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10-07-2008, 08:45 PM
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Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Huskerland, USA
Posts: 5,862
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"Go Around" When To Do It, and When Not To.
Another thread reminded me of a subject near and dear to me (for many reasons). Seems most pilots have never done a "Go Around" and are darn proud of it! This kind of macho ( I can make a landing no matter what! :mad ) can get you into trouble. I have had 3 occasions in 1,750 hours where a go around has saved lives, property, and lots of aggravations. Maybe I'm just a bad pilot, or maybe I'm over cautious., you be the judge. For me, I'm gonna make go around part of my flying.
1. I was a solo ultralight pilot doing many T&G's on a grass strip and it was approaching 0dark30. Practicing short field landings I was on final and looked up as I was told (to check out the rest of runway before touch down) and I noticed 3 black dots that were not there before. Instinctively, I hit the power and pulled the nose up and held it just before stall. I passed over 3 kids that got up and ran off the field. They thought it would be cool to hide in the tall grass on the runway.
2. I was on short final (with a passenger) on an unfamiliar private runway, in an LSA and a convertable car was paralleling the runway at a good speed. I looked up ahead and saw that the road crossed the runway and I could see a possible problem if the car did not see or hear me. Full power, go around. The car stopped at the intersection and all would have been fine, but I certainly did not know that. Later he told me I was silly for going around.
3. Learning how to land a tail dragger it is easy (for me anyway) to get into PIO (Pilot Induced Osculation) SEVERAL times I have hit the power and started flying again to kill the PIO and corrected the approach and made a "good" landing.
The point is, there are times when a "go around" is the best thing to do. I am certainly no expert when it comes to flying airplanes, I've just done it alot in many different airplanes. Don't be afraid to use it.  Better to have botched a landing and done a go around than to ball up a plane or worse hit something, or ground loop it.
When in any doubt do a go around. You'll just may be glad you did. 
__________________
RV-7 : In the hangar
RV-10 : In the hangar
RV-12 : Built and sold
RV-44 : 4 place helicopter on order.
Last edited by Geico266 : 10-07-2008 at 09:09 PM.
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10-07-2008, 09:17 PM
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Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Las Vegas
Posts: 736
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If you were as bad as I was first learning to land, I thought the go-around was just normal procedure!!  I love aborting a landing! I think of it as a life freebee!! I really think most get complacent and committed in their heads to get the rubber on the runway...think about it...push the throttle forward...arrest the decent...watch the airspeed accelerate...clean up the flaps...maintain airspeed, establish a positive rate of climb and do it all over again...what's the big deal?
See, the flying thing that came oh so natural to some of you, was a bear to us 40ish guys just learning...So this begs the question...Is it normal for the CFI to roll his eyes and say for the umpteenth time...Go-around? Or was it just me?...Heck I can do them in my sleep!!! I did get my PPL in 48 hours total time..and every approach since has not warranted the infamous go-around...ummm maybe once during a BFR...but it all came right back..hmm.. you might have a point Larry!! Practice makes perfect.  Might want to do a few for fun every once in a while!!
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Rick Sked
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10-07-2008, 10:04 PM
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Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: YSCN, Sydney, NSW
Posts: 53
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Sometimes I go around simply because I don't want to stop flying yet!! 
Perfect excuse to do another lap or two 
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10-07-2008, 10:20 PM
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Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Vancouver, WA USA
Posts: 908
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I fancy my self a peaty good pilot and have 700+ hours on my 4 since buying it a little over 3 years ago; I go around when ever things are not going just right, several times a year. If I flair a little high and add a little power but still don?t get it down right and the nose is getting high I just go around and try again. I have seen the affects of the proud pilot that wont go around and that wont be me, I don?t care if I have a passenger or on lookers, I do what ever it takes to do the best job I can even if it means going around, I?m happy to say it takes very little to trigger the go around for me. I have also gone around for being to long at a short runway and for people, animals, cars and airplanes coming on to the runway. If going around is not a normal part of flying for you than I recommend doing them occasionally just to keep the idea at the front of your mind, you will need it some day.
Russ
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10-07-2008, 10:39 PM
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Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: getting ready to move
Posts: 287
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should've done a go around..
i was a student pilot.. cross country solo, returning to home airport (on a military base) and the active runway (RWY 27) had a 5kt quartering tailwind.. i was on a 10 mile "base" (coming in from the south) and given clearance to land, as i got closer i noticed three E-2C's idling at the hold short, awaiting takeoff...
what i didn't think about was the 5kt quartering tailwind was blowing their propwash and exhaust all over my landing zone!! (not a problem for an experienced pilot) but i still new!
coming in for landing, everything looks good, landing checklist done, right on the glideslope, then just before i flare, i hit the propwash and exhaust, tossed me around like a rag doll!! so i stayed high for a little while till it cleared then came back down flared to high but was powering for altitude, so i settled gently on to the 8000'+ runway.
lesson learned.. i from now on do a go around if something doesn't seem right..
i had the mentality "this is an 8000' rnwy, i do not need to go around..."
i'm not so cocky anymore.
