Literally hanging out the door of our photoplane, a harness safely secures me from falling out of the airplane. (Sagar Pathak)
Soaring With Sagar
You Spin Me Right ‘Round
By Sagar Pathak
You look outside and all you see is the ground flying past you; greens and browns all blurring into one shade. A second ago you were performing an “immelman” in your new Pitts Special S-2B, and now you and your plane are in a spin hurdling towards the ground. Your instincts kick in, you pull the power back to idle, let go of the stick, look over the nose and figure out which direction you are spinning, full opposite rudder, stop the spin, and recover.
A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to get a taste of flying a high-performance aerobatic airplane with airshow great Tim Decker in his immaculate S-2B. In his sixth year of airshow flying, Tim has perfected flying at the edge of the envelope and invited me out to his hangar in Lincoln, CA (KLHM) for a weekend crash course (no pun intended) of unusual attitude recoveries, spin training, and a taste of some basic aerobatics.
Originally meant for someone who is planning or has just purchased an aerobatic airplane such as the Pitts Special, a Christen Eagle, or Extra 300, Tim Decker Airshows offers a custom course on learning how to safely handle your aircraft by becoming familiar with safety maneuvers and techniques to recover your aircraft. But as Tim showed me, you do not have to have aspirations of becoming an airshow pilot to take advantage of this invaluable training; a simple private pilot’s license and the desire to become a safer pilot will do just fine!
Tim Decker Airshows offers a custom course in aerobatic manuevers and safety for pilots. (Sagar Pathak)Unusual attitude and spin recovery are maneuvers that were once taught to all general aviation pilots. But in time, the FAA dropped the requirement and left a vital hole in pilot safety. While some CFIs talk about them, they themselves may only have a basic understanding of the maneuvers and how to recover. But flying with a professional pilot such as Tim Decker, who has logged more than 5,000 hours in both military and civil aircraft such as the U-2, F-117, T-38, RV-4, and the Pitts S-2B, and whose logbook endorsements include Certified Flight Instructor (CFI), Certified Flight Instructor Instruments (CFII), Multi-Engine Instructor (MEI) ratings, an Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate, and a Level 1, Unrestricted Solo Aerobatics, and Statement of Acrobatic Competency License, is a guarantee of flying with someone who can teach you not only how to recognize, but to prevent and recover from these potentially fatal situations. According to a 2003 AOPA study, 28 percent of stall/spin accidents were fatal compared to other types of GA accidents. And while flying is a relatively safe activity, arming yourself with the proper training and tools to be an even safer pilot is common sense.
Being a newly-minted Private Pilot, I wanted to get an introduction to the proper techniques before I developed any bad habits of my own. Even though I am a new pilot, pilots with thousands of hours can find themselves in dangerous situation such as suddenly having to perform an upset attitude recovery for a wake turbulence encounter, or sudden avoidance maneuver (impending mid-air) that results in unusual attitude or spin. So with my logbook in hand, I drove up to Lincoln for my weekend with Tim.
