Consider the mentality of "The Myth of the Downwind Turn." The assumption is that we Ag and pipeline patrol pilots don't understand the primacy of instrument control in the integration of instrument with contact control of aircraft in VMC. We understand and defer to wind management because our lives depend on putting the airplane between obstructions rather than into them. We certainly understand that the danger of the downwind turn has to do with groundspeed and radius of turn. Therefore, we certainly default contact indications over instrument indications to manage horizontal space available and precise control of the aircraft to, around, and over targets or obstructions. Neither heading nor pitch and bank limitations are useful in a target rich environment.

The airplane will do pretty well on its own in the high altitude, default instrument control environment, either IMC or just IFR. We limit pitch and bank, not to stay ahead of the airplane, but to stay ahead of the pilot. Give it some time is the school solution up there, and time is available.

The reason the instrument test, written or flight, is the easiest test is that the orientation is high only and under air traffic control. Under IFR, there is but one cleared airspeed, altitude, and procedural track. MAP, DH, alternate minimum, etc, etc. All defined, no judgement required.

The danger of slow and careful control, deferring to instrument indications in low AGL work including takeoff and landing, is that we don't precisely put the aircraft where we need to be. We use wind management only for takeoff and landing direction, and not for safer turns in the pattern. We limit bank more than pitch, resulting in near stall turns. We allow drift toward obstructions and beyond the centerline extended by limiting bank. We fail to use zoom reserve, when available, to increase altitude and reduce airspeed safely prior to turning. We fail to use vertical space available in 1g turns at whatever bank is necessary to miss obstructions. We fly slow in downdrafts and fast through updrafts for a net loss of airspeed and altitude. We engine climb into headwind when staying low would increase groundspeed and make use of orographic ridge lift. We takeoff up drainage when there would be little or no tailwind taking off down drainage. At Vx or Vy as appropriate, we pitch up when staying in low ground effect would provide 1,000 fpm zoom reserve over the obstacle.

It goes on and on. High altitude orientation, when low, sets pilots up for upset, loss of control, and CFIT.

"In" the mountains, a level turn of limited bank and downwind can easily become controlled flight into terrain. An energy management turn upwind, given a fairly strong crosswind, can be a 1g turn of zero radius. Wind, airspeed, and bank angle determine radius. All can be managed.

A ground reference maneuver that is more practical than S turns or turns about a point is the 180 degree return to target.. For you helicopter guys, it is a 180 degree autorotation without the landing. As you remember, we had to turn upwind, into any crosswind, to make the runway. With any crosswind condition, our downwind leg had to be downwind of the runway.

With airplanes, or helicopter, have the student set up his crab to track parallel with and down a straight road or pipeline or runway downwind of said target.. Planning either energy management or the more difficult level turn, he will learn to adjust his distance from the target based on wind speed so as to make the most comfortable 180 degree turn to fly down the road or pipeline or runway in the opposite direction.

When low level turns are the norm, every turn should have a wind management consideration. When overflying a target we wish to return too, we should always fall off (turn slightly downwind) to position the aircraft for an upwind return to target.. Or in airport language, we should fly the downwind leg downwind of the runway when a crosswind conditions exists.

In the parallel road or pipeline return to target, we are already crabbed toward the target. Some of the turn is already made. If we pitch up to trade cruise airspeed zoom reserve for altitude, we can reduce the radius even further (In addition to the wind management) in the turn. By allowing the nose to go down naturally in the turn, we return to cruise airspeed going back down the road in the opposite direction.

Students, new to flying and old pros alike, are amazed at the the reduction in diameter of turn using both wind and zoom reserve energy management. It is truly the safe kind of magic that should be taught every pilot. Every pilot, every time he flys, will have energy management and often wind management opportunities.

Jim,
Thanks for the additional info. In a thread on low level flying on the Bonanza list, I shared some of your thinking. Unfortunately the discussion devolves into a coordinated vs uncoordinated turn argument. But I try...
Best,
Tom

Coordinated turns are good. Because of primacy and muscle memory, we have to lead rudder to get there. Two things work against proper rudder usage: half measures to mitigate adverse yaw and teaching/testing limited bank angle. Fred Weick eliminated adverse yaw but the safely airplane, Ercoupe, was not accepted by most pilots. Limiting bank angle and waiting, waiting, waiting with no aileron or rudder for the nose to come around makes no control except pulling back on the yoke (not always a good idea) default.