LettersFromFlyoverCountry
Well Known Member
There was an accident on Madeline Island in the Apostle Islands of Lake Superior a few days ago that continues to bother me because we hear of these things time and time again.
The gentleman made a go-around on his first approach and upon his second approach, the airplane crashed. The weather appeared to be no factor.
I realize, of course, that the NTSB will ultimately decide the cause but this one has all the classic symptoms of a stall from base to final, when a pilot misses the extended centerline, yanks it back to the left, throws in a little right rudder to coax the nose back around, and momentarily loses where his airspeed is.
Coincidentally, I had spent about a half hour on the Aviation Safety Institute course on essential aerodynamics and spins which addressed this situation.Yeah, I was already aware of it, but it helped to have a refresher.
I had also been relaxing out on the deck (hey, if I can't fly the RV7A I might as well spend my time learning something!) reading this month's Flight Training magazine article on spins and stalls.
I get mad at myself for not being more focused at this stage of the flight. I get mad at others for making the same mistakes I find myself making.
If I ever get back in the air, the first thing I'm going to do is set a goal of shoving in the throttle and going around more often.
The gentleman made a go-around on his first approach and upon his second approach, the airplane crashed. The weather appeared to be no factor.
I realize, of course, that the NTSB will ultimately decide the cause but this one has all the classic symptoms of a stall from base to final, when a pilot misses the extended centerline, yanks it back to the left, throws in a little right rudder to coax the nose back around, and momentarily loses where his airspeed is.
Coincidentally, I had spent about a half hour on the Aviation Safety Institute course on essential aerodynamics and spins which addressed this situation.Yeah, I was already aware of it, but it helped to have a refresher.
I had also been relaxing out on the deck (hey, if I can't fly the RV7A I might as well spend my time learning something!) reading this month's Flight Training magazine article on spins and stalls.
I get mad at myself for not being more focused at this stage of the flight. I get mad at others for making the same mistakes I find myself making.
If I ever get back in the air, the first thing I'm going to do is set a goal of shoving in the throttle and going around more often.