STUDENT PILOT LOSES CONTROL OF ACFT PRACTICING SOFT FIELD LANDING IN CROSSWIND REQUIRING INSTRUCTOR TO TAKE OVER AND GAR.

Date: 2008-05 · Aircraft: Piper Single Undifferentiated or Other Model · Phase: landing

Anomalies: deviation-speed-all-types|ground-excursion-runway|inflight-event-encounter-loss-of-aircraft-control

Synopsis

STUDENT PILOT LOSES CONTROL OF ACFT PRACTICING SOFT FIELD LANDING IN CROSSWIND REQUIRING INSTRUCTOR TO TAKE OVER AND GAR.

Narrative

STUDENT (CERTIFICATED PVT PLT IN TRAINING TOWARD FLT REVIEW SIGNOFF) PRACTICING XWIND TKOFS AND LNDGS. FIRST ATTEMPT RESULTED IN ACCEPTABLE LNDG. SECOND ATTEMPT WAS INTENDED TO BE A SOFT-FIELD LNDG. STUDENT MAINTAINED A CONSISTENTLY LOW AIRSPD ALL THE WAY DOWN FINAL. I SHOULD'VE CORRECTED THAT DEFICIENCY BASED ON THE RESULTS. STUDENT MAINTAINED THE CORRECT CONFIGN FOR XWIND LNDG (UPWIND AILERON INTO THE WIND; OPPOSITE RUDDER TO KEEP NOSE ALIGNED WITH THE RWY). AS THE ROUND-OUT STARTED; STUDENT APPLIED SLIGHT PWR TO EASE DSCNT FOR SOFT-FIELD TECHNIQUE. PROBABLY TOO MUCH PWR; ACFT STARTED TO FLOAT. STUDENT FAILED TO MAINTAIN DIRECTIONAL CTL IN XWIND. I SUGGESTED A GAR. STUDENT APPLIED FULL PWR BUT FAILED TO LOWER NOSE TO REGAIN FLYING SPD. STALL WARNING WAS CONSTANT ON. ACFT BEGAN OSCILLATING FROM ONE SIDE OF THE RWY TO THE OTHER; EVEN BEYOND RWY EDGE. IT'S AT THIS TIME WE MAY HAVE CLIPPED A RWY LIGHT POST. (INSPECTION AFTER LNDG REVEALED NO NOTICEABLE DAMAGE TO ACFT.) I TOOK CTLS; COMMANDED STUDENT TO RELEASE ALL CTLS AND PRESSURES; REGAINED FLYING SPD; REGAINED CTL OF THE ACFT; AND BEGAN TO CLB OUT. I FLEW THE ACFT BACK TO OUR HOME BASE AND LANDED. I WASN'T SURE WHETHER WE'D HIT A LIGHT; AND IF A TIRE WAS FLAT AS A RESULT; I WANTED TO BE ON THE CTLS AT TOUCHDOWN. THIS INCIDENT RESULTED FROM MY HESITATION IN CORRECTING STUDENT FOR A 'LOW AND SLOW' CONDITION -- IN THE HOPES HE WOULD SEE THE RESULT OF HIS ACTIONS. LITTLE DID I KNOW HE WOULD FREEZE ON THE CTLS AND STOP COUNTERING THE XWIND. THIS STUDENT'S INITIAL TRAINING IN XWIND CORRECTION AND LNDG TECHNIQUES WAS CLEARLY DEFICIENT.

Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.