Contact Approaches

Cirrus Pilot Proficiency Program (CPPP)-Conroe, KCXO

ByHank Gibson September 27, 2015October 3, 2015

The Cirrus Pilot Proficiency Program is coming back to the Lone Star Airport in Conroe, TX (KCXO) on October 23rd-25th.  Wondering what the CPPP program is?

“CPPP offers a weekend event for Cirrus owners and their partners that focuses on Cirrus-specific knowledge and flying proficiency.  We bring some of the most experienced flight instructors who regularly teach in all kinds of Cirrus airplanes flown for all kinds of missions.  We have prepared an extensive syllabus of ground courses that complement the transition training and delve into areas of greatest need for Cirrus pilots.” (from CirrusPilots.org)

The weekend starts off with a group dinner on Friday night. The Saturday morning ground session focuses on General Aviation Safety with special focus on the Cirrus accident statistics.  Normal and emergency procedures are also reviewed.

In the afternoon on Saturday, the attendees are split into two groups.  The first group has a myriad of options for ground sessions covering all topics related to Cirrus aircraft and operations.  The second group flies, then they switch for the second 3 hour session.  Sunday brings the same split, with more courses offered and more flying.

While the Cirrus pilots are flying and learning more about their airplanes, CPPP offers a Partner in Command course for flying partners on Saturday.  This allows flying partners to be more comfortable in the airplane and teaches them what to do if something were to happen to the pilot.

All in all, attending a CPPP will improve both Cirrus knowledge and Cirrus flying skills.  It’s highly recommended for all Cirrus pilots.

To register for the CPPP event in Conroe, check out the CPPP website.

Preventing Gear Up Landings

ByAndrew Robinson September 27, 2016April 5, 2017

On the evening of November 3rd, 2015, I was returning to my home airport of Lancaster from Pittsburgh in my company’s Aerostar, after being out on charter all day. It was dark out as I entered the traffic pattern at Lancaster. After an uneventful approach, I was cleared to land behind a Mooney. The spacing looked good as I turned final, but, as I was nearing the threshold, I started to become concerned that the Mooney wouldn’t be clear of the runway in time for me to land. At that moment, over the radio I heard an uncomfortable transmission from the Mooney pilot: “Tower, Mooney ABC has landed gear up.”

It took the tower controller a minute to grasp what was going on, and I was on about a 1-2 mile final when I was instructed to go around. Thankfully, the Mooney came to a stop in such a position that I was able to use the other intersecting runway, and was on the ground only a few minutes later. I can assure you, however, that I’ve never checked my “3 green” so many times in one traffic pattern as after that incident. Thankfully, no one was hurt, but there sure was an impressive amount of emergency equipment on the runway as I taxied back to my hangar.

In aviation, there’s a saying that goes: “There are two types of pilots. Those who have landed with their gear up, and those that will.” I don’t like that saying. The potential of a gear up landing (as a result of pilot error) is something that has always been a risk that I have worked hard to avoid. Not only is a gear up landing embarrassing; but it’s also an extremely expensive black mark on any pilot’s career.

According to a July 2006, article in Aviation Consumer, the estimated cost of repairs following a gear up landing for an A-36 Bonanza would be about $27,000 and about 3 weeks of down time. 25 years ago, even my beloved E33 Bonanza was the victim of a gear up landing. While it was neither me nor my dad flying our airplane that day, the event stays in its history and reduces its value should the time ever come to sell it.

That incident in 1990 resulted in approximately $25,000-30,000 in repairs. The cause of the incident was classic: the pilot put the gear down at the normal time, but then had his downwind extended by tower. He brought the gear back up to fly the longer downwind, but forgot to put it back down later when he was cleared to land. Like many pilots, he had a set routine time when he normally put the gear down, and when his routine was changed, he didn’t remember to lower the gear once more.

