Teaching tail wheel flying.

[Liquid Charlie]

The biggest xwind I have landed in was 90 degrees and 60 kts - cheated by using a training wheel aircraft. I have also landed a DC3 and Bch18 in 40 knots and more than once. Both handled it well and obviously a little busy on the roll out. This was not a standard thing but being caught with unexpected circumstances and had very few options other than to land and deal with it. We would not dispatch in these winds but those are some of the unknowns we must deal with every day. When training people on the DC3T I hammered into people [b]"reverse is not your friend" [/b]in xwinds[b] --[/b] fly the fucking aeroplane -- and use the ailerons right to taxi speed and move to full deflection as the aircraft slows down. Using the ailerons properly means far less aggressive rudder input which also fucks guys up badly.

[Chuck Ellsworth]

[quote]I have also landed a DC3 and Bch18 in 40 knots and more than once[/quote]


Yup, sometimes you have no choice.


The hairiest landing conditions I ever landed in was in a DC3 at Resolute Bay and they were calling it 90 degrees off the runway at fifty knots and visibility zero zero in blowing snow.

[David MacRay]

I think the strongest crosswind I landed in was at Kalaupapa. It was dual and the instructor said "there will be a crosswind."  I had not been in much crosswind for a long time before then.

It was not beautiful, even though I was not quite center of the run way I was getting close. Then we drifted slightly and Rick reached up to help add much more aileron than I thought we needed. Ah, that's better.

[DeflectionShot]

[quote]1) Driving around at high alpha, doing turns,
dropping a wing and flying through the stall.

2) rolling around a point at slow speed

3) falling leaf

4) crosswind touch and go landings on one
main only.  And without a crosswind.[/quote]

Heh... I'm going to ask my local Class One if he can do these with me...will let you know how it goes.  >:D

[Rookie Pilot]

The weirdest crosswind takeoff I did was in the US. Runway was slippery, no precipitation but the cold wind had frozen the moisture into a kinda snow covered glaze. Poor runway clearing, or blade couldn't get it. Anyway 25 knots angled crosswind in that light plane, definitely felt bit of lateral movement right before liftoff. I angled the takeoff a bit, big wide US runway, but interesting...


You know it's fun too when there's trees right beside the runway, like tobermorey's. Took off one day when wind sock couldn't make up its mind, and different at each end. Sat clear for 5 minutes watching it, just deciding which way to takeoff. Anyway no problem but lift above those trees only 20 feet from runway, wow rock and roll from the mechanical.  Sometimes the weight of the plane is limiting I think.

[David MacRay]

I landed in Swift Current Saskatchewan once, when the wind kept changing directions on me. After I finally changed runways to the least amount of crosswind, landed, parked and went into the club the guy behind the desk chuckles and says, "Finally decided to try the runway into the wind, eh."  I presume while I was not looking, the sock spent most of the time going a different direction than most of the times I looked at it.

I just found a good post about crosswinds at AvCanada while looking for something else.

[quote]Apparently crosswinds were invented this year. Maybe this month, I dunno.

Yesterday, watched a private pilot land his nosewheel pride and joy in a bit of a crosswind - perhaps 10G15. Not a whole lot, but enough that you couldn't ignore it, which I swear he kept trying to do.

But not all the time. His technique to compensate for the crosswind was to approach too fast, which reduced his angle of attack which cause the nosewheel to contact the runway first, which resulted in a fairly impressive porpoise down the the runway. I presume that he was conducting a maintenance test flight, perhaps after an annual inspection where the nose gear was repaired, and he wanted to make sure it worked really well. Right to it's limits.

During his rollout, the guy standing next to me said, "I don't see any aileron". "Yup", was my witty response...

Free advice to the golden arms about crosswind landings:

1) don't use excessive speed on final, esp in a nosewheel aircraft
2) try to avoid a PIO. If you don't know what a PIO is, first learn that
3) aileron full over into the crosswind as you slow down
4) always take a direct crosswind from the right in a prop aircraft
5) never try to force it onto the ground. If it goes horribly wrong, full power[/quote]

Incidentally it looked like I might have learned the term, PIO, that day.

[Rookie Pilot]

In the Soo, (Sault st Marie) more than once I've seen the 2 windsocks at either end of the same runway, pointing 180 degrees apart. It's not a pleasant airport when it's a strong wind, having water at one end and a huge rise in terrain to the North, so winds are unpredictable. Can't recall a fingertip approach there.


IMO and limited experience,  light Cessnas can handle comfortably at least 30 knots and 20 knots direct crosswind component, uncomfortably something above that, depending on the runway. More, when heavy than light.


More scary is serious wind shear...I've have that landing in Sedona, Arizona with winds blowing 30 knots to the "wrong" -- non preferred - direction, with runway on an edge of a cliff.


Found out why, approaching on final and a good 10 knots fast - say 70 in a light Cessna -- heard stall warning loudly go off while descending. At 70 knots. Lost @  25 knots in a blink. Jammed in power while staring at  cliff face, normal landing.

[David MacRay]

That AvCanada thread is amazing. It's huge and full of great information. My posts are terrible. Things like at one point I state, "I pull the yoke all the way back." But leave out the context where I am looking outside and pulling back in a controlled manner trying to keep a proper attitude. So someone replies, "That scares me, you should be looking outside."

Pretty funny I guess it looked a bit like I just closed my eyes and reefed the yoke back. "Hang on, I'm gonna land!"  8)

[Chris]

[quote author=Colonel Sanders link=topic=6303.msg16667#msg16667 date=1495283275]
The taildragger in Brampton has been wrecked more times
that you've had hot meals.

The cub in Burlington was taxiied into the gas pumps,
IIRC.

Try 3-point.  I've heard good things.
[/quote]


Spoke with the folks at 3-Point, seems they don't have a training aircraft right now but are looking to get a new one.


Might have to go with Brampton... The Classic Aircraft folks at Edenvale have a Canuck they use for training but are more restrictive about aircraft usage (15 hours min before solo), and the plane itself is pretty rough. In a choice between a clapped out Canuck and a clapped out Citabria I think I'll go with the Citabria.