CLOUD TOPS

When you call for a preflight weather briefing, information about the height of cloud bases and the extent of cloud cover helps you make your go/no-go decision.

What about cloud tops? Flying above cloud layers is not routine for student pilots—and the federal aviation regulations prohibit it "when the flight cannot be made with visual reference to the surface." Yet many pilots hoping for a complete weather picture ask how to find information about cloud tops.

"But that's precisely the problem. For all the meteorological advances in recent decades, apparently very little effort has been put into technologies that could help us in this regard. So for the near future, anyway, we're left to rely on just a few sources of information about tops," including area forecasts, radar summary charts, satellite imagery, atmospheric soundings, and pilot reports (pireps).

An area forecast (FA) is the most familiar of these resources. Cloud top information found in the fourth section of an FA is general. That's because the FA "gives a picture of clouds, general weather conditions, and visual meteorological conditions (VMC) expected over a large area encompassing several states," explains Chapter 10 of the Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge.

Pireps help, but Horne offered this reminder: "Pireps promise the most accuracy, but please check the dates and times of any pireps. It's not unusual for pireps to be a day old, yet still be posted. The problem with pireps is that most pilots never make them, so we are deprived of good cloud-top information by some of the best weather observers in the world."

Why is flying VFR above clouds discouraged for the inexperienced pilot? One risk is becoming trapped above a scattered or broken cloud cover that unexpectedly closes up to solid overcast. But even when breaks remain, pilots have encountered spatial disorientation and lost control during descent, as documented in this accident analysis. Steering well clear of all clouds remains the best bet.

'MAINTAIN VFR'

Two recent Training Tips discussed cloud cover ("What's the ceiling?" and "Cloud Tops"). Those clouds in the distance off your wing tip must be given wide berth, too. One day you might receive a clearance to enter or depart controlled airspace accompanied by the cautionary instruction, "Maintain VFR at all times." Why did the controller say that?

The caution was meant to remind you that you, as the pilot, should never let a radar vector or other instruction get you in trouble. "In many cases, particularly at radar facilities, the people on the ground have little idea of the flight conditions beyond what has been relayed by pilots," wrote Bruce Landsberg, executive director of the AOPA Air Safety Foundation, in the safety article "Just say 'unable.'" This isn't a concern only for instrument pilots trying to comply with instructions while avoiding turbulence or icy clouds. "A similar situation involving benign clouds can develop with a VFR pilot operating in Class B or C airspace. Pilots not on an IFR flight plan are expected to maintain VFR—period. If an assigned heading or altitude is going to put the airplane too close to a cloud, then advise the controller that you are 'unable to maintain VFR' and suggest an alternative heading or altitude."

Some experience flying nearer than is comfortable to clouds, in the company of your instructor, will eliminate any skepticism you may have about the importance of this responsibility. Horne argues that gradual exposure to poorer weather conditions should be included in any comprehensive flight training. "I've always been an advocate for flight instructors taking primary students on flights in marginal VFR weather—both in the traffic pattern and away from it. This way, the student can see what a 1,000-foot ceiling and three-statute-mile visibility (the VFR weather minimums at airports with controlled airspace designated to the surface) looks like. The same goes for flights at altitude, flying in three-mile visibilities and trying to keep the prescribed distance from clouds. The student quickly learns that three miles isn't much visibility at all."

Even when there's no controller reminding you to maintain VFR, remember those wise words. They'll keep you safe!

'POSITIVE' CONTROL

Most pilots spend most of their flying time operating in controlled airspace. But for the different classes of controlled airspace, there are varying degrees of control. The largest swath of controlled airspace isn't controlled beyond your obligation to observe weather requirements for VFR flight within its boundaries.

The basic differences can be summed up in the term "positive control." As defined in the Pilot/Controller Glossary of the Aeronautical Information Manual, positive control "means control of all air traffic, within designated airspace, by air traffic control."

Class A airspace, starting at 18,000 feet, is an example. Entry requires a clearance under instrument flight rules from ATC. Before airspace was classified by letters, Class A airspace was known as the positive control area. Pilots operate under positive control in Class B airspace, surrounding the busiest airports. You may not enter Class B airspace without a specific clearance from ATC. "Class B airspace provides for positive control of both VFR and IFR traffic.

Class C airspace, surface-based and centered on a towered airport with radar service, requires that communications be established, but specific clearance into the airspace is not required. In Class D airspace, centered on an airport with an operating control tower, there is also a requirement to establish two-way communications. The airspace reverts to Class E when the tower is not operating [Class G if weather information is not available].

In the vast reaches of Class E airspace a pilot may fly with no ATC interaction—provided the appropriate weather requirements for VFR flight are satisfied. However, it is recommended that pilots make use of radar flight following when and where it is available. And nowadays it is prudent to check notams for temporary flight restrictions along any route.

Positive control can require different procedures for different kinds of flights in airspace such as the Washington Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

CLIMBING, COOLING, CLEARING

CLIMBING, COOLING, CLEARING
What's the description of a well-executed climb to altitude after takeoff? Setting up the aircraft at the airspeed that delivers the desired rate of climb (V_x or V_y) is the first goal. Trimming the aircraft to maintain the climb airspeed comes next. But is that all there is to it?

