Situational awareness in the clouds with modern equipment is so simple that a computer can do it. Situational awareness VFR at altitude is easy to handle with integrated contact and instrument awareness. Situational awareness among the obstructions and terrain is a much different situation requiring different orientation and techniques. Wind management is one of them. Yes, we are still part of the air mass, now influenced greatly by obstructions and terrain. Yes, those rivers of air will follow terrain up and over for orographic lift. But no, the danger of the downwind turn is not a myth down here. The myth is that high ground speed or ground rush will cause stalls. No, the control feel and relative wind noise is the same. It is pulling back on the stick to stay up in turns or to get away from the earth too quickly that causes stalls. Yes, 40 knots of tailwind will create more ridge lift. It will also get us to the point where we need and energy management turn back quicker, if unable to go over. Yes, the wind is stronger in a saddle (terrain venturi.) This greater ridge lift helps make it possible to safely cross a saddle (mountain pass) much lower than the higher terrain on each side of the pass.

All turns in maneuvering flight should be energy management turns to target rather than level turns to heading. Wind management in crop dusting or any low altitude air to ground work is to make use of wind direction to decrease radius and ground speed in the turn to target. Working with limited horizontal space available, as in the canyon turn back or the base to final turn in a tight valley, wind management can be critical. Unnecessary level downwind base to final turns are the first holes in the Swiss cheese that too often lead to stall too low for recovery. I really don't care if it is a skidding spin or slipping spin or coordinated stall. Pulling back rather than banking enough to join the centerline extended while allowing the nose to go down to prevent stalls is the problem.

Rather than teaching us that we can't safely maneuver in much wind, ground reference maneuvers should teach wind management. Rather than teaching only level turns of limited bank angle, we should teach energy management 1 g turns using crosswind and headwind to reduce radius and slow ground speed to make steep turns to targets safely. We need to learn how to bank safely at whatever bank angle necessary to capture the target in the horizontal and vertical space available.

Altitude maintenance at the expense of airspeed is high altitude orientation. Airspeed maintenance at the cost of a little altitude and using the law of the roller coaster is low altitude orientation. Misorientation or loss of situational awareness is dangerous in maneuvering flight where most every stall is fatal. Thinking we are a part of an air mass unlimited by obstacles and terrain with ample vertical space available to recover from inadvertent stall (high altitude orientation) can quickly become fatal on takeoff, in the pattern, or landing.

As pilots we need to know where we are and what is around us and below in order to apply appropriate principals and techniques.

+1

Night is high altitude orientation except for very populated areas, military, or Robs farming with lights he controls both on the airplane and on the ground. I was comfortable at night only on instruments or with lots of lights on the ground. It is not like marginal weather where turning back or just landing rather than going IMC was not extremely scary. How Rob gets a pilot comfortable with night maneuvering flight would interest me here in my recliner. I never had any inclination to do that myself. Just too many engine failures I guess.

I am trying to learn my oldest kid that the dark is not dangerous. Everything is the same as when we can see, but our mind fills in the blanks, at it still thinks there are sabretooth tigres hiding everywhere. At some poing I would like to get my night rating, if my mind will just not think there are sabretooth mountains lurking out there…. I am happy with basic instruments when flying daytime, but when I pull the trigger for a plane of my own, and the plan is to use it in the dark, I will fill it up with all the tech I can afford - and think I am able to learn! There was a nasty crash not long ago, where a Pilatus PC-12 went down because the pilots did not know the computer well enough, and kept fiddling with it and not paying attention to the plane.

On second thought. Maybe daytime VFR is enough for me. Staying proficient in flying is tricky enough. I would probably have to make a commitment to fly that much more, to also stay proficient on all the avionics too.

Interesting reading about the different modus operandi, and where they are suited. Many modern experimentals and light sports have modern engines with turbos, that perform quite well even at altitude. So going higher up for longer legs seems to me to make sense. Being aware when you go from one mode to the other seems like something to be concious of.

Yes, altitude is not only time but also gives the pilot greater possibility of finding a visible horizon at night. The distance that light is still visible is amazing. At Armor Officer Basic at Ft. Knox, we were told of a tank five miles away on a dark night. We could not see the tank. The instructor then radioed for a soldier at the tank to light a cigarette. We could not only see the lighter flame, but we could see each time he puffed on the cigarette. Turning toward open water or empty desert, however, can cause loss of situational awareness and even loss of control. IMC, or even on basic instruments, makes this a non-event.

I left the NMARNG before we got night vision goggles. They have certainly changed night NOE operations, but there have been a number of accidents. I flew lots of night medical evacuations in Hueys, but I could go as slow as necessary to stay in visual contact with the earth safely and initial evacuation to the Combat Support Hospital was usually a five minute flight each way. Further evacuation to Loma Linda for burns or March AFB, both in Las Angles, was on an instrument flight plan.

I preferred day missions and some swapping was possible in the Guard except when we covered the big training exercises in the Mohave Desert. A medevac duty day was 12 hours. First up was fully dressed and in the ready room all day. Second up was in the tents until first up cranked. Third up was backhaul to permanent hospitals. The Combat Support Hospital was a jet pack blow up deal. Our tents were far enough away so we didn't hear the jet engines running full blast day and night.