Taxiing Control Position Lesson
I have used the heading indicator for years as a device to teach students where to hold the yoke while taxiing. Today in an aircraft with a 'heading bug' I had a student show me how taxiing could be made easier by setting the 'heading bug' for the wind direction and then holding the yoke accordingly. Worked beautifully.
When I first arrive at the airport I try to make note of the runway in use and make a stab at guessing the wind direction and velocity from the way the windsock is behaving. I encourage my students to do the same.
On hearing the ATIS, set the heading-bug for the wind direction as an aid in holding the yoke in the proper place and direction. Do not delay getting yoke in proper position when winds are strong. A two second delay is all it takes to have the airplane flip over. Set the heading-bug for the runway when arriving into a pattern. Recognizing that the ATIS can be up to an hour old, it a good idea to check with ground prior to taxi by saying, "Say wind". The same query made to the tower when turning final gives you a very desirable update in crosswind conditions. Caution: The ATC instrument reading the wind may be a mile from your touchdown point. CCR had five socks at one time and it was not unusual to have them all pointing different directions at the same time.
Taxiing in wind lessons: Always hold yoke full over as though the wind were over 20 knots. In calm conditions make up a wind direction. Once the wind gets to lifting under your wing you won't have time to bring it back down. Practice making both left and right 360s on the ground while changing the yoke position. For those who have heading bugs, set the wind with the bug and taxi accordingly.
Final note: There is seldom a reason to grip the yoke any tighter or with more fingers than when flying. Work on your one-finger taxiing so that the good practice will carry into your flying. This is, in my experience, an endemic weakness in pilots.
Taxiing Revisited
By the time we solo we should be using power and brakes with great restraint. Minimum power required to move at a good pace and smooth additions for sharp turns. Brakes only for turning and stopping. The yoke should always be hard over and all the way forward or back. No partial movements while taxiing. Practice yoke movements at all times regardless of wind so that you will respond quickly and appropriately when real wind problems exist. The control deflection of the ailerons and elevators were designed to move as far as they do more for taxiing than for flying. According to the new uniform signs of airports, airplanes must hold so that no part of the airplane passes beyond the sign or a line.
There are several different nose-wheel and braking design combinations that require slightly differing techniques. The Grumman Americans have a free- castering nose-wheel and use differential braking for steering. The Piper nose-wheel is directly linked with the rudder. In the air or on the ground, when you move the rudder you move the nose-wheel. The rudder pedals have a rocking action that allows the application of both positive turn movement using direct linkage by moving the foot and differential braking by using the toe.. Don't move the rudder during preflight.
The Cessna nose-wheel and rudder are spring linked to the rudder pedals until the nose-wheel strut is fully extended. Once in the air the Cessna nosewheel hangs free and aligns itself with the relative wind. On landing there is no steering with the nose wheel until the strut is depressed. A normal turn is first initiated by fully depressing the foot. This places tension on the spring linkage and pulls the nose-wheel into the turn rather slowly. The turn radius can be made tighter by using the toe on the brakes. It is important that turns of varying radius be practiced.
--Set heading bug to wind direction
--Verbalize all clearing as well as a swivel neck on the ground and in the air. The life you save may be your own.
--Make all yoke movements using one finger and the thumb. If you need more than two fingers you’re doing something wrong. Remember the yoke moves both back and up.
--Make learning to taxi a priority. Begin by explaining/knowing how rudder/nose gear geometry works and moves. No brakes except for sharp turns and stopping. Make some 360s to headings then add yoke positions 90 degrees at a time. The first clue to a competent pilot is the way he taxies. Use heading bug.
--Control check uses ‘thumbs up’. Thumb always points to up-aileron. Turn head to check that other aileron is down before reversing control.
--Teach/make throttle control movements with forefinger as a measure. From 800 rpm to 1700 rpm is one fingernail length. Practice until you can do it every time without looking. Learn the sound and feel of every power setting. Hold Piper throttle with thumb palm up and fingers braced on console.
--It is not enough to clear final going from the runup area to the runway. Turn enough to protect yourself from an aircraft on close-in base.
Use of Written and Verbal Taxi Instructions
--At unfamiliar or complex airports write out your taxi plan and ATC instructions
--Any disagreement or misunderstanding should be clarified before moving
--Verbal repetition of taxi instructions is best assurance of accuracy
--Always refer to the airport diagram and verbally recite stages
--Always verify landing instructions with readback, verbal agreement of elements
--Coordinate all ground movements with verbal agreements
--Always update companions if they are off frequency for any length of time
--Maintain a 'sterile' cockpit when on the ground
--Use proper standard radio phraseology at all times
--No non-essential acts when talking/listening to ATC
--Readback all hold short instructions, runway crossings and clearances with runway designators
--Readback all takeoff and landing clearances along with runway designator
--Clarify all doubts before proceeding
Taxiing Suggestions
--Have taxi diagram in sight
--Mark diagram with your progress
--Use compass or HIS to verify taxi directions. Use Runway numbers to verify.
