I keep bouncing when I land during touch and goes. Then I crash and have to restart the whole thing. So annoying.
1 Like
Hey @Justen_Lim,
The aircraft is super light, so you have to easy on the controllers.
The best bet is to head into Solo and keep on selecting ‘Short Final’ and practicing.
You can set 0 Knots wind at the start and slowly increase the more you practice.
Hope this helps :)
Safe landings!
2 Likes
Its kind of the opposite from when you land Jets, have the nose wheels tough the ground first, then as the plane slows, have the tail slowly drop.
1 Like
This is a good question. After practicing with different speeds and attitude changes, I think i have a solution
1 Like
I’m a huge fan of the Super Decathlon, and even after hundreds of touch and goes, it’s really difficult to land without bouncing.
What’s important to know going in is the relationship between the main landing gear and center of gravity. On aircraft with a nose wheel, the main landing gear is behind the center of gravity. When you touch down, the landing gear will push up on the back of the plane, dropping the nose and keeping you on the ground (this is a bit oversimplified, but it gets the job done). On the Decathlon, the main gear is ahead of the center of gravity. This means that touching down has the opposite effect; it lifts the nose of the plane up, and lifts you back into the sky.
So what do we do about this? I have two strategies I use together:
-
Land as softly as you can. I recommend turning on the Flight Path Vector until you get used to it. Practice approaching around 60 knots, and landing as softly as you can. This will minimize the bounce.
-
Keep the wheels on the ground. I know that’s the problem you’re trying to solve, but keep reading. After you touch down softly, as soon as your wheels are on the ground, push forward a little bit to keep them there. Throttles to 0, and steer with the rudder to stay on the runway.
Overall, don’t flare the Decathlon like a nose wheel plane. Fly it all the way to the ground, touch down softly, and stay there.
Feel free to PM me with any questions you have!
9 Likes
Yeah ik I wouldn’t land on that one tiny wheel in the back 😂
I’d hope not! Because you land on the front wheels, you’re more likely to bounce in this plane than in, say, a 737. It’s not your fault, it’s the way the plane is built!
2 Likes
It is an extremely sensitive aircraft. Little corrections will help while landing. Trim helps also.
This topic was automatically closed 90 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.