AIRCRAFT HANDLING Part 7 Aerobatics and Formation Flying
AIRCRAFT HANDLING
Part 7
Aerobatics and Formation Flying
Aerobatics
Aerobatics
Give pilots confidence in handling aircraft.
They gain experience at operating in different attitudes.
Pilots become accustomed to the high strainsand stress of combat flying.
Aerobatics
Before any aerobatic flying,a pilot must carry out his HASELL checks:
H
A
S
E
L
L
Height – sufficient to complete manoeuvre.
Airframe – Flaps and U/C UP, Airbrakes IN.
Security – Equipment stowed, harness locked and tight.
Engine – Temperatures, pressures & fuel sufficient.
Location – Airfields, built-up areas controlled airspace.
Lookout – clear of other aircraft & cloud (↔ & ↕)
AerobaticsAs you should already know,
an aircraft can be manoeuvred in three planes:
Pitching plane
Rolling plane Yawing
plane
AerobaticsThe simplest aerobatic manoeuvre
in the pitching plane is the loop.
Pitching plane
AerobaticsPilot aligns with linear feature – road, rail
Drop nose to increase speedKeep wings level
Pull up until horizon disappears, looking overhead for new horizon
AerobaticsThe simplest aerobatic manoeuvre
in the rolling plane is the barrel roll.
Rolling plane
AerobaticsDrop nose to increase speed
Pick point above horizon (cloud)Roll 45° away from banking direction
Roll in banking direction,with nose of aircraft pointing at point on horizon
AerobaticsIn the yawing plane
the only basic manoeuvre is the stall turn.
Yawing plane
AerobaticsNose up to 90°, decreasing speed
Apply rudder before wing stalls.
Aircraft falls sideways until nose is pointing downSpeed increases,
round out at the bottom.
AerobaticsThere are other manoeuvres . . .
The Slow Roll As a barrel roll, but slower
Roll off the Top ½ loop followed by barrel roll or slow roll at the top
½ Roll and Pull Through Barrel roll or slow roll followed by a ½ loop
AerobaticsThere are other manoeuvres . . .
The Upward Roll Pull up vertically, roll keepingwings straight.Often ends with stall turn
Aileron Turn A roll flown vertically downward
Hesitation Roll Either a 4 or 8 point roll,stopping briefly every 45° or 90°
Derry Roll A roll flown while inverted
AerobaticsThere are other manoeuvres . . .
Vertical Eight A ½ roll off the top, a full loopand a ½ roll and pull through.
AerobaticsThere are other manoeuvres . . .
Horizontal Eight A loop and a ½ roll, followed by another loop and ½ roll
A full roll on the first loop and½ roll into the second loop.
Cuban Eight
Inverted FlightAircraft flying inverted
appear to be flying with the nose well above the horizon.
Aircraft wings are less efficient inverted, so a higher angle of attack is required
for inverted straight and level flight.
α
Formation FlyingThe RAF’s definition of formation flying is:
‘An ordered arrangement of two or more aircraftproceeding together as an element.’
There are two types of formation flying:
Close TacticalTake-off & Landing
Cloud penetration
Show and Display flying
Used for all tactical fighter
operations
Formation FlyingThere are five standard section formations:
The VIC formationThink of the ‘V’ in Vic and invert it.
1
3 2
Formation FlyingThere are five standard section formations:
The ECHELON formation
1
3
2
Formation FlyingThere are five standard section formations:
LINE ABREAST
13 2
Formation FlyingThere are five standard section formations:
LINE ASTERN
1
3
2
Formation FlyingThere are five standard section formations:
The BOX formation
1
3 2
4
Formation FlyingThere are five standard section formations:
VIC formation
1
3 2
4
1
3 2 1
3
2
1
3
2
13 2
Line Abreast
Line Astern
Box formation
Echelon formation
Formation Technique
Relative speed – Air Speed Indicator (ASI)is the only method of judging speed
Apparent size – using the size of objects to judge distance – 6 miles to 3 miles isn’t obvious,
but 1 mile to ½ mile is.
Distance – Tendency to underestimate, comes with practise & experience
Formation Technique
Changes are always small & smooth
Longitudinal changes use throttle & elevatorsLateral changes use ailerons
Vertical changes use elevators
A clean aircraft:Accelerates quicklyDecelerates slowly
Acceleration is often poor at low speed in jet aircraft
The pilot uses a mnemonic to remember to carry out his checks. What is the mnemonic for aerobatics?
H A S A L L
H E S S E L
H A S S E L
H A S E L L
Check Understanding
In the diagram, the arrows indicate what plane of movement?
Pitching
Yawing
Rolling
Spinning
Check Understanding
What is the simplest aerobatic manoeuvre in the pitching plane?
Check Understanding
A stall turn
A loop
A barrel roll
A spin
What is the simplest aerobatic manoeuvrein the rolling plane?
A slow roll
A barrel roll
A stall turn
A spin
Check Understanding
What is the only basic aerobatic manoeuvre in the yawing plane?
Roll off the top
The stall turn
A spin
The upward roll
Check Understanding
In the diagram, what is represented by the angle shown?
The Angle of Incidence
The Angle of Attack
The High Climb Angle
The Low Climb Angle
Check Understanding
What formation is shown in this diagram?
Box
Vic
Echelon
Diamond
Check Understanding
What formation is shown in this diagram?
Check Understanding
Echelon
Box
Diamond
Card
What formation is shown in this diagram?
Diamond
Line astern
Line abreast
Echelon
Check Understanding
AIRCRAFT HANDLING
End of Presentation