Membership: AOPA events in 2021

Getting together in the face of a pandemic

January 1, 2021 By Chris Eads

With the uncertainty of what 2021 will look like because of a potentially lingering pandemic, AOPA decided to forego another year of attempting to conduct its major, large-scale regional fly-ins.

Instead, we’ve developed two new event models that will bring the industry together in small, organic, flexible, and safe environments.

AOPA Aviator Showcase. AOPA will offer two events to connect pilots and aircraft owners with the aviation industry’s vast array of products, services, aircraft, and equipment. These events will be one-day gatherings with an exhibit hall, an aircraft sales display, and technology-related seminars. Attendees will meet with industry leaders in avionics and cockpit technology, flight planning and weather resources, and aircraft manufacturing. You’ll find anything you could ever want for your airplane: from gadgets and gear to oil and anticorrosives; lights, batteries, props, engines, flight bags, all the way to specific parts you need for your aircraft and more. Local services like paint shops, avionic shops, and aircraft detailers will be there to help you improve your aircraft. Want to buy an airplane? Meet with aircraft financiers, insurers, and aircraft manufacturers and dealers. The first AOPA Aviator Showcase events will be held in the spring in the southwestern U.S., and the second during the fall in the mid-Atlantic region. Specific dates and locations will be announced in early 2021.

AOPA Pilot Gatherings Air Tour. AOPA will offer a series of small gatherings that we will conduct along a multistop air tour across the United States, bringing together pilots and AOPA leadership in a fun and intimate setting. On three different trips in 2021, we will make daily stops at airports across the country to meet and connect with local pilots. At each event, Mark Baker will present a Pilot Town Hall, the AOPA Air Safety Institute will conduct a safety seminar, and we will enjoy roundtable discussions with AOPA leadership over lunch. The routes and locations are currently being developed and will be announced closer to the events. These tours will maintain a high degree of flexibility to account for important factors such as weather patterns and pandemic conditions. For those who wish to participate with us in a more “virtual” way, online participation opportunities will be offered.

Preregistration and attendance fee will be required.

aopa.org/fly-ins

Ask AOPA

Pedal dancing

Tips for rudder use that will help students

Q: Are there any tricks of the trade, so to speak, that I can use to teach a student pilot the exact amount of rudder to use, and when to use it?

A: Yes, there are. I will relate a few to you that you can incorporate into your flight training as needed.

To start with, rudder use in cruise? Very little. Slow flight? Well, that is a different story. An old BL–65 Taylorcraft I used to love for this very reason would actually bank left, yet turn right with left aileron input only. There was so much adverse yaw it just pulled that nose opposite the bank direction every time. There is also p-factor, torque, and slipstream, all culprits that demand proper rudder use to overcome.

Flying the traffic pattern from rotation to the base leg turn requires almost zero left rudder input. Try it sometime. I won’t get deep in aerodynamics here, but turning left while climbing at full or high power only requires releasing some right rudder, as opposed to applying left. Have your students keep their left foot on the floor until turning base leg.

Slowing down to minimum control speed, right rudder is king. Bank 30 degrees left. Do you push the left pedal or just release some right? While you are in that left turn, note the aerodynamic anomaly. I assure you that you will be applying right rudder and holding right aileron. Make sure your student sees this.

Speed up a little and practice rolling the airplane from a 45-degree left bank to 45-degree right bank. Your student will be impressed just how much rudder input is needed to remain coordinated while rolling during slow flight. Be sure they remember this.

These are just a few techniques I use; hopefully it’s enough to get you started on teaching proper rudder use.

Questions? Contact the AOPA Pilot Information Center Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern time at 800-872-2672, email [email protected], or go to pic.aopa.org.

Craig Brown is a senior aviation technical specialist in the AOPA Pilot Information Center.

Chris Eads

AOPA Senior Director, Outreach and Events

Chris began working for AOPA in 2013, but has been a private pilot and AOPA member since 2001. He flies VFR all over the country both for fun and as a part of his role leading AOPA events and regional fly-ins.

Go to Chris Eads's Profile