Flying the Tail -- A Training Exercise of Control
It's important to note that the major way a tailwheel differs from a nose wheel plane is in ground handling. To taxi an airplane is to drive it on the ground with the intention of getting from one location to another. Taxiing a tailwheel airplane becomes very tricky due to the location of the center of gravity relative to the plane's landing gear. The CG in a tailwheel is behind the main wheels rather than in front of them as in a nose wheel plane. This CG placement tends to make a nose wheel plane "want" to go straight, and a tailwheel plane to "want" to turn a quick 360 - or ground loop. A tailwheel requires quick, short, accurate corrections to keep it taxiing straight as it tries to turn off course. And what is a plane doing when it is landing or taking off? It is (for a short amount of time) taxiing fast!
For the sake of argument and explanation, we are going to define "normal taxi" speed as under 5 kts, "fast taxi" as any speed merely faster than "normal" taxi but below lift off speed, and "high speed taxi" any speed at which the pilot must force the plane to stay on the ground.
Normal taxi speed with proper crosswind inputs in the controls keeps the plane on the ground and ready to stop should a sudden emergency ensue. We teach our students in normal operations to taxi at normal speed.
In the book we love and reference, "The Compleat Taildragger Pilot", by Harvey Plourde, on page 184, section "High Speed Taxi", the author states that high speed taxi is a "maneuver with excessive risk", and we have to agree. The author further describes "high speed taxi " as 1/2 to 3/4 throttle on main wheels (ie tail up). At this speed, the airplane doesn't want to stay on the ground due to having too much power. This means that, if the pilot relaxed slightly, the tail might descend just a bit, thereby creating just enough increased angle of attack for the plane lift off. Now the airplane is unexpectedly in the air -- barely flying -- with low power. Quick corrections must be made to avoid catastrophe at this point. The best answer to this predicament would be to go full throttle and "go around" (a tricky maneuver itself). Again, we tend to agree with the author that "high speed taxi" is not a normal maneuver, and we do not teach it.
For the sake of argument and explanation, we are going to define "normal taxi" speed as under 5 kts, "fast taxi" as any speed merely faster than "normal" taxi but below lift off speed, and "high speed taxi" any speed at which the pilot must force the plane to stay on the ground.
Normal taxi speed with proper crosswind inputs in the controls keeps the plane on the ground and ready to stop should a sudden emergency ensue. We teach our students in normal operations to taxi at normal speed.
In the book we love and reference, "The Compleat Taildragger Pilot", by Harvey Plourde, on page 184, section "High Speed Taxi", the author states that high speed taxi is a "maneuver with excessive risk", and we have to agree. The author further describes "high speed taxi " as 1/2 to 3/4 throttle on main wheels (ie tail up). At this speed, the airplane doesn't want to stay on the ground due to having too much power. This means that, if the pilot relaxed slightly, the tail might descend just a bit, thereby creating just enough increased angle of attack for the plane lift off. Now the airplane is unexpectedly in the air -- barely flying -- with low power. Quick corrections must be made to avoid catastrophe at this point. The best answer to this predicament would be to go full throttle and "go around" (a tricky maneuver itself). Again, we tend to agree with the author that "high speed taxi" is not a normal maneuver, and we do not teach it.
Flying the tail --
"Flying the tail" is our signature training maneuver (not a "normal" maneuver). We find it very beneficial to our students as a simulation for landing and take off. It is performed on a long grass strip (ours is 4000 x 75) to give us plenty of room. The wind must be a max of 10kts with no more than 30 deg of cross wind. And we have strict rules that apply to students, instructors, and aircraft.
During the maneuver, the plane is "fast taxied" from one end of the runway to the other. The instructor is always in control of the taxi speed and never lets the speed reach "high speed taxi". At the culmination of the exercises, the instructor controls the throttle and the stick while the student is solely focused on keeping the plane straight with the rudder pedals -- with, of course, the instructor diligently guarding the pedals as well. The instructor then moves the tail up and down and the student has to correct the gyroscopic yaw as they progress down the runway.
Practice is very gentle at first and difficulty is increased as the student gets more proficient at it. When the student can successfully correct the yaw no matter what the instructor does to the tail, the student is ready for wheel landings.
"Flying the tail" is our signature training maneuver (not a "normal" maneuver). We find it very beneficial to our students as a simulation for landing and take off. It is performed on a long grass strip (ours is 4000 x 75) to give us plenty of room. The wind must be a max of 10kts with no more than 30 deg of cross wind. And we have strict rules that apply to students, instructors, and aircraft.
During the maneuver, the plane is "fast taxied" from one end of the runway to the other. The instructor is always in control of the taxi speed and never lets the speed reach "high speed taxi". At the culmination of the exercises, the instructor controls the throttle and the stick while the student is solely focused on keeping the plane straight with the rudder pedals -- with, of course, the instructor diligently guarding the pedals as well. The instructor then moves the tail up and down and the student has to correct the gyroscopic yaw as they progress down the runway.
Practice is very gentle at first and difficulty is increased as the student gets more proficient at it. When the student can successfully correct the yaw no matter what the instructor does to the tail, the student is ready for wheel landings.
The student --
Before beginning this training maneuver, the student has to have proven control at slower speeds and quick release of the controls for the instructor to take over if needed. Training always has its risks; we do our best to minimize and manage risk.
