AOPA Online Members Only -- AOPA ePilot Flight Training Edition -- Vol. 7, Issue 14

CROSSWIND RULES OF 'THUMB'
Here's a visualization exercise. After performing a crosswind landing as described in the March 30, 2007, Training Tips, you are instructed: "Turn right next taxiway, contact ground control." How will you position ailerons and elevator for the wind during taxi?

Suppose you landed on a northerly runway with a 10-knot crosswind from the west. That's a left crosswind. When you landed, you were holding down the left wing (yoke to the left for left aileron up). As you turn right at the next taxiway, what happens to the crosswind component?

It becomes a tailwind component, requiring an adjustment of your controls. Add down elevator as illustrated in Figure 2-10 in Chapter 2 of the Airplane Flying Handbook.

Next, ground control instructs you to turn right onto the parallel taxiway and taxi to the ramp. Again, think about where the wind is coming from and how you should position the ailerons and elevator.

"It can be confusing remembering which way the ailerons should be positioned during a crosswind taxi, so I teach this memory aid: When you hold the yoke, your thumb points up; when the wind is coming from in front and to one side (a quartering headwind), point your thumb into the wind. When the wind is coming from behind, point your thumb away from the wind," Sue Critz wrote in the December 2004 AOPA Flight Training feature "Tackling Taxiing."

Another memory aid is the old mnemonic, "Thumb up, aileron up." During your next preflight, grasp the yoke with both hands, and turn it left and right. You will see that the up thumb points to the up aileron.

Spend some ground time diagramming wind and runway-bearing combinations and how you would handle them with the flight controls while taxiing. Soon your control deflections will become second nature, and your taxiing, safer.

The FAA's Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM) is the best reference for learning good air traffic control communication skills and phraseology. Your most important lesson as you learn to use the right words is learning not to be afraid of using the wrong words. Regardless of the form it takes, communication is the goal. Read more on effective communication in Flight Training . Still have questions? Call our aviation experts at 800/USA-AOPA weekdays between 8:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Eastern time.

As an AOPA Flight Training member, you have access to all of the features within AOPA Online and AOPA Flight Training Online. Login information is available online.

CESSNA VLJ SIMULATOR GOES TO FLIGHTSAFETY INTERNATIONAL
A training program for Cessna's Citation 510 Mustang very light jet (VLJ) was unveiled this week at FlightSafety International's Wichita, Kansas, facility. The FAA approved certification of the Mustang simulator in March. The 10-day type-rating course includes daily sessions of ground school, systems integration, and simulator training. A three-day recurrent course also will be offered. Cessna is using a proficiency index developed in conjunction with FlightSafety that takes into account a pilot's previous ratings, number of flight hours, recent experience, and glass panel experience to determine the level of training required for each type rating candidate. The index also determines whether a pilot could qualify for a second-in-command rating, crew type rating, or single-pilot type rating.

AOPA AWARDS $2,000 SCHOLARSHIP AT AEA
The Aircraft Electronics Association (AEA) wrapped up its annual meeting last week in Reno, Nevada, but not before handing out more than $100,000 in scholarships to 30 college students. Administered through the AEA Educational Foundation, the awards were presented to students pursuing a career in the general aviation maintenance and aircraft electronics industry. Among the recipients was Jeff Tenan, who received AOPA's $2,000 scholarship. Tenan is a high school senior in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, who has been accepted to the Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics, where he plans to pursue an associate's degree in specialized technology through the institute's aviation maintenance program. Scholarship sponsors represented a broad variety of industry businesses, organizations, and individuals and included Garmin, Honeywell Bendix/King, Rockwell Collins, and Sporty's/Cincinnati Avionics.

EMBRY-RIDDLE STUDENTS SET RECORD WITH ROCKET LAUNCH
A team of aerospace engineering students from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University launched a two-stage Icarus rocket on March 22-and became record-setters in the process. The rocket, launched from NASA Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, set an altitude record for a student-built vehicle-37.8 miles-and became the first two-stage student sounding rocket to launch from a NASA facility. The project's mission is to promote student rocket projects at Embry-Riddle, combining classroom knowledge with hands-on experience in rocket design and instruction.

FANTASY AIR USA ADOPTS LIGHT SPORT AVIATORS' CODE OF CONDUCT
If you order a new Allegro light sport aircraft this year, expect to receive something extra with your shiny new aircraft: a code of conduct. Fantasy Air USA of Sanford, North Carolina, the U.S. distributor for the aircraft, says it has adopted a Light Sport Aviators' Model Code of Conduct, which presents broad guidance and recommendations to advance flight safety and responsible airmanship in the light sport community. The Code of Conduct will be included in each new Allegro delivery. The Code "presents a vision of excellence in light sport aircraft" within seven sections that deal with such topics as general responsibilities of aviators, passengers, and people on the surface; training and proficiency; and advancement and promotion of light sport aviation.

