Overcompensating

Once I’d got established into todays practice flight test, I felt the familiar twinge of panic once the realisation hit that I’d have to do the dreaded power on stalls, only this time with Bob-the-pretend-examiner in the passenger seat as opposed to Bob-the-instructor encouraging me along.

When the dreaded moment came, I was strangely serene. Power off stall with full flaps carried out effectively, Bob’s hands firmly in his lap. There was no way I could believe that he was helping me along. This was all me.

So the power on stall. I take a moment to confirm the rpm setting and no flaps. I pause briefly and explain I’m just going to get us on what I consider to be a more appropriate heading for this exercise. I can’t put it off any longer, I start the long pull back on the yoke, entering the stall slowly and deliberately, checking the pull back a little as I’m left wing low and not coordinated. I sort it out and continue to pull back.

The stall horn whines, the pitch becoming ever more frenetic as the nose comes up and up and up. After a seeming age, the stall breaks with a slight wing dip. I recover on the rudder, full power and bring us back from the brink. I’ve been so focussed on getting the technique correct that there simply wasn’t any room in my brain left for fear. This is a good thing!

During the debrief, Bob chides me gently for holding it in the stall for a tad too long. “Once the stall horn is pretty full on, you can recover” he comments.

Obviously there is a touch of overcompensation going on there then!