crash course in areobatics 3: stall turns

Welcome, and thank you for reading the 3rd in the series and this time we're doing stall turns! (Did I hear a cry of joy from the readers?) Thankfully stall turns are much easier to describe how to do, as timing is the key to this manouvre.

Picture the scene, the flying field is calm, as always, and you have your your clubmates gawping at your perfect rolls and loops, but you want something perhaps a little more challenging, a stall turn is called for, If only you knew how to do one. Well you've come to the right place, as this manouvre is simple, yet rewarding.

STALL TURN:THE BASICS

To begin, pull the plane up into the vertical , keep the wingtips level to the ground (it won't work if the plane is lurched one way or the other) and let the speed bleed away until you know you are close to the stall, at this point quickly apply rudder to snap it through 180degrees.

Ok, now lets put this into slo mo as this all happens in a split second. When it almost reaches the 180degree point, apply full throttle and then a fraction of a second later apply opposite rudder to prevent it cartwheeling round ,now we can speed it back up to normal. Remember, if you've done it properly the rudder is simply guiding the stall to give it that sharp snap.  And since the plane is stalled, that jab of full throttle is to increase airflow over the rudder to give it more authority.

All you need to need to do now is to pull out at the same altitude that you entered the manouvre,heading 180degrees to what you were when you entered it. And thats it! If it isn't too clear then I've made the diagram below to expalin what happens.

 DOING A 90 DERGREE STALL TURN

A 90 degree stall turn is basically a regular stall turn where you use the ailerons to put a 90 degree twist in the upward straight of the manouvre then do it as normal. like so.

If you wish to adjust the altitude of the stall turn then simply come into the manouvre carrying more/less throttle.

WIND

All i can offer for wind is fo you to keep the plane tracking vertically upwards and nothing much else, i'm afraid.

That concludes the tutorial on stall turns. Hope you enjoyed it, if I have missed anything or you have anything you would like me to cover feel free to comment and share it with us all.

next time:

Roll-off-the-top and the half-cuban