Cocking Your Chin

If you've ever watched sports legend Jack Nicklaus play golf in person or on television, you might have detected an almost imperceptible mannerism in his game. Just before bringing the club back on nearly every shot, Nicklaus specifically "cocked his chin" ever so slightly to the rear. That psychologically signified that his preparation was complete. Then, and only then, did his backswing begin.

Such a move - or one recognizably similar to it - is the hallmark of many a great professional athlete. It signifies completed preparation. It signifies readiness. It says, "Not going off half-cocked," to borrow an old expression.

Flying should be no different. That's what checklists are for. I've developed a whole series of checklists for a lot of things not covered in the book. You might want to do that too. All of us, unfortunately, sometimes rush into execution before we're really ready to perform. The result is often poor performance, and when it comes to flying, that can be dangerous. A little focused effort and preparation up front will virtually guarantee success.

Getting Ready

Whether your task is a local VFR flight, the start of a visual maneuver in practice or on a checkride, a night or cross-country flight, an instrument approach, a mountain flight, or simple entry into the traffic pattern, focused, deliberate preparation will pay big dividends. Your mental clarity will improve, and major distractions will be eliminated. The object of the exercise is to get everything out of the way ahead of time so that all you have to do is fly the airplane.

Here are a few specific areas to consider.

• General preflight preparation;
• Setting up for VFR maneuvers;
• Entering the nontowered VFR traffic pattern;
• Planning for cross-country flight;
• Planning mountain flights (or other flights dealing with terrain and density altitude issues);
• General preparation for IFR; and
• Preparing for instrument approaches.

General Preflight Preparation

It should go without saying (but, unfortunately, it can't) that every flight should be preceded by:

1. a thorough aircraft preflight.
2. a good weather briefing with answers to all the questions regarding unique or unusual aspects of your specific flight.
3. sound flight planning that leaves no uncertainties to be sorted out later.
4. the filing of a flight plan with the FAA, regardless of the type of flight undertaken.
5. a review of the entire route of flight with specific reference to hazards (terrain and towers, for instance).
6. determination of your personal minimums for this flight.
7. a review of the FAA's I'M SAFE personal checklist to check your mental and physical readiness for the flight. This checklist calls on you to ask yourself whether you are impaired by illness, medication, stress, alcohol, fatigue, or emotion. If the answer is yes to any of those questions, don't fly.

If you have any lingering questions or uncertainties in your mind after you have completed this review, sort them out before you fly or don't go. Better to go home and do some planning than to take off and discover that some nagging doubt or question turns into a critical issue. The key here is to have thoroughly planned your entire flight so that you are prepared to have fun and be safe.

Setting Up For VFR Maneuvers

I suspect few people have failed a private pilot practical test because they couldn't recover from a stall. All you have to do is release the controls and it happens in most general aviation airplanes. Probably many, many more fail because they don't set up properly before they execute the stall or some other private pilot maneuver.

The secret is to be properly prepared before you execute. Like Jack Nicklaus, "cock your chin." Then swing for all you're worth. For an individual procedure, that means first getting focused and reviewing the maneuver you're about to do. Next, accomplish the three C's: Clear, Check, and Configure.

1. Clear the area by looking for traffic as you turn the aircraft around at least 180 degrees.
2. Perform whatever checklist you use to ensure that safety belts are fastened, the mixture is set, carburetor heat is on if the power will be reduced, etc. A good premaneuver checklist will include the items on the before-landing checklist for your airplane.
3. Configure the airplane. Gear, flaps, and other items are important, but don't forget to include the proper power settings, airspeed, altitude, pitch attitude, etc. Once they're established, all you have to do is fly the maneuver.

Clearing means more than just looking out of the airplane while you do a couple of turns. It involves real clearance-checking. SWAT is an acronym I use to remember clearance points. Clear from the surface to ensure that you won't fall below minimum acceptable altitudes on a stall recovery, for instance; the practical test standards for the private pilot checkride require that you complete a stall recovery at a minimum of 1,500 feet agl. Ensure you are clear from any weather by keeping at least VFR minimum flight visibility and clearance from clouds before you execute a visual maneuver. Remain clear of restricted airspace. Get the proper clearances to maneuver if you're inside controlled airspace. Avoid doing maneuvers in busy areas where traffic is likely to converge, such as over a VOR or on an airway. Finally, keep adequate separation from other traffic for the entire maneuver you plan to perform.

