My question is this: Using 91.213(d)(2)(i), how do you determine if the equipment is on the VFR-day type certificate? I say that the equipment is listed on the type certificate data sheet (TCDS), but I am not certain.
Jim Troutman
Via the Internet
Author David Wright responds: You are correct - the equipment is listed on the type certificate data sheets (TCDS). Getting your hands on the TCDS is another story. First ask your mechanics; they probably have a specific TCDS for the make and model of aircraft you're looking for. If that doesn't work your next step is the FAA; you can obtain the TCDS through your local Flight Standards District Office. -Ed.
Another take on takeoff performance
I would like to make a couple of comments on Chip Wright's article, "A New Look at Takeoff Performance" (March AOPA Flight Training). While I strongly support the general idea of the article, I have to take exception to a couple of comments.
First, the definition of "balanced field length" that Wright uses is incorrect. A field is "balanced" when accelerate-stop and accelerate-go distances are the same. True, this is a minor point that really has no bearing on the subject of the article. But there are already a lot of misconceptions about turbine and Transport Category performance in our ranks, and as we all know, things learned first - whether right or wrong - are some of the things best remembered.
Second, and with more relevance to the article, I disagree with Wright's statement in the last paragraph of the article, "But you need to know when you start that takeoff roll...that you can stop on the remaining runway should it become necessary." How do we guarantee that any engine failures will occur before we reach 50 feet? I agree that an accelerate-stop distance is good information to know, but if we calculated our accelerate-stop distance in our single-engine airplane as exactly the amount length of runway we have to take off, and the engine fails at 75 feet, we need to have a plan for that as well.
This plan would include a pretakeoff evaluation of terrain and potential emergency landing sites in the immediate vicinity of the airport, and would very likely be a good plan for an engine failure below 50 feet as well. When we fixate on landing on the runway in the event of an engine failure we open ourselves up to higher levels of damage and/or injury when the airplane simply cannot stop on the runway.
A minor change in wording of the sentence to "...whether you can stop on the runway remaining...," and including the evaluation of nearby terrain would, in my opinion, greatly improve the good content of the article.
David Andersen
New Ulm, Minnesota
The last word on touch and goes?
"Instructor Report: Touching Base" (March AOPA Flight Training) was very interesting. Regardless of how logical something is, some people will always see something different. This brings to mind the age-old question, is the glass half full or half empty?
My take on the issue of the touch and go is that it should be outlawed. There's no need for it in primary training. An instructor's responsibilities are to help the student learn with adequate instructions, to the highest standards of performance, and to be safe and proficient. The FAA's fundamentals of instruction do not mention anything about saving a student time and money. If students wants to save time and money then they ought to review their lesson before their next session. It will save them a bundle.
If the runway is too short for stop and goes then taxi back, or fly to an airport with a longer runway. What's so hard about that? I think some instructors are too impatient.
I prefer taxi-backs because they are more realistic. It gives the student time to calm down and analyze any faults. It allows time for reviews and critiques. The cockpit is a learning environment also, and there's no such thing as wasting time or money when it's occupied for training. There's always something to learn. Use that taxi-back time prudently, instead of trying to see how many bad landings one can squeeze into an hour.
Bryan Canterbury
Charlotte, North Carolina
Related Articles
