AFH 3-16

Figure 3-18. Parallax view. Some additional considerations for initiating turns are the following: ⦁ If the airplane’s nose starts to move before the bank starts, the rudder is being applied too soon. ⦁ If the bank starts before the nose starts turning or the nose moves in the opposite direction, the rudder is being applied too late. ⦁ If the nose moves up or down when entering a bank, excessive or insufficient elevator back pressure is being applied. After the bank has been established, all flight control pressures applied to the ailerons and rudder may be relaxed or adjusted, depending on the established bank angle, to compensate for the airplane’s inherent stability or overbanking tendencies. The airplane should remain at the desired bank angle with the proper application of aileron pressure. If the desired bank angle is shallow, the pilot needs to maintain a small amount of aileron pressure into the direction of bank including rudder to compensate for yaw effects. For medium bank angles, the ailerons and rudder should be neutralized. Steep bank angles require opposite aileron and rudder to prevent the bank from steepening. Back pressure on the elevator should not be relaxed as the vertical component of lift should be maintained if altitude is to be maintained. Throughout the turn, the pilot should reference the natural horizon, scan for aircraft traffic, and occasionally crosscheck the flight instruments to verify performance. A reduction in airspeed is the result of increased drag but is generally not significant for shallow bank angles. In steeper turns, additional power may be required to maintain airspeed. If altitude is not being maintained during the turn, the pitch attitude should be corrected in relation to the natural horizon and cross-checked with the flight instruments to verify performance. Steep turns require accurate, smooth, and timely flight control inputs. Minor corrections for pitch attitude are accomplished with proportional elevator back pressure while the bank angle is held constant with the ailerons. However, during steep turns, it is not uncommon for a pilot to allow the nose to get excessively low resulting in a significant loss in altitude in a very short period of time. The recovery sequence requires that the pilot first reduce the angle of bank with coordinated use of opposite aileron and rudder and then increase the pitch attitude by increasing elevator back pressure. If recovery from an excessively nose-low, steep bank condition is attempted by use of the elevator only, it only causes a steepening of the bank and unnecessary stress on the airplane. Steep turn performance can be improved by an appropriate application of power to overcome the increase in drag. Depending on the purpose of a steep turn and the magnitude of control force needed, trimming additional elevator back pressure as the bank angle goes beyond 30° may assist the pilot during the turn. Since the airplane continues turning as long as there is any bank, the rollout from the turn should be started before reaching the desired heading. The amount of lead required to rollout on the desired heading depends on the degree of bank used in the turn. A rule of thumb is to lead by one-half the angle of bank. For example, if the bank is 30°, lead the rollout by 15°. The rollout from a turn is similar to the roll-in except the flight controls are applied in the opposite direction. Aileron and rudder are applied in the direction of the rollout or toward the high wing. As the angle of bank decreases, the elevator pressure should be relaxed as necessary to maintain altitude. As the wings become level, the flight control pressures should be smoothly relaxed so that the controls are neutralized as the airplane returns to straight-and-level flight. If trim was used, such as during a steep turn, forward elevator pressure may be required until the trim can be adjusted. As the rollout is being completed, attention should be given to outside visual references, as well as the flight instruments to determine that the wings are being leveled and the turn stopped.