Examiner Deals With Student Jitters

By Gary Wiblin, Editor, International Aviation Safety Forum

I was booked to do an initial PPL test with a pleasant chap a while back. I had often met him milling about our flying club and judging by his obviously studious nature the test was to be a walk in the park. After doing a good, thorough pre-flight inspection we strapped ourselves into the aircraft for a perfect flight. Everything was going along just great. The pre-start and after-start checks were of a very high standard, brakes were checked, taxi speed was kept in check, controls were held correctly relative to wind, radio work was excellent, and the take-off and after take-off checks were flawless. I was wishing that there were more pilots of such a high calibre around.

We entered the general flying area at 4000' MSL and began running through all the compulsory exercises required for the issue of a PPL. The medium turn was great, the steep turn well within limits. The applicant appeared calm, relaxed, and confident. What a pleasure this was turning out to be. I then asked him to demonstrate a stall. There was an immediate and abrupt change in his composure. It was almost as if he had dreaded this moment all along but had successfully managed to completely block it from his conscious mind. In a now nervous and jittery state he ran through the pre-stall checks.

I reminded him that he should just completely relax and perform the maneuver exactly as he had been taught. He applied carb heat and closed the throttle. He visibly tensed up as the stall warning sounded and then harshly shoved the control column forward for the recovery. This was followed immediately by his ramming the throttle wide open and pulling back hard on the stick. Because the throttle was opened so rapidly and possibly because the carb. heat was still applied, the engine initially spluttered in protest before bellowing indignantly to life. As we entered the secondary stall and the left-hand wing dropped he fed in full right-hand aileron. This had the effect of aggravating the stalled condition of the left-hand wing and the aircraft wound up into a fast, flat left-hand spin.

Judging by the pained expression on our potential PPL's face, he was not having a good day. There was no doubt about it. This chap was absolutely petrified of unusual attitudes and was also convinced that stalling was a state of flight over which he had absolutely no control.

I personally believe that the most dangerous place to be is in an aircraft with a pilot who is in control only within certain parameters. In the foregoing example the potential pilot not only lost control of the aircraft but actually let go of the controls and clung to the bottom of his seat.

I wish it were within my powers to prevent such people from ever attaining a PPL but unfortunately it isn't. This particular person went to another flying school where he was somehow able to sneak through the system. This frightens me immensely. Our skies are cluttered with pilots who are actually terrified of flying, yet continue to do so to satisfy some strange logic.

In some cases this may only be an initial fear of the unknown and can often be cured with briefings and practising unusual attitude recovery. Once a student fully understands that an aircraft is fully controllable throughout all phases of flight his/her initial fears can usually easily be allayed. I had a case some years ago where a student fully acknowledged his fear of unusual attitudes and had me run him through unusual attitude recovery and mild aerobatics (in an aerobat) over and over ad nauseum until he not only got used to it, but actually enjoyed stalling and spinning.

My point is, if there is some part of your aviation training that scares you, you are doing yourself a disservice by trying to avoid the inevitable. Rather get your instructor to run you through the exercise on the ground and in the air as many times as is necessary.

FMI: http://efc.org.au/Wiblin