Blog – Circuits 15/04/2023
Consistency – noun. Consistent behaviour or treatment.
Similar: evenness, steadiness, stability, constancy, regularity, uniformity, equilibrium, unity, orderliness, lack of change, lack of deviation, dependability, reliability
Opposite: – inconsistency
I have been looking at my circuits from Saturday on Flight Tracking
https://flightaware.com/live/flight/ZKDOY/history/20230414/2242Z/NZMS/NZMS
From the track it appears to me that things start to go awry on downwind and multiply during base and final. It looks like I am well behind the aircraft rather than in front of it, rushing everything and generally messing up the circuit.
I think that I need more time in the downwind leg so next flight I plan to take-off at 60kts for the first 200ft AGL and then set 80kts climb once flaps are up. I see from my notes that this is how my FI teaches it and it makes sense as this will give me more ground distance before the turn to crosswind at 500ft AGL. Why I was climbing at 70kts is a throwback to the 172 training.
Also once on the downwind I will try and keep it at 70kts so that I can get the aircraft nice and trim at 1000ft AGL, complete downwind checks and radio calls well before the threshold, and be ready to set the aircraft within the white arc and put in the first amount of flap.
Once settled I can then check that the threshold is at 4 o’clock and commence the descending turn to base.
I was also not looking down the runway enough once over my initial aiming point so I never set the cowling on the end of the runway and then allow the aircraft to land.
Hopefully if I do all this then the consistency will finally arrive and I can fly the circuit repetitively like a robot rather than the hit and miss flying to date.
Thanks to my CFI for your patience and wisdom. I will get there sir.
Bring it on!
Aircraft: ZK-DOY (Tecnam P2002 Sierra)
Total Time: 0.7
Landings: 5
Go-arounds: 0
Visual Approaches: 5
Until next time….
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Blog – Circuits 15/04/2023