Tail wheel endorsement today

PhilosopherPilot

PhilosopherPilot

Well-Known Member
Hi all. I completed my tail wheel endorsement today. It was cool when the instructor got out and I got to fly the Decathalon solo. It almost felt like my first solo again...but not quite.

I promptly took it up and did my first solo spin. Honestly, I was a little nervous about the spin, but it was a non-event. Just like every other spin with the instructor present. (Except of course he wasn't there to save my butt if I screwed up...)

Ah well, moving right along!

G
 
Well done. What altitude did you ascend to? How much altitude did you lose before recovery?
spin2.gif
 
cool, congrats...I'm still working on mine, logged 3.6 tailwheel time so far. I did my first wheel landings last thursday and found them suprisingly easy. I still haven't flown the stinson when the wind is blowing more than 5 knots, but hopefully this week I will get some x-wind experience under my belt and earn the sign off from my instructor. I also want to take it into a soft field a few times just to get that technique down...
 
Do you receive an endorsement for the spin training too? Is there a minimum recovery standard for the spin?
 
I did mine at Van Sant, a grass strip near Philly. It is interesting that you have to practice soft fields, while I am still nervous about hard surface! We did some cross wind practice at a paved runway, but not nearly enough for me to feel 100% comfortable.

http://www.vansantairport.com/

Anyone in the area should look this airport up. You can rent a Stearman and Great Lakes SOLO! They are getting a Tiger Moth soon too.

G
 
Fun stuff, huh.

Makes you never want to go back to flying boring old nose-draggers.

Sucks you have to wear a parachute for solo spins though.

Josh
 
No endorsement for the aerobatics, but you must recover above 1,500 feet AGL without a waiver. There are a few more various and sundry regs to check up on. (Parachutes, airway and airport clearance, etc.)

I have had about 15 hours total aerobatics, but not much work in sustained inverted flight. I am by no means a competitor. I just did it to improve my unusual attitude recoveries, until I fell in love with it...

G
 
PP sounds like a blast. How much tailwheel time ya got now?

By the way you don't need a parachute for solo spins.
 
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By the way you don't need a parachute for solo spins.

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How do you figure that?
Considering it to be training yourself? Or are you just going to say it was not intentional?

§ 91.307 Parachutes and parachuting.

(c) Unless each occupant of the aircraft is wearing an approved parachute, no pilot of a civil aircraft carrying any person (other than a crewmember) may execute any intentional maneuver that exceeds—

(1) A bank of 60 degrees relative to the horizon; or
(2) A nose-up or nose-down attitude of 30 degrees relative to the horizon.

(d) Paragraph (c) of this section does not apply to—
(1) Flight tests for pilot certification or rating; or
(2) Spins and other flight maneuvers required by the regulations for any certificate or rating when given by—
(i) A certificated flight instructor; or
(ii) An airline transport pilot instructing in accordance with §61.67 of this chapter.
 
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So a CFI never has to wear a parachute, huh?

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Yes they do. The only time you allowed to NOT wear a chute is if you're solo or doing the spin/aerobatic training for a certificate (CFI). Outside those two limitations you must wear a chute as described by the FARs posted above. Technically, to show a private student a spin is illegal (if both CFI and student are not wearing a chute) because the spin is not a required manuever for the private pilot certificate.
 
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Technically, to show a private student a spin is illegal (if both CFI and student are not wearing a chute) because the spin is not a required manuever for the private pilot certificate.

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Nah, it's perfectly legal for a cfi to train anybody in spins:

[ QUOTE ]
(2) Spins and other flight maneuvers required by the regulations for any certificate or rating when given by—
(i) A certificated flight instructor

[/ QUOTE ]

Since it's required for the CFI cert, a cfi can give spin training to anyone who wants it without 'chutes.
 
I see, it is the other than a crewmember part that I missed. Think it is because the place I use doesn't likes folks going out without the chute, but in the regs, you could do it it seems.

And it doesn't even say required crewmember, so I guess you can get pretty lax on your discription of who is coming along as a crewmember (can you put someone rated in back, put a hood on them, and say you are their safety pilot?
smile.gif
). Chutes are only $3hr more for me, so not a big deal. But I guess some places don't offer them.
 
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And it doesn't even say required crewmember, so I guess you can get pretty lax on your discription of who is coming along as a crewmember (can you put someone rated in back, put a hood on them, and say you are their safety pilot?
smile.gif
)

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I shudder to think about doing spins with a hood on. I think I would puke... LOL We have chutes available, so getting them out of the cabinet is no big deal. I don't know how useful the chutes would be though, especially in a decathalon. I MIGHT be able to get a passenger out before impact, but I know I surely wouldn't be able to get out too.

By the time you realized you couldn't recover, it would be too late to bail. I know that I would give the plane at least 3 turns after corrective input before I would begin to wonder, and that is going to be at least 2000 feet of altitude after your 1,000 to 2,000 feet of altitude from the spin itself. Then I would have to pull the door release lever, release both of my belts, pull out the passenger, who is most likely still buckled in, then finally jump myself. Maybe I should be doing spins from 20,000 feet!!!

G
 
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Nah, it's perfectly legal for a cfi to train anybody in spins:

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I agree but that's not what I said.

I said it wouldn't be "legal" for the CFI to teach spins to a private student if the CFI and the student were not wearing chutes.

The only person a CFI can teach spins/aerobatic manuevers to and not wear chutes is the student who is training towards their CFI.

[ QUOTE ]
(2) Spins and other flight maneuvers required by the regulations for any certificate or rating when given by—
(i) A certificated flight instructor

[/ QUOTE ]

This is going to be an interpretation thing but it says certificate or rating. To say that the private pilot will someday, someplace go for his CFI certificate is an awfully weak/vague loophole and one I wouldn't play with. But that's just my take on it.
 
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I shudder to think about doing spins with a hood on. I think I would puke

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I'd puke with no hood on.
 
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I shudder to think about doing spins with a hood on. I think I would puke... LOL

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Actually it's not that bad...although watching what spins do to the AI is pretty unsettling.
 
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