SWEEPS CARDINAL NOW READY FOR PRIME TIME
When you paint an airplane, you can't just get out a spray can and go nuts. It takes a multi-step process to create the stunning paint jobs like the one you'll see on AOPA's 2007 Catch-A-Cardinal Sweepstakes airplane, a 1977 Cessna 177B Cardinal. We take you through the priming and base-coat portions of the process in this week's update. Remember, you can see the finished paint scheme-and the rest of the airplane open for inspection-at the Sun 'n Fun Fly-In from April 17 through 23 in Lakeland, Florida. You'll also get your first chance to fly the airplane-with the intro version of our Catch-A-Cardinal aircraft module (for Microsoft Flight Simulator), created especially for us by Flight1 Aviation Technologies.

CELEBRATE SPRING FLYING WITH AOPA AT SUN 'N FUN
What's better than celebrating the start of the spring flying season with thousands of pilots at Sun 'n Fun? Getting into the show for free! If you sign up for AOPA Project Pilot with a Mentor at the Sun 'n Fun entrance gate between Tuesday, April 17, and Friday, April 20, you'll get in free for that day. (Limit one free student per Mentor.) Plus you'll get an AOPA Project Pilot sticker for a chance to win $5,000 for flight training. ( See the rules on AOPA Online.) When you're at the show, stop by AOPA's Big Yellow Tent to check out our 2007 Catch-A-Cardinal Sweepstakes airplane and sign one of its floorboards to become a lasting part of the project. For details about AOPA's events at Sun 'n Fun, see AOPA Online.

WHAT'S UP WITH THE WEATHER?
Do you struggle to understand weather forecasts? Trying to decipher what a weather forecast is telling you can be challenging. That's why the AOPA Air Safety Foundation put together a DVD and companion Safety Advisor to provide practical weather flying information for general aviation pilots. The WeatherWise DVD includes simple ways to perform a "validation check" on forecasts and how to spot potentially erroneous forecasts before you take off. The companion Safety Advisor takes the same practical orientation as the DVD and includes tips on precipitation and low visibilities, thunderstorms, turbulence, icing, and how to read a forecast. For more information on ordering the DVD, see the Air Safety Foundation Store. Download the free Safety Advisor.

HAVE YOU UPDATED YOUR AOPA MEMBER PROFILE?
To make the most of your membership and allow us to serve you better, please visit AOPA Online and update your personal member profile.

NEW CHECKLISTS FOR GARMIN PORTABLE GPSMAP SERIES
SureCheck Aviation, manufacturer of a broad line of aircraft checklists, now has a series of avionics checklists designed specifically for handheld GPS units. The company says it now has checklists for Garmin handhelds, including the GPSMAP 496, 396, 296, and 196. Checklists for the GPSMAP 295 and 195 are forthcoming. Each checklist ranges from 30 to 40 pages and includes full-color guides to every screen function. The spiral-bound checklists are printed in color with black and white inserts and are laminated with a non-glare finish. The 396 and 496 checklists are $29.95; the 295 and 296 are $24.95; and the 195 and 196 are $19.95. SureCheck products are sold by a variety of pilot shops and fixed-base operators. For more information, see the Web site.

Note: Products listed have not been evaluated by ePilot editors unless otherwise noted. AOPA assumes no responsibility for products or services listed or for claims or actions by manufacturers or vendors.

Question: I'm at the cross-country point in my flight training, and my instructor has been covering the basics of filing a flight plan. If a VFR flight plan is generally not required-unless flying through certain restricted airspace-what is the value of filing one?

Answer: Perhaps the greatest benefit of filing a VFR flight plan is that it's good insurance in the event of an off-airport emergency. Search and rescue services will be initiated if you are overdue at your destination airport and have not closed your flight plan with flight service. On the other hand, if you have an accident in a remote area and did not file a flight plan, it may be some time before you are either discovered or reported missing, and longer still until a rescue effort is begun. Be sure to cancel your flight plan within 30 minutes after your estimated time of arrival to avoid triggering an unwarranted search. You can cancel with flight service via telephone (800/WX-BRIEF) or AOPA's Real Time Flight Planner using your DUAT account. For more information, read the online article, "Paper Trail: Activating your flight plan just might save the day."

Got a question for our technical services staff? E-mail to [email protected] or call the Pilot Information Center, 800/872-2672. Don't forget the online archive of "Final Exam" questions and answers, searchable by keyword or topic.

To submit an event to the calendar or to search all events visit AOPA Online. For airport details, see AOPA's Airport Directory Online.

FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR REFRESHER CLINICS
The next AOPA Air Safety Foundation Flight Instructor Refresher Clinics are scheduled in Denver, Cincinnati, and Boston, April 14 and 15. Clinics are also scheduled in Tampa, FL; Chicago; Indianapolis; and Reston, VA, April 21 and 22. For a complete schedule, see AOPA Online. Can't make it in person? Sign up for the CFI Refresher Online.

AOPA AIR SAFETY FOUNDATION SAFETY SEMINARS
AOPA Air Safety Foundation Safety Seminars are scheduled in Gaithersburg, MD, April 12; and Lumberton, NC, April 14. The topics vary-for details and a complete schedule, see AOPA Online.