Now that you know the theory of takeoffs and landings, it’s good to have an idea of how to go about practicing them.
The airport traffic pattern is established so that planes flying from that field will have some standard of operation for safety’s sake.
A typical traffic pattern for a small airport is shown in Figure 13-14. Some airports have a right-hand pattern
Chapter 13 / Takeoffs and Landings 13-9 without any help for the last two or three flights and have been following through on the controls during the last few landings. Generally, takeoffs and landings are started with the instructor demonstrating two or three at the end of a regular period, allowing you to practice more takeoffs and landings each time until the whole period is spent on these maneuvers.
The first couple of hours of landing practice will probably be full-stop landings. That is, you will let the plane slow down; then you’ll turn off the runway and taxi back to make another takeoff. This is good prac- tice in learning to control the airplane as it slows up on the landing roll, as well as smoothing out any taxi- ing problems. Later you’ll probably shoot “touch-and- go’s” — opening the throttle, pushing the carburetor heat off (if it was used throughout the approach; your instructor will have recommendations), raising the flaps, and taking off again. Touch-and-go’s allow more landings during a practice period and are good for the student who only needs practice in the landing itself, but they should not be overdone.
for some runways, as will be shown by their segmented circles. But the principle is the same.
Back in the olden days of flying, most lightplane approaches were made from a normal power-off glide so that if the engine quit during any part of the approach, the airplane could still make it to the run- way. Nowadays, the aircraft engine is so reliable that this is an extremely minor factor; the recommended method of making the approach is to reduce power (as recommended by your instructor) opposite to the point of intended landing and make further reductions as the approach continues. You may have all the power off just after turning final, or you may have to carry power until reaching the runway — it depends on your situa- tion. You’ll also make some approaches from a power- off glide to learn your airplane’s glide characteristics, but most of the time you’ll make approaches with a gradual reduction of power all the way around. Power- off approaches will be covered later in the chapter.
You’ll be introduced to the takeoff and landing series gradually. You’ve probably made the takeoffs
Figure 13-14. An example traffic pattern. Shown is a “closed pattern” as used in shooting takeoffs and landings. Your
instructor will demonstrate, and you will practice, departing and entering the pattern. (Substitute your own numbers.) The leg after takeoff, as you climb out tracking the runway center line, is the departure leg. When making a go-around and flying the pattern into the wind, the term is upwind leg. When making a go-around or aborted landing, fly to the right of the runway as you climb out, as shown at the top of Figure 13-39(A), so you can keep an eye out for airplanes taking off and climbing out.
For a right-handed pattern go-around, it’s particularly important that you watch for airplanes turning into your path. Also see Figure 20-2.
13-10 Part Two / Presolo
Figure 13-15. Varying the downwind leg position for different winds.
Figure 13-16. Variation of approach angle with wind.
Constant glide attitude and airspeed (angles exaggerated).
Figure 13-18. The turn onto the final leg and the last part of the approach.
Figure 13-17. Positions on the downwind and base leg.
The best way to get an idea of what happens during a typical takeoff and landing pattern is to take it step by step (Figures 13-15 through 13-18).
Assume that you are sitting at the takeoff end of the runway, the pretakeoff check is complete, there are no planes landing, and the wind is moderate (8 –10 K) and right down the runway.
1. Taxi into position and make a normal takeoff.
2. Make a normal climb straight ahead to the altitude set by your local rules. Look back occasionally to see that you are climbing in line with the runway and not headed out cross-country.
3. When the turn altitude is reached, look behind again to make sure you aren’t going to turn into a faster plane coming up from behind. Make a 90° climb- ing turn to the left. Actually, the turn should not be quite 90°, since you will have to compensate for the wind. Incidentally, don’t make any turns inside the airport boundary. It’s better to be at least 1,000 feet past the end of the runway before turning.
4. Make the second 90°, left-climbing turn whenever it is necessary in order to establish the correct dis- tance from the runway on the downwind leg. The principle of establishing a distance from the runway is this: If the wind is strong, the approach angle is steep on the final approach for a particular power setting; therefore, more altitude is needed at point X (Figures 13-15 and 13-16). Maybe you say, “Why not stay the same distance from the runway for every wind velocity and just make that first turn sooner?”
It can be demonstrated that you will be critically low at the point of the final turn if the wind is strong and also you’ll have no “straightaway” or final to establish yourself for the landing.
5. Climb to 1,000 feet. Keep the plane flying parallel to the runway (Figure 13-17).
Chapter 13 / Takeoffs and Landings 13-11 6. Pull the carburetor heat a few seconds before you
reach the position directly opposite the intended landing spot. Give it a chance to clear out any ice before you start reducing power. The use of carbure- tor heat will depend on the airplane and conditions:
(a) You may not use carburetor heat for certain air- planes if conditions preclude icing, (b) you may be told to apply carburetor heat on the downwind leg to check for icing and then push it off if no evidence of icing is found, or (c) you may use full carburetor heat throughout the approach.
7. Reduce power and set up the approach speed.
8. Make a slightly more than 90° turn to the left. Con- tinue to reduce the power as necessary to control the approach path. One problem students have is making this turn too shallow, so the airplane is nearly over to the final leg before the first 90° of turn is completed. This would then require a steep 90° turn onto final, at a low altitude, to line up with the runway center line — a disconcerting and pos- sibly dangerous practice. This is more likely to hap- pen in a high-wing trainer because the down-wing may keep the runway hidden throughout the turn onto the base leg. You may not realize that you are moving so close to the final leg. This is particularly a problem if the airplane on the base leg has a tail- wind component as shown in Figure 13-31. Most instructors prefer that the turn at point 8 (Figure 13-17) be slightly steeper than the one at point 9 (Figure 13-18) because (a) the steeper turn is done at the higher altitude, and (b) the turn will be com- pleted soon enough so that the wings can be leveled for a straight base leg (and a good look at the run- way). More about this later in the chapter.
9. Make the final turn as needed to line up with the center line of the runway. A common fault of stu- dents is overshooting the runway on the final turn.
This happens when the final turn is not started soon enough and the plane must be turned back into the runway. Another error is making the final turn too soon, angling toward the runway. Shoot for at least a 1⁄2-mile final.
10. When your height above the ground is approxi- mately 20 feet, begin the transition to the landing attitude. Keep the plane straight and the wings level.
At about 1– 2 feet, the landing attitude should be reached. Continue the back pressure, maintaining this attitude as the plane settles. The wheel or stick should reach its full back travel just as the wheels touch.
11. Keep the plane rolling straight down the runway. As it slows to taxi speed, turn off the runway and taxi back for another go.
Don’t try to turn off the runway at too high a speed — you may ground loop.
Don’t try to slow the airplane too quickly by using brakes. It’s not good for a tricycle-gear-equipped plane, and you may nose over in a tailwheel-type plane; it takes experience to be able to apply brakes on the land- ing roll without nosing over. It’s hard on tires too.
Figure 20-2 gives suggested traffic patterns as in the Aeronautical Information Manual and you might want to look it over as you prepare to fly to other airports dur- ing the cross-country portion of your flight training.