Lesson 32 - Once More into the Pattern

Getting up in the pattern is getting to be somewhat routine, and that's a positive thing. That's not to say my landings are remotely smooth, but what it does mean is that I can better analyze what is different about each approach and landing, then work to figure out what may have contributed to the success or lack thereof on each one.

It's been said time and time again--the key to a good landing is a stable approach. Today's lesson was exhibit A on that front. What threw me for loops this time out more than anything else was actually starting the descent. Once I was configured for landing and on the base and final legs, I felt I was at least maybe somewhat ahead of the plane and it was responding to my control inputs as I wanted it to. Getting to that point was unusually rough. Part of that had to do with a somewhat busy pattern, so there were time when ATC called my base as opposed to flying a "standard pattern." A "standard pattern" begins with dropping power when you're abeam your touchdown point on the runway on the downwind leg. "Slow down before you go down." So you reduce power, bleed off some airspeed, extend 10 degrees of flaps, then pitch down for around a 500fpm descent while keeping your airspeed in the neighborhood of 85 knots. As you turn your base turn, you reduce your speed to around 75 knots, extend flaps to 20 degrees, then turn final. On final, you want your speed to be around 65 knots, so you extend to 30 degrees of flaps, pitch for 65 knots, then use the power to stay on glide slope until you're over the runway. Once over the runway, pull power to idle, settle down over the runway, flare when you're just a few feet off the ground, then let the plane set itself smoothly down. Writing it makes it sound easy. Doing it is another story. 

Truth be told, when I flew a "standard pattern," things went okay. My approach was stable, and while I still absolutely stink at judging how high I am above the ground to begin my flare, leading to some rather interesting touchdowns, my approaches were at least descent. In looking back at things, what threw me this time out was the "non-standard" approach. Because the pattern was busy, ATC had me extend downwind on a number of landings. "Extend downwind, I'll call base." That means you fly the downwind leg until ATC tells you to make your base turn, and only they know when that's going to be. Therein lies the issue that plagued me most today. ATC says "Six Mike Echo, turn base" I'm still in a cruise configuration at this point; around 95 knots at 2300rpm. ATC is expecting me to make that turn, though. So do I slow down and extend flaps before making that turn? Do I try to slow down in the turn? Do I extend flaps in the turn? (No on that one!) These are questions that are running through my mine when ATC tells me to make that turn. Am I far enough out to where when I make the base and final turns I'd be on a 3 mile extended final? In that case, do I need to slow down or can I fly it at cruise speeds? My head was a jumble of inexperience and second guessing myself getting into my approach set-up, and it showed. That time spent second guessing myself put me behind the curve and I spent too much time playing catch-up before I felt I was back where I wanted to be on short final. My instructor could sense I was a bit unsettled and unsure, so he took over radio coms for much of the lesson. This left me to concentrate on getting set up for approaches, which did help. 

I write this knowing it sounds like the lesson and my landings were absolute flops. In reality, things are definitely trending in the right direction. My control is getting more and more confident, and the after-the-fact awareness and analysis of things helps give me more confidence next time in my decision making. I need to have the confidence that I am in control of the airplane, and while I'm expected to respond to ATC's directions, it's my responsibility to make sure I do so safely and thoughtfully. Hindsight is 20/20, but the good thing about hindsight in the pattern is that the last landing's hindsight becomes the next landing's foresight. You've seen it before, you know what to expect, you know what to do. The more you fly, the less you'll be second-guessing yourself because you know what works. 

I'm going back up in three days (as of this writing and weather-permitting), so I'll be doing lots of chair flying in my mind of what to do and when to do it for any of the approaches I was handed this past lesson. We'll get there.