Briefing: Spins & Spirals

It is recommended that the student pilot be taught to recover from a high speed dive, similar to the post-spin attitude and speed, without over-speeding, before starting the spin entry and recovery exercises. This better prepares them to make a safe recovery after their early experiences of spinning, and avoids compounding two potentially scary lessons into one.

Spiral dives tend to happen by accident during a student’s training – take these opportunities to teach recognition and recovery. Otherwise, initiate a spiral dive by not pulling the stick fully back at the point of spin departure.

Spiral Dive recognition: increasing speed, increasing G, lower rate of rotation.

Spiral Dive recovery: level the wings (coordinated controls), ease out of the dive (wings level).

Once familiar with the recovery from a high speed dive, teach the student how to recognise a spin. Early experiences should be little more than a stall with a wing drop, in the order of a half-turn spin.

Spin recognition: Note the symptoms of a spin: low or flickering ASI, high rate of sink, high rate of rotation, normal G, stick fully back but not raising the nose.

Standard Spin Recovery: Centralise ailerons, full opposite rudder, stick progressively forward until the spinning (rotation) stops, centralise the rudder, recover from the dive.

• Describe a scenario in which this may occur, such as stretching the glide back to the airfield, before making a low, slow final turn.
• HASSELL
• Raise the nose slightly, entering slow flight to stretch the glide.
• Note the altimeter reading, to later measure the height loss.
• Enter a “final” turn at a shallow angle of bank (being “cautious” due to low height).
• Note the glider “isn’t turning quickly enough”, so rudder it round… which appears to work.
• Prevent the consequent increased rate of roll by applying opposite aileron…
• Prevent the consequent nose drop by applying up elevator…
• With the stick fully back, note the glider is spinning.
• Remind the student of the symptoms of a spin, to confirm its recognition.
• Recover: Standard Spin Recovery.
• Note the altimeter reading and determine the height loss (ideally at the lowest point of the dive, to make the point!).

This reminds the student pilot of the primary and secondary effects of rudder, initially at cruising speed, and then close to the stall. At slow speeds, the effects will be different, and dangerous. It is a lesson in spin prevention.

• HASSELL
• Fly at the normal flying speed.
• Apply full rudder, and wait 2-3 seconds.
• Ask the student to note how much yaw & roll resulted.
• Recover, and slow to just above the stall (perhaps on the buffet).
• Apply full rudder. A wing drop is highly likely. Recover from the stall (stick centrally forward).
• Note that misuse of the controls near the stall could make the glider spin.
• Student attempt, to appreciate the changing effects.

This shows how the glider behaves in a turn, in both balanced and unbalanced flight. It shows the importance of not over-ruddering a turn.

• HASSELL
• Fly a balanced [right] turn, at a moderate angle of bank, at the normal thermalling speed.
• Stick back to the point of a stall.
• Note that the turn is balanced, and slightly stalled.
• Note the attitude, the yaw string and slip ball: nose is just above the horizon, string is out of the turn [left] and the ball is to the [right] (slipping).
• Recover to wings level.
• Demonstrate an over-ruddered turn:
• Lookout. Turn [right] again, leaving in too much rudder.
• Note the attitude, the yaw string and slip ball: nose is lower on the horizon, string is into the turn [right] and the ball is to the [left] (skidding).
• Stick back, to the stall, glider buffets, and drops a wing, entering a spin.
• Recover from the stall (stick centrally forward, roll wings level, ease out of the dive).
• Note the glider departs into spin much more rapidly in an over-ruddered turn: fly accurately!

This shows how the glider can spin if the angle of bank is increased in an unbalanced turn at what appears to be a well banked turn at a safe (normal thermalling) airspeed. The spin entry is likely to be dramatic.

• Describe a scenario, flying low down, in a narrow thermal.
• HASSELL
• Turn at 45 degrees angle of bank, a little above the stalling speed for that bank angle.
• Note the airspeed is X kts, well above the normal stall speed.
• Note the nose appears to be safely below the horizon.
• Gradually increase the rudder into the turn, whilst maintaining attitude with elevator and angle of bank with ailerons. You may need to get the stick hard back as the nose goes down.
• The glider spins. Recover.
• Note the glider departs into spin if a turn is tightened with insufficient airspeed for the new angle of bank, especially if it is also over-ruddered: fly accurately!

This exercise shows that:

• During reduced G, a glider will fly below the normal stalling speed,
• turning before the glider has regained a safe speed can cause the glider to spin, and
• after a push-over, the airspeed can be less than the attitude suggests.

Review the recovery actions following a winch launch failure:

• The Recovery Attitude.
• Avoid turns and use of airbrakes until approach speed is attained.
• Land ahead if safe to do so.

The Flying:

• Demonstrate the normal attitude.

The flying exercise is in three parts: