Circuit
Training in a Retractable Gear Aircraft
Many
flight schools and instructors do training circuits in retractable gear
aircraft, leaving the gear down. Their
rationale for this is that the gear is not designed to be cycled frequently,
and perhaps to reduce wear and tear on the gear.
However,
despite the good intentions, there are terrible consequences to this training
choice. It teaches the student to NOT
lower the gear in the retractable gear aircraft. Additionally, the training is not applicable
to the real world arrival at the aircraft, descending from cruise
altitude. It’s really shitty.
A
retractable gear single just landed gear up, near me. The pilot listened to the functioning gear
warning horn on final, with the throttle all the way back. He simply didn’t select gear down, after an
incredible ONE HUNDRED hours of dual training type conversion, post-PPL. He had been trained by his instructor to not
lower the gear. They had done circuits
with the gear down. Sigh.
This
is how I do circuit training on a retractable gear (single or twin)
aircraft. At the risk of enraging the
legal beagles, I don’t fly a normal circuit, but rest assured there is no CARs contravention.
Takeoff
checks (including a pre-takeoff brief) complete, we line up at the runway
threshold. All the knobs forward, we
take off. Gear comes up. Climb power is set. At 500 AGL, we turn left 90 degrees and climb
to 2000 AGL and level off. Climb power
is used after leveling off, until we accelerate to cruise airspeed.
Trim
nose down as the airspeed increases.
Once the cruise airspeed is reached, cruise power is set, including
mixtures. Rather than screwing around
with EGT’s and such, I just set the mixtures for the known fuel flow (gph or
pph) for the given cruise power setting (MP and RPM). EGT’s will be perfect.
Now
for a 180 degree right turn. Once that
is complete, descend from 2000 AGL to 1000 AGL.
It may be helpful to reduce MP from cruise power by 5 inches (approved
by both Lycoming and Continental) before the descent, to avoid building
excessive speed with the gear up, which may make lowering the gear difficult
later because we are over the gear extension speed. Flying retractable gear aircraft, you will
struggle with this problem until you get some more experience and can stay
ahead of the aircraft.
As
a rule of thumb, in a retractable gear aircraft, you can go down, or you can
slow down, but you can’t do both at the same time. At least, not if you want to keep the CHT’s
in the green – you simply can’t haul the throttles all the way back, and ride
the props down in the descent. Speed
brakes are really handy for dealing with this, but you probably won’t have
those. Hint: landing gear is a good speed brake!
Anyways,
we level off at 1000 AGL and turn right, to join the downwind. Depending on the aircraft type, you may wish
to select 10 or 15 flap at this point – or even during
the descent. If you do everything right
with the power and the drag, and you get the aircraft down to the max gear
extension speed, abeam the middle of the runway, you can drop the gear.
Here’s
a trick that will send the four-bars harrumphing and perhaps even running
screaming from the room, wattles flapping up and down.
At
some point, you will level off and want to lower the gear, but you are far too
fast, because you didn’t think ahead of the aircraft in the descent. It happens.
One trick you can use is to pitch the aircraft 45 degrees nose up and
convert your excessive airspeed to altitude.
When the airspeed drops far enough, lower the gear, gently drop the nose
(don’t go negative on the G), and descend (with the drag of the gear) back to
your initial altitude. They don’t teach
that to straight and level pilots, but gosh, it works well.
Actually,
what works best with slippery, retractable gear aircraft is a level overhead
break from cruise speed, which uses G to bleed off airspeed so that you can
lower the gear. Again, four bars will go
bananas about that, too. But it works
marvelously, even though straight and level pilots are sure to whine about it.
Ok. You are now downwind, with perhaps 10 flap, and the gear down.
Select another stage of flaps (perhaps 20) and turn base. On base, you might wish to select another
stage of flaps – perhaps 30. After wings
level on final, you may want to make a final selection (e.g. 40) of flap.
The
objective, during the above, is to NOT be a throttle jockey. Ideally, you set the power in the descent,
and drop the gear and flaps and speed brakes as required, adjusting your
approach if you want, so that you don’t have to touch the power until the power
reduction just before touchdown.
Touch
down and roll the aircraft to the end of the runway, not using any brakes. Turn around, taxi back, and don’t grab at
knobs and levers when the aircraft is moving.
This is when people like to grab the gear lever instead of the
flaps. Don’t do that. Taxi back to the runway threshold, complete
your pre-takeoff check and brief, and take off again.
Rinse,
lather, repeat as it says on the shampoo bottle.
--
Sept
2014