Not exactly. In a climb to cruise altitude, collision avoidance and the efficient management of your aircraft's engine also demand attention. The designated pilot examiner who will conduct your flight at checkride time will want to see that you have the big picture in mind.

When climbing after takeoff, especially during warm weather, monitor your oil-temperature gauge for any signs of engine overheating. The design of an air-cooled engine (the type installed in most general aviation aircraft) "is less effective during ground operations, takeoffs, go-arounds, and other periods of high-power, low-airspeed operations," explains Chapter 5 of the Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge. The solution: "High engine temperatures can be decreased by increasing the airspeed and/or decreasing the power."

If the pilot's operating handbook for your trainer calls for full-power climbs, lower the nose and climb at a higher airspeed, once safely above obstructions. You should also consider leaning the fuel-air mixture.

Collision risks are elevated during climb because the nose-up climb attitude of the aircraft curtails forward visibility. In an extended climb, lower the nose at regular intervals and scan the airspace ahead. Accompany these clearing maneuvers by performing gentle, coordinated banks left and right so you can scan zones obscured by the wings. Also remember blind spots created by a high glareshield or other aircraft design features, as discussed in the AOPA Air Safety Foundation's Collision Avoidance Safety Advisor.

Clearly, there's more to a good climb than just holding the correct airspeed!

Relative Wind

RELATIVE WIND
It doesn't take long for a student pilot studying basic aerodynamics to come upon a term so fundamental to piloting that understanding it unlocks the door to understanding many advanced principles of flight. The term is relative wind.

The glossary of the Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge defines relative wind as "the direction of the airflow with respect to the wing. If a wing moves forward horizontally, the relative wind moves backward horizontally. Relative wind is parallel to and opposite the flightpath of the airplane."

Sounds simple enough, but there are nuances. To visualize relative wind, you must understand the flight path of the aircraft. "As students, pilots learn that relative wind occurs opposite the direction of flight. That is not to be confused with the direction the nose is pointing.

Note that the safety advisor's illustration demonstrates how relative wind is used to diagram the aircraft's angle of attack—the source of lift. "Wings are able to create lift by accelerating air over their top surfaces, which are curved expressly for that purpose. As the oncoming air—called the relative wind—strikes a wing's leading edge, it splits and travels aft until meeting again at the trailing edge. The airfoil's curve guarantees that the air flowing over the top surface travels faster than the air passing beneath the wing.

Grasping relative wind is a simple step that will simplify your introduction to aerodynamics.

THE 'E' WORD

Training TiNobody wants to face an emergency while piloting an aircraft. But learning to fly requires studying and practicing how to respond if things go wrong. Rule One is always: Fly the airplane! Then, activate the appropriate emergency procedure or checklist from your pilot's operating handbook. Another decision is what assistance to request from air traffic control.

When a pilot declares an emergency, he or she is granted authority to deviate from rules and clearances to the extent required to meet that emergency. That's a big responsibility, and a pilot could be called upon later to justify the actions taken. Your knowledge of emergency authority is probed in questions on the private pilot knowledge test. Here is a sample question:

What action, if any, is appropriate if the pilot deviates from an ATC instruction during an emergency and is given priority?

A) Take no special action since you are pilot in command.

B) File a detailed report within 48 hours to the chief of the appropriate ATC facility, if requested.

C) File a report to the FAA administrator, as soon as possible.

Distress is defined as 'a condition of being threatened by serious and/or imminent danger and of requiring immediate assistance.' And, urgency is defined as 'a condition of being concerned about safety and of requiring timely but not immediate assistance; a potential distress condition.' This is a good starting point to help you determine whether or not a specific situation is an emergency," Yodice wrote, adding, "The FAA further advises that an aircraft is in at least an urgency condition the moment the pilot 'becomes doubtful about' position, fuel endurance, weather, or any other condition that could adversely affect flight safety."

"Attitudes of Flight"

During your flight training you should have been introduced to attitude flying. That is, you should have learned that a certain attitude and power setting will give you a certain performance. Whether it's a climb at a particular rate, a cruise speed or whatever the lesson should be clear. Setting an attitude along with a power setting will give you something fairly predictable.

I've been noticing that some pilots will place the airplane in a very steep up or down pitch attitude chasing an airspeed or deviation in altitude. The attitude they have selected is not possible to maintain before either a stall occurs or on the other nose down case we are into the yellow arc. Pilot's who aren't aware of the "Attitudes of Flight" typically are not smooth in their control inputs because they are bracketing airspeed, altitude etc. without knowing what the end limits are. For example, if you didn't know much about flying and I told you to climb at an airspeed of 60 knots in a Cessna 172 you might start pulling back on the control wheel. This would definitely cause the airspeed to go down. If we started this from cruise flight at say 120 knots you may just keep pulling on the control wheel until the airplane became vertical. You'd get 60 knots alright, but soon you'd be stalled because the attitude and power setting were not possible to sustain. In the case of the pilot who understands the attitudes of flight, that pilot would raise the nose of the airplane to a predetermined attitude and apply power. The airspeed would begin to decrease and eventually settle near 60 knots in a sustainable attitude.