Nontowered VFR Traffic Patterns

Procedures for entering and flying a good VFR traffic pattern and making a successful landing are simple but often ignored. Get all of the checklists and other distractions cleared away ahead of time so that all you have to do is concentrate on flying the airplane. If your initial setup is right, everything that follows will work out.

Good landings are the result of good final approaches. Good final approaches result from good traffic patterns with good spacing. Good traffic patterns and spacing result from good plans, good information, and good communication among pilots.

Listen to whatever weather is available well before you reach the airport boundary. Many airports have automated weather such as AWOS or ASOS. At smaller airports you may need to request wind and runway information from the unicom operator. It's a good idea to make this call 10 miles out. And, if that doesn't work, you may want to listen to the AWOS, ASOS, or ATIS at a neighboring airport. Regardless of the source of your weather update, specifically note wind direction and velocity. (If none of these weather options are available, or if you just want to confirm what you've been told, you can always overfly the field well above traffic pattern altitude and look for any wind indicators on the airport.)

Once you have some sort of weather update, you need to think about the recommended radio calls for a nontowered airport. They should be made when entering downwind, entering base, entering final, and leaving the runway. These specific-location radio calls help others to pinpoint your position and simplify the pattern.

Fly over the runway at least 500 feet above the pattern altitude to check approach and departure lanes, existing and outbound traffic, wind, runway indicators, and general conditions. Using the information you've obtained, visualize the rectangular pattern, mentally making some heading estimates to correct for the current winds. Then clear the pattern, descend to pattern altitude, and enter on a level 45-degree leg. Get your checklists done early, scan for other traffic, and eliminate distractions. Now you can concentrate on flying the airplane.

Be sure to look out for the "this is my airport" types who enter the pattern from wherever they wish. They cause traffic conflicts, disturb student training, and create unexpected situations at the expense of others. Be alert.

Half of all midair collisions occur at altitudes less than 500 feet agl, and more than 75 percent happen under 3,000 feet. Flying a standard traffic pattern helps to eliminate the unexpected conflict that can jeopardize safety.

Planning For Cross-Country Flight

The important point for cross-country flying is to closely examine your route of flight, develop options before takeoff, remove uncertain aspects of the flight, and clear away the distractions - before you ever even get into the airplane. You want to know as much as you can about your route before you go. That means not just buying but actually studying and marking charts for your route; thinking about when and how to check the weather before you go and along the way; determining runway lengths and directions for your destination and alternates along the route; fuel planning; weight and balance planning; and a thousand other things.

Before your next cross-country flight, take some time to create your own checklist of information you want to have before you depart. Make sure this is ready to go a few days before your planned trip, because just when you think it's finished, you'll discover some- thing you forgot. Plan to spend a few days adding to your list and organizing the information in a way that's logical for you. Then use your list like any other checklist for your next cross-country and all the future ones. Just knowing that you're prepared and have all of the information you need at your fingertips will make your flight more fun and make dealing with a new destination a lot less stressful.

And don't forget that flight plan. Half of those who have accidents don't file. They don't get a preflight weather briefing either! Don't become a statistic.

Preparing For Mountain Flights

Don't fly into the mountains - ever - without a thorough mountain checkout. Then develop your own checklist to make sure you're ready to venture forth. In addition to other items, any such checklist must include:

1. that thorough mountain checkout covering both ground school and air work. If you have had such a checkout but don't fly in the mountains regularly, spend an hour with an instructor getting a refresher lesson.
2. solid working knowledge of your aircraft's performance, especially at high density altitudes; the "average" general aviation aircraft engine loses 3 percent of its power for every 1,000 feet it climbs. At 10,000 feet you've already lost 30 percent of your power...and that's for a brand-new engine!
3. complete preflight planning, accounting for preferred routes, passes, ridge crossings, air current flow, probable air "drainage," one-way airfield patterns, emergency landing sites, support facilities, and all the rest.