Unfortunately, no matter what experience level one may be at, no pilot is immune to the possibility of such a mistake. The following are 5 tips that I have learned in my time flying that have helped myself and others minimize the chance of a gear-up landing occurring:

1. Know your aircraft systems: What are the operating perimeters on your airplane’s gear warning system? Most airplanes have a designated speed or power setting at which the gear warning horn will sound in the event that the gear isn’t down and locked. In the Aerostar that I was flying, the gear horn was supposed to come on at 15” of manifold pressure with the gear up, but in practice, it didn’t come on until much lower than that. It has since been adjusted, but at the time it was important for me to know that if I had left the gear up, the horn wouldn’t have sounded in a timely enough manner for me to go around, much less lower it prior to touchdown. Most likely it would have just added to the noise of metal on concrete as I pulled the power all the way back in the landing flare.
2. Don’t override gear-up warning systems: They were put there for a reason! Even if you’re out doing maneuvers and the horn is blasting in your ear for half an hour, resist the temptation to simply pull the circuit breaker or push the warning silencer to make it shut up. If a pilot disables the gear-up warning horn and then later forgets to put the gear down on landing, he or she will have a much worse headache on their hands than the one that the horn would have given them.
3. Use your checklists and memory items: It doesn’t matter how much a pilot knows about his or her airplane, or the procedures for it. Distractions happen. Mistakes Happen. Always consult the checklist for confirmation that you’ve accomplished all the essential tasks before landing. Additionally, if you haven’t already, work on developing call outs which you perform out loud regardless of whether you are alone in the airplane or not. Whenever I’m landing an airplane, I start with my flows, go through my GUMPS (Gas-Under carriage- mixture- props- seat belt) checks, then do the printed checklist, and finally when on short final I call out “short final, cleared to land, three green.” I’ve had several passengers tease me about doing the “three green” call out while I was flying aircraft that didn’t have retractable landing gear. But, I’d much rather be in the habit of checking every time regardless of what I’m flying than forgetting to check when it is necessary.
4. Use your available resources and develop healthy habits: If I have someone riding with me, I generally ask them to confirm that there are 3 green lights glowing on the instrument panel. Even if that person isn’t a pilot, they will probably enjoy the opportunity to be involved, and it’s a good way for me to stay in the habit of checking the gear lights to ensure that everything is properly down and locked. I’ve also found that intentionally leaving your hand on the gear lever until you have gear safe lights is a good idea. Forcing yourself to keep your hand on the handle until you have the all important lights obligates you to actually observe the indications instead of simply throwing the lever and moving onto something else. This way, if you only get an indication of 2 greens you’ll be aware of it right away and have more time to respond appropriately. It also helps you to learn the normal length of time it takes for the gear to extend or retract, which will be helpful to you to be aware of any abnormalities in the gear system.
5. Upgrade your aircraft’s gear-up warnings: There’s a variety of ways you can improve your aircraft’s ability to warn you of a potential gear-up landing. For student pilots or pilots new to complex aircraft, it could be something as simple as a red post-it note on the panel to remind you to verify the gear position prior to landing. Or, if you own an aircraft that doesn’t have an effective way to warn the pilot of a gear-up landing, consider investing in an aftermarket gear-up warning system – surely the extra price of such an upgrade is a small amount next to the cost of repairing the damage from a gear-up landing!

Always remember, regardless of experience, no pilot is immune to the possibility of a gear up landing. The best way to safeguard yourself is to discipline yourself in the use of flows, checklists, and call outs. Things like gear warning horns, visual reminders, and other systems are a useful back up, but they shouldn’t be relied upon to save your bacon if you don’t get the gear down at the proper time. Fortunately, in most gear up landings, the pilot and passengers are able to walk away uninjured – but that doesn’t lessen the embarrassment or financial burden of the event. So, keep your chin up, your gear down, and remember….THREE GREEN

3 Tips to Better Landings

ByHank Gibson December 21, 2017December 21, 2017

In my 3,000+ hours of flight training, I have developed some tips and tricks to help people fly better.  With teaching landings, I have 3 specific tips that will make smoother landings every time, guaranteed.

A Good Pattern

A wise flight instructor whom I would love to give credit to (but don’t know who it is!) once said that a good landing starts off with a good traffic pattern.  So true!  A good landing all begins with the setup.  This is true for a VFR rectangular traffic pattern or an IFR instrument approach.  Flying the proper speeds and being at the proper AGL altitudes helps immensely in making a good landing. Being at 600 feet AGL on a 1/2 mile final (or the alternative of 60 feet off the ground on a mile final!) makes it hard to make a good landing.

