Epic flight to do taildragger practice. 5 landings.
We took off from KRHV and went to E16 where we did a bunch of short field, soft field, and normal takeoffs and landings. We then went to KCVH and did one landing on Rwy 24, then a couple of low passes over Rwy 31 to feel what a strong crosswind is like. The gusting crosswind was strong enough that there was no way we would even think of trying to land -- the gusts were such that the plane simply did not have enough control authority to stay on centerline. Finally, we flew back towards KRHV. I got a couple of engine-out practice maneuvers; for one of these, I set us up over a random field and made a good approach; for the other I did a pattern over Frasier Lake and made a good approach into the grass runway, which was closed (waterlogged) so we went around. Back at KRHV, we tried a couple of wheel landings. These went okay, except that instead of "kissing" the ground I tend to "slap" the ground, and so I need to build up some experience with touching down super gently. I've done it well before -- it's just that I need more practice, I guess. Also it was the end of a long flight.
The good news is I got the CFI's endorsement for tailwheel, and I completed the insurance required 10 hours of dual to fly N291DR.
Next is an insurance required 5 hours of solo, which I will likely spend working more on my takeoffs and landings.
Exciting times!
We took off from KRHV and went to E16 where we did a bunch of short field, soft field, and normal takeoffs and landings. We then went to KCVH and did one landing on Rwy 24, then a couple of low passes over Rwy 31 to feel what a strong crosswind is like. The gusting crosswind was strong enough that there was no way we would even think of trying to land -- the gusts were such that the plane simply did not have enough control authority to stay on centerline. Finally, we flew back towards KRHV. I got a couple of engine-out practice maneuvers; for one of these, I set us up over a random field and made a good approach; for the other I did a pattern over Frasier Lake and made a good approach into the grass runway, which was closed (waterlogged) so we went around. Back at KRHV, we tried a couple of wheel landings. These went okay, except that instead of "kissing" the ground I tend to "slap" the ground, and so I need to build up some experience with touching down super gently. I've done it well before -- it's just that I need more practice, I guess. Also it was the end of a long flight.
The good news is I got the CFI's endorsement for tailwheel, and I completed the insurance required 10 hours of dual to fly N291DR.
Next is an insurance required 5 hours of solo, which I will likely spend working more on my takeoffs and landings.
Exciting times!
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