Here are some additional planning tips for mountain flying:

• Don't fly IFR or at night. Give yourself every opportunity to make a safe trip.
• Don't fly when the wind at the mountaintops is greater than 30 knots; you and your airplane may not be able to tolerate the turbulence.
• Prepare and equip yourself and your passengers for survival on the ground after an engine failure or other emergency. That means warm clothing, water, and other survival gear.

General Preparation For IFR

Flight planning, especially for instrument flying, must be done with attention to detail. Don't be satisfied with having only IFR publications in the cockpit with you. Review your route of flight in detail and draw your course lines on VFR charts as well, especially if you will be overflying any questionable or potentially hostile terrain en route.

Even if something goes wrong, you have options if you plan for them. Altitude selection (the higher the better) can often ensure that you are within gliding distance of some airport in the event of an engine failure. If you can't get to an airport, VFR charts can tell you where you are least likely to encounter obstacles such as towers, rough terrain, or populated areas.

Go the extra mile and carefully check out every step of the specific route you propose to fly the next time you plan to fly IFR, including notams. A good weather briefing, a flight plan, and all the other steps you would take for a VFR flight also should be completed.

Once you reach the airplane, make sure the correct en route, terminal, VFR, and IFR publications and charts are aboard, properly folded, and readily available in the order in which you plan to use them. Do a thorough interior and exterior inspection, especially for all the IFR-required items (pitot heat, anti-icing, etc.). And always make sure you thoroughly understand your IFR clearance and that you have no questions about what your return emergency instrument approach will be or what you will do if your radio fails after departure.

You should also be sure to check the logs and your cockpit equipment for compliance with FAR 91.205 regarding IFR flight. Don't go without the necessary instruments, systems, inspections, etc. Finally, check radios, compasses, watches, conventional and area navigation aids (within operational toleran- ces), flight instruments, marker beacon, electrical sources, lights, and all the rest; both the regulations and the FAA's Instrument Flying Handbook have some good reminders. Create your own checklist of the things you want to check out.

Preparing For Instrument Approaches

If you've properly prepared for instrument flight, most of the "big picture" stuff is covered. Once you near the terminal area, there is specific preparation necessary to fly the instrument approach if you're in instrument meteorological conditions. I specifically recommend these steps:

1. Listen to the weather and any airport advisory such as ATIS, AWOS, or ASOS far enough out to understand and plan for the approach environment.
2. Tune, identify, and monitor the navigation aids and other radios required for the approach. Remember that in the case of an automatic direction finder for a nondirectional beacon approach, you must listen to the aural tone at all times because it does not have an Off or Nav flag to tell you that it is not receiving a clear signal. Be sure to monitor the Off or Nav flags on other instruments.
3. Select the appropriate sources for the navigational information on your instrument panel. A good way to remember all the steps in the instrument setup is to use the acronym TIMS: tune, identify, monitor, and select.
4. Review your approach procedure before ever reaching the terminal area. Make sure you know your final approach course, minimum final approach fix crossing altitude, decision height or minimum descent altitude at the missed approach point, timing (primary or for back-up use) from the final approach fix to the missed approach point, missed approach routing and altitudes, etc.
5. Survey the cockpit before you get busy. Go from one side to the other. Make sure you check fuel quantity, fuel selector position, and engine and system instruments.
6. Brief the other occupants of the airplane after you have clarified everything in your mind. This is especially important if they are not pilots. They need to understand that flying an instrument approach takes a lot of concentration and this is not the time to ask questions about what's going on.
7. After everything else is checked, set, and sorted out, make sure you complete the before-landing checklist and lower the landing gear before touchdown.

Even a casual reader will note dozens of important things that have not been included here. Great! Analyze your own flying and make your own checklists. Using those checklists will be your way of "cocking your chin" before your next flight. You'll perform like a pro.