Thought I would share this video of me training in my Wilga. I feel really confident in it already, I have another 12 hrs of dual for the insurance company. Hopefully I'll get turned loose in about three weeks!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KL8cBsx4zvc



-Ryan

Nice job! Looks like a pretty docile bird. I have to keep an eye out for you next time you head over to P-ville and maybe join you to burn some holes in the sky.

CW

Ryan,nice video! Bryan is a great, fun instructor. He does a really great job of explaining the what's, how's, and why's of stick and rudder flying.

I'm sure we'll cross paths one of these days, I'd love to check out your bird

Really great video. I am double jealous - Ive always wanted to fly a Wilga and I have been trying to get down to fly with Brian fro a couple of years - it looks like he has a really interesting approach.

Love that plane, thanks for posting…..

That was fun. I bet it sounds awesome in person with that longer tailpipe. Good looking bird!

Ryan, looking good.
Watched the vid a couple times more, the only thing I would maybe try and I'm sure you will get there is maybe use a little more rudder close to the ground and less aileron. But you got a long time to catch up with that, talk to your partner there and see what he thinks.
Have fun, They are a blast to fly!!

One thing I noticed and forgot to ask about is it doesn't look like the flaps deflect much. Is that an effect of the wide angle lense and maybe flaperons? It looks like they're only deflecting 10-15 degrees

Nice job all around. I agree with what M6RV6 said. It's the aileron counter-balance that gives you away. The very slight dynamic proactive aileron movement is not disruptive in calm air, but will become a problem in strong crosswinds. Work some crosswind to make sure you are keeping the center line between your legs with rudder only while keeping the wing at the bank angle necessary to counter drift. It is a rub your tummy while patting your head thing. Coordinated turns on final in calm air set us up for much difficulty in crosswinds.

Pick a moderately strong crosswind to start with. It is difficult to see these problems and make appropriate corrections in light crosswinds.

"Landing in a turn" terminology grates on us old instructors. You are in a cross controlled slip to put one wheel down first. Without a crosswind to side slip into, you are drifting toward the down wing. We can't land in a forward (no crosswind) slip because we have to line the longitudinal axis up with the direction of movement (with the center line.)

Coordinated turns on final are taught at every airport in the country. They are very common and very problematic. I always put my stiff thumb near the stick on final. When the student hit my thumb with the stick, he would look over at me. I would say, "use rudder only on final to keep the center line between your legs."

Again, nice job. Your coordination of final is minimal. That means you will have to work hard to entirely eliminate it. In the places you will go with your fine little airplane, you need to eliminate it.

I'm confused about the sick comment, contact. I get the part about slipping a on final, but doesn't that require some opposite aileron?

1:1 Scale wrote:One thing I noticed and forgot to ask about is it doesn't look like the flaps deflect much. Is that an effect of the wide angle lense and maybe flaperons? It looks like they're only deflecting 10-15 degrees

The ailerons droop with the flaps, if I remember correctly 20 and 40 is what the flaps drop, the ailerons only go 20 and 30 I believe on landing flap setting.

Yes. Slipping, either forward or side slip, requires opposite aileron. Pilots don't have much problem with that concept or with understanding that crosswind landing technique must be cross controlled at touchdown. For those who stay in close to the airport, the entire final need be cross controlled.

The problem is with no wind conditions, cross country, and flying in general. We can become numb to the very excellent longitudinal axis trim control of the rudder. Yes. We want to use good rudder with aileron coordination in turns, either level turns or energy management turns. We will have trouble, however, using coordinated turns to hold a distant target between our legs, make rockets leave the tubes without pitching into the relative wind, keeping the wings level in cruise flight, and landing. This problem (longitudinal axis alignment with the target) shows up most dramatically, however, in the final approach.

