Re Ian Seagers comments on spinning, I couldnt agree more. Spin training is more
or less mandatory in gliders whereas on powered aircraft this exercise is at
the discretion of your instructor. Initially I was less than keen on this
manouver but after several attempts I felt great satisfaction in being able to
effect a recovery and almost got to like it. More important where gliding is
concerned is the need to recognise and deal with incipient spins. These are
usually the ones that kill, close to the ground.
Interestingly I nearly got G-YURO into a spin on my test flight. We were
returning to base and I asked Ivan what the stall was like so he let me have
control. I think he expected me to ease the stick back gently, bleeding off the
speed but instead I was rather heavy handed and the resulting stall was less
than gentle but more to the point, the port wing started to drop - ie -
incipient spin. Now dont get me wrong im not criticising the Europa. Most
aircraft spin (if you know how to provoke them) though some are easier than
others. My own view is that the only way to learn about spins is to do them
(with an instructor !) preferably on the aircraft that you intend to fly.
By the way, I learned to fly on the dreaded PA38 Tomahawk and guess what, my
instructor insisted we do the spins (three times, or was it four) and yes, we
recovered !. He reckons they dont deserve that reputation.
Carl Pattinson
G-LABS (if I ever get it finished !)
|