Mon, 08 Jun 2026 21:48:07 +1000WeeblyMon, 02 Dec 2013 22:53:28 GMThttp://www.phoenixmodelaviators.com/flying-tips/improve-your-take-off-and-landingsIMPROVE YOUR TAKE OFF AND LANDINGS
Are you happy with your take off and landing skills?

The two areas that pose the most risk to pilots on the flight line are take offs and landings. That is why club safety rules require that your aircraft is not airborne before it passes the flight line on the take off run.

Equally important is landing on the runway with out deviating towards those on the flight line. (Work on widening out your awareness of what is going on around you and stay ahead of your plane.)(Lead it in don’t follow it)

Handy Tips

1) Tracking

Before starting your aircraft and with your radio and plane on, rudder centred with zero trim. Push your plane on a flat smooth surface.

Adjust nose wheel or tail wheel (not the rudder) till the plane tracks true.

On tail draggers it is always advisable to give the main wheels a bit of toe in.

This helps them track true by forcing the forward moving wheel to act as a brake when they get off line.

The natural tendency of a tail dragger is to go tail first on the ground.

If a plane tracks well, you don’t have to fight it down the runway.

Take Off

Start off slowly. Adjust your track with rudder.

When happy with the track smoothly increase power to take off speed and gently apply elevator for a smooth lift off.

Basic Trimming Of  Your Aircraft

Once at a comfortable height and directly into the wind, trim your aircraft to fly straight and level with hands off. (Don’t accept close enough) This should be done at the speed you like to fly at, otherwise you will always be increasing or decreasing height. (Most trainer aircraft you can trim nicely at about half throttle.)

Trimming The Loop

Now fly straight into wind, increase power and smoothly pull up into a loop.

Note any deviation. (Be careful not to apply rudder as you apply elevator)

If the plane rolls left in the loop give a few clicks of right rudder trim and vice versa. Try the manoeuvre again and adjust the rudder trim until the plane tracks true through the loop. (It is wise to recheck your aircraft for straight and level trim after trimming the rudder) Adjust aileron trim for straight and level and check the loop again. If you found that you had to put in a lot of right rudder trim to loop true then you should check that you have sufficient right and down thrust.

After landing (note the position of the rudder) re check the ground tracking and adjust the nose wheel or tail wheel to track true. (Make sure rudder is in the noted position)

Please note that this is a very basic trimming procedure and if followed it will really change how your plane flies and feels. (You won’t be fighting it in the air and you won’t be fighting it on landing approaches.) Most trainers and sports models fly very well with a C of G at 25% and a motor thrust of 1 to 2 degrees down thrust and 1 to 2 degrees right thrust. There is no substitute for a well-trimmed aircraft that flies straight and level with hands off. Take the little extra time to make it right and enjoy the difference. We will deal with landing technique next time.

Happy flying
Geoff Pinkerton  ]]>Mon, 25 Nov 2013 22:47:47 GMThttp://www.phoenixmodelaviators.com/flying-tips/improve-your-landingsIMPROVE YOUR LANDINGS

Tracking On The Ground, Take Off, Basic Trimming Of Your Aircraft,

Trimming The Loop, C of G at 25% (starting point on trainers and general sports aircraft), Motor thrust of 1 to 2 degrees down thrust and 1 to 2 degrees right thrust.

Improving Landings

Now that you are happy with the trim of your aircraft, how does it feel?

Instructors teach various techniques depending on the student and abilities.

The landing technique I call flying the wire.

Other instructors may call it by another name or impart the same information to their students using a different explanation or terminology. All instructors chase the same result to get a student to accurately position their aircraft and land consistently on the runway.

This is the method:

1)    Take care before you take off to position your feet and body at 90 degrees to the runway and remain in that position
        for the whole flight. (Don’t move your feet around)

This is very simple, however do not underestimate it because it gives your brain a point of reference for orientation to the line of the runway.

2)    When practicing landing approaches always give yourself sufficient distance on the downwind leg so as not to cramp
        and rush your turns onto base and final.

3)    Your turn onto final should be completed 2 to 3 degrees in front of your right shoulder when approaching from the right
        and the same when approaching from the left.

4)    With your plane at idle, your height and distance at the completion of the turn onto final should be sufficient to get you
        home. (If not power up and go round.)

5)    Now imagine you had a tight wire from your foot to the nose of your aircraft.

6)    Now guide the plane (wings level) straight down the wire as if you were going to hit yourself in the feet.

7)    When your peripheral vision, shows you are over the centre of the runway, then make the final small course correction
        to take you straight down the centre of the runway. (Wings maintained level)

8)    I always teach students to target themselves and stay on target all the way down final.(a laps in targeting yourself all the
       way will result in inconsistency of arrival)

9)    When about a metre off the ground start to round out and hold just off the ground until the plane settles gently.

10) As with anything new or different we try with our aircraft it always pays to start 2 or 3 mistakes high until we feel
      comfortable.

11) When you have got the approach right the plane is locked in and set in its’ approach. ( It looks right)

12) Have you watched full size aircraft on approach? That is the set and look you are after.

13) A high approach with gravity as your engine is always preferable to flying your plane home at a shallow angle.
      (especially with war birds) There is much less risk and if your engine quits, gravity will always get you home.

Happy flying
Geoff Pinkerton  ]]>