We pilots pride ourselves in our coordination. We need also pride ourselves in our dynamic, proactive rudder usage on the ground, on takeoff, on final, on a gun run, maintaining centered localizer needle on the instrument approach, keeping the lights illuminated in the middle of the light bar while spraying, going around an obstacle while in low ground effect, and keeping the wing level while both hands are busy with the map. In all of the above, the aileron plays second fiddle and is not coordinated with the rudder. It is used only to keep the wing level. Notice that I did not mention the side slip to land in a crosswind. If we use rudder properly for longitudinal alignment on any final approach to land, instrument or contact, we don't have to make special mention of the side slip in a crosswind. The beauty of doing it right, rudder to align longitudinal axis, is that we don't have to consider what kind of approach it is.

contactflying wrote:"Landing in a turn" terminology grates on us old instructors. You are in a cross controlled slip to put one wheel down first. Without a crosswind to side slip into, you are drifting toward the down wing. We can't land in a forward (no crosswind) slip because we have to line the longitudinal axis up with the direction of movement (with the center line.)

Actually, what Brian teaches IS landing in a turn- taking an arcing path across the runway as a proficiency maneuver for potentially putting the plane down in a center pivot irrigated field. I'd love to get you two in the same room and just listen to you guys shoot the shit. The air would be flooded with rarely taught knowledge

1:1 Scale wrote:

contactflying wrote:"Landing in a turn" terminology grates on us old instructors. You are in a cross controlled slip to put one wheel down first. Without a crosswind to side slip into, you are drifting toward the down wing. We can't land in a forward (no crosswind) slip because we have to line the longitudinal axis up with the direction of movement (with the center line.)

Actually, what Brian teaches IS landing in a turn- taking an arcing path across the runway as a proficiency maneuver for potentially putting the plane down in a center pivot irrigated field. I'd love to get you two in the same room and just listen to you guys shoot the shit. The air would be flooded with rarely taught knowledge

Lets get them together I'll pay a seat fee to listen!! Hell I'll byem breakfast lunch n dinner!!

hpux 735,

I just reread the stick, I think, question. I jam the stick to show the student that no aileron control movement is necessary. The rudder will speed up on wing a bit and it will raise a bit, but this is not a problem. We are dynamic and proactive with our rudder movement. The slight wing wagging, compared with coordinated turns, balances out.

Cleaning the edges, around in a big circle, of a pivot requires either high flying to keep the down wing out of the ground or just making a series of rudder turns in low ground effect. If your friend is flying a two million dollar Air Tractor, I guarantee you he is high flying the cleanup on the pivot.

contact

I did one of Brian's tail wheel master classes last year. Had a great time and learned a lot.

The attached video will clarify "the landing in a turn"

Go fly with Brian at Tail Wheel Town!

The Wilga looks awesome Xdillonx. I saw it a the HSF but don't think I got a chance to meet you.

All those touch and goes are well and good, but I hope you're also doing a lot of stop and goes. There is good reason that the FAA says for recency in a tailwheel airplane, you must have completed three landings to a full stop in a tailwheel airplane in the past 90 days.

Ground loops almost never (actually, I've never heard of one) happen at touchdown speeds. They happen as the airplane slows and the controls become less effective and/or the pilot starts to relax. In training, most landings should be to a full stop.

The exception in my training routine is when doing one wheel landings. Turning landings are fine, but one wheel landings, and running the plane down a long runway on one wheel is the true test of whether you're flying the plane. Touch on the left wheel, keep it on the left only, then run it down the runway. First touch with left wheel on the centerline, then move that left wheel twenty feet to the left, then back to center, then twenty feet to the right, then back to center.....and play that game all the way down the runway. Lift off and do the same drill on the right wheel.

After you get that drill, touch on the left wheel first, then lift off, touch with the right wheel, run on it for a bit, then lift off, and touch with the left.....etc.

After that, turning landings are easy.

Nice looking airplane. But, you obviously need an EZ Flap handle.....

MTV

Hotel Sierra brother. Welcome to the Wilga team.

Great video of Sunriver. I would definitely like my bi-annual with Brian.

(There are also courtesy bicycles from the FBO @ Sunriver )

Note: The DA at Sunriver (RWY 4163' MSL) in the summer can get pretty high. I was there once and it was 7k approximately. Long take off roll in my little amphib. Been there too when it was covered in snow.

Nice flying Wilga Bird you have!