Todd
So, if the tailwheel touches first, does that make it a tailwheel
landing? Or, if the mains touch first followed a millisecond later by
the tail, does that make it a 3 point? Are we talking split hairs here
or what? OK, what is the difference in the attitude of the aircraft for
a 3 point vs a wheel landing? If the mains touch first and the
tailwheel is 2" off the ground, does that make it a wheel landing, or
is it simply a lazy 3 point? Could it possibly have anything to do with
the aircraft, how the pilot is seated, his/her visibility forward, the
weight of the aircraft/loading, or any myriad of factors that affect
the touchdown? Hell every landing is a unique animal and event
regardless of the aircraft flown or the conditions.
And, as a pompous note, the 20-30,000 landings in tail wheel aircraft
do not take into account the thousands of other landings included in
22,000 hours of flying. I'm delighted to see my reply has generated so
much comment. It's almost as if I insulted the abilities of everyone on
the board who is flying or has ever flown an airplane with a tail
wheel. When I began flying, the trikes were still new in general
aviation back in the 50's. Hell I don't have all the answers but I've
probably made more mistakes than any 100 pilots here put together and
somehow managed to survive them. That seems to indicate I may have
learned something from it all?
Grinning Best Regards
Ol Shy & Bashful