I find that pilots who use EFIS (Glass Cockpits) are the most likely not to understand the attitudes of flight. This is because the big display screams "stare at me", as it's really quite a colorful and interesting thing to look at. I mean that nicely. I think the G1000 is very cool to look at. Not stare at, but look at.

Anyway, the fix for all of this is to fly without the use of attitude indicators and EFIS for a while. Develop a sense for what attitudes are sustainable and desirable for the main realms of flight you mostly do...climbs, descents, cruise, etc. You'll not only smooth out your flying, you'll also see an unusual attitude coming way before it gets out of hand....

THE ACTIVE RUNWAY

THE ACTIVE RUNWAY
Whether heading out to fly, or returning to land, one bit of information every pilot needs is an answer to the question, "What's the active runway?" At towered airports you'll get the answer on the automated weather recording or when ATC replies to your call-up with instructions: "Taxi to Runway 33." At nontowered airports, procedures are less formal, but usually the correct course of action is clear. Automated weather will provide surface winds. The fixed-base operator may respond to your request for an airport advisory with runway information. Or monitoring the common traffic advisory frequency may reveal which runway is "active."

Occasionally the runway in use seems badly matched to the winds. It could be that a student pilot is getting a lesson in crosswinds. Or a large aircraft may opt to use the longest runway available. Now you have a decision to make. "Remember, this is a nontowered airport. The fixed-base operator providing you with active-runway information is not an air traffic controller and cannot require you to land on a runway that you consider inappropriate, if, for example, winds favor another," explained the Sept. 16, 2005, "Training Tip: Airport Advisory."

Scenarios like that are common. "Whenever a student asks me what the active runway is, my response is to shrug my shoulders and reply, 'I don't know, you're the one landing the airplane, not me. If it were my landing to do I would probably pick the runway with the most favorable wind conditions," said one flight instructor in "Instructor Reports: Pattern Operations Revisited." The article also discusses the provocative case of a business jet and a single-engine training airplane seeking to use opposite ends of the same runway, a situation that raised challenging questions for all pilots.

What if the winds are calm? Then the runway choice is yours—in most cases. Prepare to fly by always checking AOPA's Airport Directory for any special procedures, such as this requirement in effect at Bar Harbor, Maine (BHB): "durg VFR conds when wind speed is less than 5 knots as rprtd by AWOS or UNICOM; all acft using ry 4-22 shall tkof & lnd ry 22."

If there's an active runway, make sure it is also the correct runway to use.

"Hold Short - What pilot's are doing Wrong"

"Hold Short - What pilot's are doing Wrong"

In the image on the right you can see what all pilot's know. It's the hold short lines that are pavement markings at entry points to a runway.

The two solid lines facing away from the runway mean that an Air Traffic Control (ATC) Clearance is required before crossing them.

The two dashed lines on the runway side of the hold short lines mean that the pilot does not need an ATC clearance to cross them this way.

Now what I've said above is probably not news to any pilot or student pilot but what comes next may be real news to you.

I've been noticing that some pilots taxi up to the hold short lines and stop with the propeller just behind the two yellow lines. If they are taxiing straight up to the hold short line 90 degrees to the runway this usually doesn't cause a problem.

The problem occurs when the pilot is taxiing from a parallel taxiway and approaches the hold short lines from the side. In this case if the pilot turns toward the runway on the taxiway centerline and places the propeller close to the hold short lines then the wing will be over the hold short lines.

It's critical to know that no part of the airplane can be over the hold short lines.

If this happens then the controller will report a pilot deviation to the local FAA office for further investigation of the pilot and his/her training. This means at a minimum a telephone interview and counseling with an FAA inspector. In a fair number of cases the pilot is re evaluated (Takes a checkride with an inspector) for the pilot certificate he/she holds or the pilot certificate is suspended until the retest is done.

I've noticed this happening at several airports around the San Francisco Bay area. Controllers aren't noticing it yet but it's only a matter of time.

So be sure that NO PART of the airplane is over the solid yellow lines and you'll be just FINE.....

By the way. There is a cool project underway by a company that does 3D type markings. They are trying to get the marking approved for use with the FAA. Click on the image below to read a little more about it.

The 180 turn

All the Wrong Reasons

I had a good opportunity to interview a person who did a tremendous amount of research into the idea of turning back to the airport after an engine failure on takeoff. I've been looking into this for a long time and never found any substantial content that was all in one place that could direct me with an exact or close to exact way to make a good decision. Well, that changed as I listened to Steve Phillipson describe his research and also his one and only demonstration of his technique.

Before you listen to the audio interview I should let you know that Steve first got interested in this when a graduate student did a mathematical representation of turning back at various bank angles, altitudes, speeds etc. With that result in hand Steve, a computer scientist by training, set up a computer model of the concept and verified the results. In addition he went out in his airplane and demonstrated it. To follow up on this story, I went into a flight simulator and repeated the same results that Steve did for real. So, I think we're on to something here.

Click this link to hear the interview.