__________________
Ian
RV-8 economically on hold... short term hold. 
AME2, USN
Last edited by lightning : 10-07-2008 at 10:42 PM.
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10-07-2008, 11:19 PM
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Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Edgewood, NM
Posts: 122
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Just did a go around tonight.
Runway 27 and the sun has just gone down behind the mountains to the west but it's still pretty bright and right where I need to look. The old Cherokee's plexi windshield isn't exactly crystal clear and I find myself misjudging aim point and flare. Touched down but bloomed into the air again a bit...  Should have made the decision before that point but finally throttled up and went around. The additional time in the pattern allowed for the light to change enough to actually see the runway, resulting in a fairly nice, "normal" landing. (There's also a lesson to be learned here about not attempting landings on rwy 27 at sunset!)
I envy those who have mastered the art of landing such that they've only had to make 3 or 4 go arounds in 4000+ hours of flying. As for me, I'm afraid my skills demand that I know how to, let's say, "Go around early. Go around often!" 
__________________
Mike Davisson
Edgewood, NM
RV-14A #140805
VS complete, Rudder in progress
2020 =VAF= donor
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10-08-2008, 03:59 AM
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Hamilton, New Zealand
Posts: 632
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12 hours, 1st solo and go around...
...that was back in 2000 (which is the last time I flew), though actually it wasn't my decision. ATC told me to go around from short final because a big jet was coming in to land. So I did. Wasn't really sure what to do since the instructor had never actually covered the scenario. I opened the power, cleaned the flaps up, flew straight and level on runway heading until intersecting the climb out (or where it would be) and then added power to climb out as I would normally have done. Went around and landed back as normal. Did I do the right thing? [rhetorical Q] Instructor didn't seem too concerned at the time.
I don't think I'll ever worry about going around; better that than the potential alternative and my ego isn't so big I care.
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10-08-2008, 05:24 AM
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VAF moderator
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: In Walter Mitty's dreams
Posts: 947
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Go arounds
Go arounds are free gentlemen.... The key to a lot of things... including go-arounds is not having an ego. Besides... the time spent above the earth does not count towards your time on earth  Generally in the airplane, if I'm flying with somebody new... we don't have an altitude go or no-go point.. if we don't get the warm and fuzzy on approach, then we go around..... We are never committed on an altitude basis.... I've had full touchdown go arounds because of stuff on the runway all the way to go arounds when I'm on downwind and need some extra time for a formation of airplanes to do their thing. In the helicopter, I teach high orbit, low orbit, one pass over the spot.... and then final descent. I've made students go around for no particular reason.. just so their not afraid to do it. SWOP is what I use. Suitability, Winds Obstacles and Path. Funny things happen to aircraft when you jam on the power... so a nice gradual increase in power and away we go... if you jam on the power... then in certain engines you can unbalance the crank counterweights.... and depending on how fast you jam on the power, you can have the aircraft kick one way (depending on the rotation of the prop) or the other... making an already uncomfortable situation worse to a student pilot. (And we are all student pilots if we have our head on correctly)
Best
Brian Wallis
__________________
Brian Wallis
(Exempt AND VAF dues paid 02 FEB 16)
Callsign: VOODOO sold RV3 to pay for ratings  !!!
AP/IA COM/Multi/IFR/350 type
Last edited by brianwallis : 10-08-2008 at 07:03 AM.
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10-08-2008, 06:09 AM
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Cary, N.C.
Posts: 1,216
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Ian / "lightning"...just something to consider...
The E2's engines & props at ground idle produce no thrust. Even with brakes off, the E2 will not tend to move. The props are constant speed controlled, and the go levers actually only change the prop pitch. The speed governors add fuel as needed to keep the props spinning at their established %rpm. The design of this engine extracts almost all the hot gas to spin the prop, so very little exist the nozzle as thrust.
I believe what you experienced was the smell of the "drifting" jet exhaust and the air turbulence was caused by the close proximity of these large carrier aircraft upwind of your quartering tailwind situation.
The take away here is that any large structure close to the active (billboard, hanger, large transport) can cause this situation.
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10-08-2008, 08:11 AM
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Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Near Scipio, in Southern Indiana
Posts: 1,779
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Two (of many more) go-arounds bring a smile. One, in a C-150, was in West Virginia many years ago at an airport carved into the side of a hill. I was high and too hot and the turbulence took me by surprise. On the second attempt I was ready for it and did a pretty good job. The FBO asked me where I was from and said, "You did a pretty good job for a flatlander."
Years later I was landing a Phantom ultralight on a grass strip I was very familiar with. But this time, there were numerous white rocks in my path, big enough to cause problems. I went around and picked a spot where I knew I could miss them. Turned out to be puffball mushrooms!
The go-around can save your bacon. It is nice to now fly something that does them so well.
Bob Kelly
__________________
Bob Kelly, Scipio, Indiana
Tech Counselor
Founder, Eagle's Nest Projects
President, AviationNation, Inc
RV-9A N908BL, Flying
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