--In low visibility use all resources available. (I once had ATC light gun light up taxiway centerline.)
--Stop whenever you become uncertain. (One night ATC sent out truck to guide me to runway.)
--Follow all instructions and clearances in a timely manner or advise ATC of delay.
--During landing rollout do not exit to another runway without ATC authorization.
The Last Thing You Learn
If you make a good landing the yoke should be positioned for taxiing. When you turn off the runway the correct positioning of the yoke will prevent the upwind wing from lifting. The yellow lines of the taxiway is there to tell you where the middle is and gives reasonable assurance that you will not strike an obstacle as long as you are on it.
Taxiing speed and changes in this speed must be done with great anticipation. Power increases for up-hill and decreases for down-hill are selected and timed for maintaining a constant speed without the application of brakes. The use of brakes while doing anything other than turning or stopping is a sign of poor planning. Taxiing speed can only be managed by prior planning. Brains instead of brakes.
The radius of a taxiing turn is proportional to speed. Excessive speed puts unacceptable side-loads on the gear, wheels, and tires. Slow down straight ahead, then turn. Excessive speed while turning into a quartering tail wind without immediate and proper aileron deflection is a sure way to wind up hanging from your seat belt. Excess speed is the number one cause of taxiing accidents but is followed by flight control position errors. Stay on firm surfaces while taxiing. Avoid gravel. If you must start in a gravel area, clean away under the prop area. Start with absolute minimum RPM and get rolling without too much power. Keep it rolling when over gravel at minimum power. The propeller creates a vacuum that will suck up rocks and pebbles so they can be hit by the next blade coming.
Learning to taxi is one of the first operations a student is taught. Taxiing is one of the last skills a student will master. It is very difficult to give an acceptable excuse for a taxiing accident. The 1938 Pilot Training Handbook advises that no taxi speed should exceed a fast walk. Your taxi speed should never exceed one that allows an instantaneous stop. Good taxiing is a combination of speed control and directional control. Good taxiing skills require the same smoothness as flying. Good taxiing requires that you unlearn the use of the steering wheel. Taxiing requires 'kiddy car' skills.
The power required getting an aircraft rolling is greater than that required keeping it moving. Therefore, I recommend that the throttle be held in such a manner that you can rapidly and smoothly make small power adjustments. I have found that using a finger set to index the amount of throttle movement I require to be a good way to do this. I use my finger to determine how far the throttle can move. Once the aircraft is moving, reduce the power. Once rolling, you should do a brake check. No need to stop.
No need for the passengers even to know what you have done. Power adjustments must be adapted to the ground slope, wind forces, the surrounding situation and throttle linkage. Taxiing with one or more tires having low air pressure will greatly effect your taxiing. Check tire pressures during your preflight with a dial type gauge.
The factor of directional control extends beyond the turn to following the yellow lines. Side by side seating presents a parallax problem to the student. If you have any aspirations to upgrade your pilot level, taxiing on the yellow line is an imperative skill. You must concentrate on your taxiing when following a yellow line around a curve. The linkage of the rudder pedals both by movement and spring tension is such that having the rudder pedals straight does not mean that the plane goes straight. The amount of rudder depression has little relationship to how effective it is in the turn. Every aircraft taxies in a unique manner. Start out slowly and get a feel of controllability before you get moving too fast.
--Taxi slowly and cautiously
--Check your brakes before taxiing
--Keep your eyes outside the cockpit
--Your binocular depth perception ability ends around 20 feet.
--If your clearance looks too narrow, it probably is.
--Beware of large aircraft and helicopters
--Keep power and braking at minimum.
--Don't taxi any faster than the instructor will run.
--Controls to dive away and climb in the wind.
--Plan ahead for slope and surface conditions.
--FAR 91.113 indicates that you should never enter a runway without making sure the approach and bases are clear.
--Every holding instruction while taxiing must be acknowledged and read back.
--Non Towered Airports (NTAs) require greater vigilance and increased communications
--Become familiar with local pattern altitude and pattern procedures as well as radio call-up practice.
--Anticipate that IFR inbound traffic are probably making a straight-in.
--Expect to use visual cues, signage, markings and lighting to aid use of airport diagram
--Always monitor the CTAF and approach frequency to find out who's where.
--Transmit takeoff, departure and route plans before taking the runway
--Use your full call sign on first call up and always if another aircraft has similar call sign
--Always put the name of your airport as first and last words of each radio call
--Don't use radio until frequency is clear
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