Proper Use & Understanding of Pitch and Power

Once flaps are used in the pattern, the plane is now on the back side of the power curve (or in the region of reverse command).  Power is now being used to control the plane’s rate of descent while pitch is being used to control airspeed.  The key is, both pitch and power work together, so if the pilot changes the power, he’ll also need to change the pitch and vice versa.

The common mistake I see here is when the airplane gets low on final, the pilot tends to (quite naturally) pitch up.  All this does is bleed off airspeed and cause the airplane to sink faster.  The proper input would be to add power, then adjust the pitch for airspeed.

Look Down the Runway

Now that we have gotten to the point of the round-out and touchdown, it’s the most important part.  The best thing the pilot can do to make the best landing possible, is to look at the trees at the end of the runway.  When I worked with college students, I told them to find the owl in the trees at the end of the runway.

The tendency is to stare at the pavement (or concrete) the whole way down to the landing.  When a pilot’s eyes are fixated on the ground, this destroys his depth perception and causes a level off too low to the runway, resulting in a 3 point landing and/or a bounce.

By looking at the trees at the end of the runway, this gives the pilot much better depth perception and allows him to properly judge where to level off the airplane.

The question now is when should the pilot start looking at the trees?  My recommendation is crossing the threshold of the runway.  For some, it works better to start looking at the trees when turning final.  Others, right before the level off.  Regardless, find that owl!

The Piper Saratoga Turbo

ByHank Gibson June 20, 2014June 20, 2014

Recently, I assisted with the delivery of a 2007 Piper Saratoga Turbo from San Antonio to New York City.  It was a very nicely equipped airplane, complete with a Garmin G1000 panel, an STEC 55x autopilot, and air conditioning.  The owner joined me on the flight back to get trained in the airplane, getting him comfortable in it over our 2 day excursion back to NYC.  Total flight time was 12 hours, though that did include several stops along the way and landing practice at the airports we stopped at.

The 6 seat Turbo Saratoga is a very comfortable, very capable flying machine.  It is made for hauling, with a gross weight of 3,600 pounds, but that’s not to say it isn’t lacking in comfort, either.  The rear cabin has 4 seats, 2 facing forward and 2 facing rear.  It would be a little tight for 4 full size adults in the back seat.  To avoid knee knocking, the plane is an excellent 4 person and bags aircraft (or 4 adults and 2 kids).

The really nice part about the Piper Saratoga is the baggage door.  Unlike the Bonanza, the Piper Saratoga has a baggage door that opens to the baggage compartment, creating a much easier way to load and unload baggage.  The nose baggage compartment, which holds an additional 100 pounds, is a very nice feature, allowing the bag load to be spread out.

We typically saw cruise speeds of 155-165 KTAS depending on altitude.  The highest we went was only about 9,000 feet, so we didn’t get up real high to see what the single turbo could do.  Even though the Lycoming TIO-540 engine burns about 20 gallons an hour, with 102 gallons of gas on board, the fuel consistently outlasted our desire to continue flying.

Being equipped with the G1000 was a very nice feature of this particular Piper Saratoga.  The screens are nice and big, larger than the displays on a high wing Cessna or a Corvalis.  That allows for easier viewing of approach plates, NEXRAD, and the engine gauges.

There are always downsides to an airplane, and the Saratoga is no exception.  The STEC Autopilot leaves some to be desired as I felt it hampered the capability of the G1000 when shooting approaches because the 12 knot crosswind limitation on the autopilot. You can still use the autopilot on an approach with higher than 12 knot crosswinds, but the autopilot tends to search around for the final approach course.

The air conditioning works very nicely, though it did have a tendency to freeze up at altitude.  We discovered that quickly and just decided to turn it off and leave the blower on, since it was cool enough up high anyway.

Overall, the Turbo Saratoga is a very nice airplane.  The speed leaves a little to be desired (you can get 10 KTAS more out of a Bonanza with a Continental engine, about 20 knots more if it is a Turbo Bonanza), but it is very high on comfort.  The Piper Saratoga makes for a good family airplane or as a hauler.  I liked the airplane a lot and thoroughly enjoyed my time in it.