On 9/13/2012 8:52 AM, Mark Jardini wrote:
I had an incipient departure just the other day. I fly an Apis M. In
deconstructing the event, I saw the nose dropping and not responding
to back pressure so I put the stick forward and it was all over in a
second.

Your response is "the universal ticket for departure control"...works
(rapidly/"instantly") in any glider, regardless of wing appurtenances.

I found this true even with "so notorious a departer" as the two 2-32's my
club has had over the years, one of which "always" departed enthusiastically
left wing low if Joe Pilot insisted on ignoring prior aerodynamic warnings.
Merely relaxing aft pressure completely eliminated its "departure thrills", to
the point that a marginally aware accompanying pilot might never even be aware
what had transpired.

Another good reason to be primed to "relax back pressure" is gust-induced
"significant separation" absolutely halted upward progress in my 15-meter
unballasted ship when it occurred - for ~30 seconds, as measured by altimeter
and sweep second hand. (Gravity never stops!) A "calibrated butt" could easily
feel this effect, while a calibrated ear could actually hear it as well. And,
of course, it could be felt throughout the plane's control system. Awesome way
to depress your average climb rate!

Maybe pilots in the intermountain west get more unbidden opportunites to
practice "the stick bump" while thermalling, simply because in my experience
on the downwind side of the Continental Divide, gust-induced incipient stalls
are "the norm" during routine thermalling on days with any significant
westerly (which is to say most of them!).
- - - - - -

I think when the aircraft doesn't do what it should for the
input, there should be a reflex alternative action. Either flaps or
stick forward is probably ok. The stick feels more like it has more
authority to me.

In a fully established spin, flaps have to come off as you will likely
exceed the white arc in recovery.

The dicey scenarios are the ones where you have to think out what is
going on before acting. The whole thinking thing is easily derailed.

Mark


Good thinking!

Regards,
Bob W.