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Civil / Airliner45 min lesson
Soft Field Takeoff & Landing
You will take off from and land on grass, dirt, and unprepared surfaces without bogging down or nosing over.
About this lesson
Soft field technique is about keeping weight off the nosewheel — on takeoff and landing. Your tutor coaches the back-pressure timing and speed management that keeps you rolling on surfaces that want to swallow your tyres.
Why a human tutor? The back-pressure balance between "flying" and "stalling in ground effect" is feel. A tutor coaches it rep by rep.
What you'll learn
- ✓Continuous back-pressure during taxi and takeoff roll
- ✓Lifting off in ground effect before climb speed
- ✓Accelerating in ground effect before climbing away
- ✓Soft-field landing — nose-high, main-gear-first touchdown
- ✓When to abort — recognising a surface that is too soft
Prerequisites
- •Comfortable with normal takeoffs and landings
- •GA or bush aircraft with tailwheel or tricycle gear
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Prep material
Read these guides before your lesson — you'll get more out of the session.