Subjective question on turbulence. When do you personally slow down?

jcarne · #1 12-31-2021, 01:13 PM

I have been talking to other pilots about turbulence lately and it seems everyone's take on it is slightly different. In our RVs we cruise quite fast which leads to my question. When do you guys personally find it is time to slow down?

I for one am not bothered by good amounts of turbulence and and can take quite a bit. However, passengers don't necessary share the same viewpoint and ultimately I'm curious when it should be considered the prudent thing to do in our RVs. Yes, there are things to avoid to stay clear of the nasty stuff but the bumps are unavoidable at times.

What's your approach?

Kyle Boatright · #2 12-31-2021, 01:18 PM

I back off on power/speed when I start getting concerned about bouncing my head off of the canopy. That can be uncomfortable and can damage things. Worst case, it can be incapacitating.

abwaldal@gmail.com · #3 12-31-2021, 01:59 PM

I had this same question put before me a few years back.
My answer was " if you bash your head hard enough on the canopy it will knock some sense into you. That is, You should have been slowing down before the head bashing."
The guy just laughed as I did also.
Have had my head bashed when I wasn't even in turbulence. Them sneaky bumps are out to get you.
I like my head. So I slow down appropriately. NO hard rules here.
My three cents worth and not a penny more.
Art

airguy · #4 12-31-2021, 02:10 PM

From a structural perspective, slow to manuevering speed when you're in turbulence sufficient to approach the G-limits of the airplane.

From a personal comfort perspective, ask a hundred people and get a hundred answers.

Turbulence doesn't bother me until I start bouncing my head off the canopy - then I know I'm about 2 minutes late pulling the power back. On a cross-country I usually cruise high enough that my IAS is pretty close to manuevering speed anyway, and turbulence up there is considerably reduced unless you're in mountain wave. I've had a few exceptions though...

jcarne · #5 12-31-2021, 02:17 PM

Glad to see I'm not the only one that thinks head bashing is the pull power point. haha

It happened to me once in phase 1 and it was just a random one that day. Since then I always keep my harness fairly tight too. Luckily those Crows are pretty dang comfy.

RWoodard · #6 12-31-2021, 02:20 PM

My RV-3 cruises much closer to Vne than Va, so I'm pretty aware of turbulence. If it's the standard summer lumpity-bump stuff, I'll press on and slow from maybe 170ktas to around 155ktas. If it's serious, frontal-based stuff where I've cinched my belts down and I'm still concerned about bashing my head, then I'll slow way back to around 130ktas.

Not long after I purchased my RV-3, I followed a very experienced RV-7a pilot to and from Granby (KGNB) airport--over the first big mountains west of the Denver/Boulder area. His policy was to clear the mountains by a wide margin and if the winds at altitude were more than 15 knots in any direction, he slowed to Va until well clear of the mountains. I think this is pretty solid advice.

I got popped really good during the summer of 2020 when I was running high power settings at low altitude to break in a new engine. There was a little "wiggle" of a bump just enough to make me consider starting to slow down and then before I could act on the thought, I really got smacked. Felt like a direct top-to-bottom blow. My head hit the canopy so hard that I actually expected to see cracks in the canopy.

Of course, I'm single-seat, so passenger considerations aren't an issue, but slower speeds sure do make the bumps more tolerable.

bkc3921 · #7 12-31-2021, 02:20 PM

+1 on getting head-bounced. Did it a couple of years ago in ZERO turbulence, and it almost knocked me out. Luckily I was only 10 from the airport, which I made with a splitting headache. Subsequently, I'm a big believer in 5 point harnesses, which I now keep tight somewhere between uncomfortable and unbearable. If I can move at all, they are too loose for me now. Also (off topic), I never listen to music while flying. I just may miss some important piece of information that may save my bacon later. Too distracting! YMMV.

A2022 · #8 12-31-2021, 02:34 PM

the worst turbulence I have experienced is mountain waves on the leeward wind side 10 to 20 miles down range. it's bad when you're holding the base of both sticks and still banging your head. I give them a wider berth now.

plehrke · #9 12-31-2021, 05:49 PM

If I have trouble pushing button on the panel it is time to slow down.

RV10Pilot · #10 12-31-2021, 06:01 PM

Our RVs can take more bouncing around than I can. And I agree, slow down before you bang your head on the canopy.

I would be more concerned with your passenger, especially if they don't have many miles under their belt. Look at your passengers to see their reaction and if they have white knuckles slow down or land. Ask if they are ok, suggest "if we slow down it will be smother." or just slow down and spend an extra 10 minutes flying.