in and out of grass / gravel / sandbars and dirt until I moved to YYC. That must be about 3000 hours until I wasn't allowed to play in the dirt anymore.

Brings a smile to my face when I had to do a gravel checkout with a training captain on a 1900D, he went on and on about technique and even sent me an exam before the flight.  :-\

I just flew the plane and guess what I passed, afterwards I asked his experience and it was all pavement to pavement. Turns out other than this one strip that we where going into that day this was the only place he had ever landed on something other than pavement.... ;D

Nice guy good pilot but holy shit man I know companies like to CYA with paperwork but jebus h christ.