To clarify, the student is at no point in the final exercise the sole manipulator of the controls, and he/she is never encouraged to do this maneuver on his/her own either in normal or training operations elsewhere.
Before beginning this training maneuver, the student has to have proven control at slower speeds and quick release of the controls for the instructor to take over if needed. Training always has its risks; we do our best to minimize and manage risk.
To clarify, the student is at no point in the final exercise the sole manipulator of the controls, and he/she is never encouraged to do this maneuver on his/her own either in normal or training operations elsewhere.
Our instructors --
Plourde, the author of "Compleat Taildragger", recommends that a tailwheel instructor have a minimum of 40 hours in the pattern -- as long as a significant percentage has been in demanding winds conditions before a flight instructor is qualified to even teach tailwheel. He stresses, however, that the number of hours is not as important as the "variety of experience, the difficulty level, and the amount learned from all of this". The author also points out that a potential pitfall is when an "instructor is asked to give dual in a tailwheel MODEL which he has never flown" and says that it is "courting disaster". We agree -- experience matters!
Our instructors only train in our BushCat. We have many, many hours in the plane and most of them are "in the pattern" and a lot of them have been in demanding winds. We fly regularly! We notice a degrading of our skills when we haven't flown in just a week! That doesn't mean our students can tell -- but we can! It's a lot like how a concert pianist can "feel the rust" after just a short time away from the ivories even though his/her audience may not notice the degradation.
Our instructors are very practiced at this maneuver in particular (and specifically in our plane) and are proficient at keeping the aircraft under control and quick in recovery. (This statement is in no way meant to fix nor disregard the problem of the inherent dangers in flight training in general. Accidents do happen even in spite of the best preparation.)
Our plane --
The Bushcat is ideal for tailwheel training in general, and for "flying the tail" in particular. The plane is very light and has very short take off and land capabilities. Also, unlike most tailwheel aircraft, it has very good visibility on the ground. The large main wheels make it ideal for the grass strip training. It has a very good power to weight ratio. And it has very polite handling on the ground.
Plourde, the author of "Compleat Taildragger", recommends that a tailwheel instructor have a minimum of 40 hours in the pattern -- as long as a significant percentage has been in demanding winds conditions before a flight instructor is qualified to even teach tailwheel. He stresses, however, that the number of hours is not as important as the "variety of experience, the difficulty level, and the amount learned from all of this". The author also points out that a potential pitfall is when an "instructor is asked to give dual in a tailwheel MODEL which he has never flown" and says that it is "courting disaster". We agree -- experience matters!
Our instructors only train in our BushCat. We have many, many hours in the plane and most of them are "in the pattern" and a lot of them have been in demanding winds. We fly regularly! We notice a degrading of our skills when we haven't flown in just a week! That doesn't mean our students can tell -- but we can! It's a lot like how a concert pianist can "feel the rust" after just a short time away from the ivories even though his/her audience may not notice the degradation.
Our instructors are very practiced at this maneuver in particular (and specifically in our plane) and are proficient at keeping the aircraft under control and quick in recovery. (This statement is in no way meant to fix nor disregard the problem of the inherent dangers in flight training in general. Accidents do happen even in spite of the best preparation.)
Our plane --
The Bushcat is ideal for tailwheel training in general, and for "flying the tail" in particular. The plane is very light and has very short take off and land capabilities. Also, unlike most tailwheel aircraft, it has very good visibility on the ground. The large main wheels make it ideal for the grass strip training. It has a very good power to weight ratio. And it has very polite handling on the ground.
The results –
The author of "Compleat" follows the more traditional approach that "control generally improves bit by bit with each subsequent takeoff". However, we feel that it is not necessary to spend all of the extra time in the pattern when we can simulate the point at which the tail "flys" during take off, and the last part of the landing when the plane can no longer fly but the tail can still do so many consecutive times to give them more exposure in a more controlled environment. The author even points out that "If there should be a slight loss of control, the instructor is usually able to salvage the situation by lifting the airplane off the ground away from the runway lights and other hazards (if sufficient airspeed was being gained at the time)." And that we are!
The result is that we make absolutely certain that a student is very comfortable with and capable of correcting the aircraft during the areas of operation when it is most crucial to control it BEFORE the plane veers into a ground loop -- take off and landing.
We are excited about our unique "flying the tail" training maneuver. It is effective, efficient, and very fun! It's how we wish we had been trained!
The author of "Compleat" follows the more traditional approach that "control generally improves bit by bit with each subsequent takeoff". However, we feel that it is not necessary to spend all of the extra time in the pattern when we can simulate the point at which the tail "flys" during take off, and the last part of the landing when the plane can no longer fly but the tail can still do so many consecutive times to give them more exposure in a more controlled environment. The author even points out that "If there should be a slight loss of control, the instructor is usually able to salvage the situation by lifting the airplane off the ground away from the runway lights and other hazards (if sufficient airspeed was being gained at the time)." And that we are!
The result is that we make absolutely certain that a student is very comfortable with and capable of correcting the aircraft during the areas of operation when it is most crucial to control it BEFORE the plane veers into a ground loop -- take off and landing.
We are excited about our unique "flying the tail" training maneuver. It is effective, efficient, and very fun! It's how we wish we had been trained!