This is a difficult discussion because we're all convinced we're seeing the nose every time we're in the cockpit.
But are we? Are we aware of every little movement that it makes? And is each of those motions transmitted to our brain where the consequences of that motion are analyzed until we truly understand what it means to our control of the airplane? These sometimes-tiny details are what make or break a person's flying skill.
Take airspeed control as an example. For brevity, ignore the controversy that has existed for years about what controls airspeed and what controls altitude: pitch or power. For this discussion, which is envisioned as a light airplane on approach, pitch controls airspeed and power controls altitude. Also, in the vein of controlling the smallest detail, we're not looking for an imprecise 70 to 80 knots here. Our pilot's operating handbook (POH) says 74 knots is best glide speed for our flight conditions, so we'll hold as close to an exact 74 knots as we can, and we're going to do that by tightly controlling the details surrounding the nose.
How do we see the nose as clearly as we possibly can? For one thing, we don't look at the entire nose. We pick out some small detail on the nose, imagine that as the front sight on our rifle, use that to judge nose movement. Every airplane has something on the cowling that stands out. On aircraft like the Piper Warrior or Cessna 172, there is a line of screws joining the sheet metal to the nose bowl. On the Diamond Star there's a slight change in the shape of the cowl just before it meets the spinner. For an airplane that has no discernible discontinuity up front, a piece of masking tape could be stuck to the top of the nose bowl directly in line with the pilot where it is visible from the cockpit. In even more desperate situations, where the nose is so far down that it doesn't present much of a reference, a piece of masking tape can be put on the windshield to illustrate the concept. The point is that we won't use the entire nose as a reference because it's too large. We're going to pick out a small portion of the nose because it'll be a much more precise reference.
Once we have our reference identified, it should greatly increase our awareness of nose movement: This will make it much easier to see nose movement in relation to the horizon and the background. So, now that we have a solid reference, let's carry the concept one step further and give the movement of the nose more meaning by calibrating it with something that requires no guesswork, the airspeed indicator. We need to know what the different nose attitudes mean in the different regimes of flight as well as assign an approximate airspeed number to a given amount of nose movement.
The airspeed lags behind the movement of the nose, which makes the indicated airspeed a secondary instrument (airspeed changes can be seen first in the windshield). But once everything is stable, the airspeed indicator is the only way to put a firm number on a given nose attitude and allows us to exactly calibrate the different attitudes (climb, glide, et cetera).
Incidentally, we are not replacing the airspeed indicator with the nose. What we're doing is developing an appreciation for what different nose attitudes mean and how important it is to hold the nose stable, once we have it set.
Because we're now aware of our attitude in pitch, whether we're climbing or gliding, we'll put our nose in what we think is the correct attitude for the desired performance. We then hold it stable in relation to the horizon, wait a few seconds, and then check the airspeed. If the speed isn't exactly what we want, we move the nose a few degrees in the appropriate direction, hold it in the adjusted position, and check the airspeed again. Once the airspeed has stabilized (74 knots, remember? Not 72, not 76), we note exactly where the nose is in relation to the horizon and resolve not to let it move.
If we change the configuration (flaps, landing gear, etc.), that will change the required nose attitude and we go through the same procedure again: set the attitude, cross-reference with the airspeed, adjust. Then we hold it where it is because if the nose doesn't move, the airspeed doesn't move. We do not chase the airspeed with the nose. We change the nose attitude in small increments, checking the airspeed each time until it is exactly what we want.
The ability to see the smallest nose movement so we can hold it in a given place indefinitely may seem like a small thing, but it is the only way to ensure a stable airspeed in any condition. Further, it clearly shows us how important a detail like a small movement of the nose can be.
Controlling the nose details, by the way, is insurance against stall/spin accidents; if you're holding a stable nose attitude that has been cross-referenced with the airspeed, you'll never stall an airplane. Never!
Incidentally, being aware of the nose also means you'll be aware of its movement left and right (yaw) as well as up and down (pitch). The good news here is that nose awareness will help you with your rudder coordination. If the ball is forced out of position by torque, P-factor, adverse yaw, or clumsy feet, you'll see the nose make an unnatural movement in yaw, which--coupled with the movement of the ball in the turn coordinator and your posterior in the seat--tells you that your feet aren't doing their job. Each tiny detail surrounding the nose gives us useful information.
As we swivel our eyes across the airplane, wing tip to wing tip, we'll see many other sources of information if we're aware of the small details. For instance, the distance between the top (or bottom) of the wings and the horizon tells us when we're level, as does the view over the panel. This all seems pretty elementary and hardly worth discussing. But if that's the case, then why do so many pilots unconsciously fly around with one wing slightly down (it only takes one degree), which keeps the airplane in a constant slight turn so that it's impossible to hold an exact heading? This is especially noticeable on climbout where P-factor and torque are hard at work and then, when turning crosswind, a pilot looks back to find he is way off the extended runway centerline. Many pilots keep glancing at the artificial horizon for attitude information, when all they have to do is swing their eyes around the airplane and they'll learn all they need to know about the attitude.
It all comes into play on the downwind leg of a routine traffic pattern. There are so many details around us there, that we could write a book about it. First, there is the position issue: how far from the runway are we and how high are we supposed to be? The airplane always should be positioned so that it can make the runway in case of an engine failure. Equally important, it should be the same on every approach, and there's an easy way to do that: first, make sure you're at exactly the right altitude (not plus or minus 100 feet as it says in the Practical Test Standards) and take note of where the runway is in relation to the wing. It might be in a given position on the strut, or a specific distance above the tip on a low wing. If you're at the same altitude every time, and put the runway in the same location in relation to the tip or the strut--every time--you'll be the same distance from the runway and your patterns will be more consistent.
Incidentally, if you are higher than your target altitude and you put the runway in the same place on the strut or wing tip, the visual geometry will move you farther away. If you are lower, it will move you closer. This is yet another incentive for holding an exact altitude.
Another advantage of picking out a runway reference on the strut or wing tip is that it will keep us flying parallel to the runway on downwind. It's not enough that we set ourselves up the right distance out and the right altitude. We need to continually monitor ground track to make sure we're moving parallel to the runway, and using a wing/runway reference is a good way to do that. It helps immensely if we're aware of the relationship of the airplane's centerline to the runway.
And then there is the runway length illusion that is also easily handled by a runway/wing reference point. If we're used to flying off a 3,000-foot runway and come into the pattern for a 6,000-foot strip, there's a tendency to fly downwind farther out because that makes the longer strip appear more like the one we're used to. It also, unfortunately, totally screws up our approach. By consistently putting the runway, regardless of how long it is, on our wing reference, our downwind will be where it is supposed to be.
If we do nothing more than put ourselves on downwind in the same place every time and reduce the power the same way in the same place, we'll find that we've eliminated a lot of variables and smooth, consistent approaches and landings are the inevitable result. Your investment of attention to the nose position and other details in other flight regimes will yield similar dividends to your aircraft control.
Budd Davisson is an aviation writer/photographer and magazine editor who has written approximately 2,200 articles and has flown more than 300 different types of aircraft. A CFI since 1967, he teaches about 30 hours a month in his Pitts S-2A Special. Visit his Web site.
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Links to additional resources about the topics discussed in this article are available at AOPA Flight Training Online.
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