Route: 40I, Local
Weather: Few clouds, 85 degrees, wind 180 degrees at 11 knots
After reminding myself why so much time off is not good for one's skills in the Skyhawk, I figured I might as well get in a little Cub practice while already at the airport. I was honestly a tad nervous considering the J-3 can be a little less forgiving if you misjudge your flare height by a foot or two. On the other hand, I had just done ten laps in the biggun' so it couldn't be that bad, right?
Turns out I was right! While they certainly weren't all greased-in three-pointers, even the first was respectable. I had to add a little power one time around but the Cub's truly awesome stall indicator (that's the bottom half of the open door, which floats up into a horizontal position just above stall speed) does help you visualize when you've got the right attitude in the flare.
More importantly, Cubbin' is still a bunch of fun. It was great to get in a little stick and rudder even though I never left the pattern. All in all, I definitely arrived home this afternoon much more aeronautically current than I departed.
Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File
Today's Flight: 0.5 hours
Total Time: 352.0 hours
Posts
I didn't know that about the bottom door! That's pretty cool, even though I suspect they didn't make it that way by design (then again, maybe they did, what do I know?). Does the Cub give much of a buffet near the stall or do you rely a bit more on control feel and how mushy it is?
ReplyDeleteNot too much of a buffet but you definitely feel it mushing when practicing stalls. The stall speed's so slow (35-38 MPH) that the control forces are relatively low and mushy by the time it breaks.
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