CPL Maneuvers
Chandelles:
First off were the Chandelles and this maneuver also turned out to be the easiest one. The chandelle can be described as a maximum performance 180-degree climbing turn. You start out by establishing a 30-degree bank, adding full power and gradually start pitching up. When you have turned 90 degrees the pitch should be at its maximum. For the remaining portion of the maneuver the pitch attitude should be kept constant while gradually reducing the bank angle so that the wings return to level after 180 degrees of turn and with the airspeed just above the stall speed. A good rule-of-thumb for pitch attitude at the 90-degree point is about 8 degrees of pitch-up on the attitude indicator. This worked very well for me and I actually got the whole maneuver right on the very first attempt.
Take a look at chapter 9 of the FAA Airplane Flying Handbook for a detailed description as well as illustrations of the maneuver. (The document opens at the top of chapter 7 so you need to scroll down near the bottom to find these maneuvers).
Lazy Eights:
The next maneuver I set out to try was the Lazy Eight. This one proved to be a little more challenging although a very useful advice from my instructor helped me quite a bit. The Lazy Eight maneuver is comprised of two consecutive 180-degree turns in opposite directions while making a climb and descent in a symmetrical pattern during each of the turns.
If this sounds a bit complicated at first you can take a look at the instructional video below for a breakdown of how the maneuver is flown:
As you can see in the video we establish several key points throughout the maneuver.
The first one is the 45-degree point. At this point the pitch up attitude should be at its maximum and the airplane should have smoothly rolled into about 15 degrees of bank.
The second key point is the 90-degree point. After passing through the 45-degree point the bank angle should gradually continue to increase so that the maximum bank angle of about 30 degrees is reached at the 90-degree point. At the same time the pitch attitude should be gradually decreased so that you return to a level pitch attitude at the 90-degree point.
At the third key point – the 135-degree point – the bank angle should be reduced back to 15 degrees of bank and the pitch attitude should be at its lowest while descending back to the same altitude at which you first entered the maneuver.
The final key point is the 180-degree point at which you should have returned to straight-and-level flight at the same altitude at which you first entered the maneuver and the heading should be in the exact opposite direction of your entry heading. As soon as you are straight-and-level at the 180-degree point you start rolling the airplane into a bank in the opposite direction to do the whole thing over in the opposite direction…
These key points provide a good framework on which to base the necessary control inputs throughout the maneuver. However, while trying to accomplish these predetermined flight attitudes at the established key points it is important to remember that there should be a smooth and gradual change in both pitch attitude and bank angle throughout the entire maneuver.
The way my instructor taught me to accomplish this was by initially rolling into about 5 degrees of bank and then bringing the ailerons back to a neutral position while allowing the airplane to continue rolling into a bank by itself. The first time I flew the maneuver I tried this and found that it worked very well. As I continued to pitch up towards the 45-degree point the airplane would indeed smoothly continue to roll into a bank by itself. When I passed through the 45-degree point all I needed to do was to start releasing some of the back pressure on the yoke and the airplane would continue to increase the bank angle on its own while the nose was gradually lowered towards a level pitch attitude.
All in all the first 90 degrees of the maneuver required very little control inputs on my part. After rolling into the initial 5 degrees of bank all I needed to do was to control the pitch attitude with back pressure on the yoke while keeping the ailerons and rudders neutral and the airplane basically did the rest for me.
As I allowed the airplane to return to a level pitch attitude at the 90-degree point and relatively close to the clean configuration stall speed the nose of the airplane sliced sideways through the horizon and into a descending pitch attitude without any significant intervention on the flight controls by me.
The second half of the 180-degree turn was somewhat more challenging as I was required to use the controls more actively to reduce the bank angle and controlling the pitch attitude throughout the descending portion of the turn.
This maneuver is also to be found in chapter 9 of the FAA Airplane Flying Handbook. (Located near the bottom of the document).
Eights-on-Pylons:
After a couple attempts on the Lazy Eights I set out to try the Eights-on-Pylons.
I recommend you watch this instructional video for a thorough explanation of the maneuver:
You can also check out chapter 6 of the FAA Airplane Flying Handbook for a detailed description of the maneuver. (The Eights-on-Pylons maneuver is located near the end of the document).
Before the flight I made myself a table of applicable ground speeds and corresponding pivotal altitudes that looked something like this:
Ground Speed (kts) Pivotal Altitude
90 720
95 800
100 880
105 980
110 1070
As you have probably noticed by now this maneuver is flown in the shape of a figure eight around two pylons on the ground. While turning around one of the pylons the airplane’s lateral axis should appear to pivot on the pylon as if the airplane’s wingtip was attached to the pylon by a string. This is accomplished by maintaining corresponding ground speeds and pivotal altitudes throughout the maneuver according to the table above.
I can’t think of much more to say about this maneuver apart from one handy rule that I recently picked up from a co-student and which has helped me quite a bit with remembering how to control the airplane correctly through the maneuver. Except for when you are flying in no-wind conditions (which very rarely happens) your ground speed will vary throughout the maneuver and hence so will your pivotal altitude. The clue to remember is to always pitch towards the pylon….if the pylon moves backwards behind the wingtip then you pitch back by applying some extra back pressure on the yoke. If the pylon starts moving forward ahead of the wingtip then you pitch forward as if to catch up with the pylon.
Steep Spirals:
The steep spiral maneuver which is flown with idle power is an efficient way of losing altitude while remaining over a selected point on the ground. This maneuver is similar to that of turns around a point which you have probably been through if you hold at least a Private Pilot license. In fact this maneuver is flown as turns around a point while descending at idle power and the maneuver is complete after three full 360-degree turns.
Here are a couple resources I would like to share with you that explains and illustrates this maneuver:
Chapter 9 of the FAA Airplane Flying Handbook. (The steep spiral maneuver is located near the bottom of the document).
