wickedsprint

I had a recent discussion with a fellow pilot..who said you can demo a one wheel landing..even with no wind. We all know this is true..but I fail to see how you won't be sideloading the gear...or you won't be aligned with the runway...unless you haver some wind present.

When landing in a crosswind..we obviously bank into the wind..and use the rudder to keep the nose from continuing the turn and keeping it centered. An airplane banked..always has a horizontal component of lift..so if there is no crosswind..it has to be sideloading the gear, or not aligned and otherwise sliding the one tire during the demo...

I guess the easiest way to check this..is see if you can hold centerline ten feet off the ground on a calm day...with some bank fed in. I suspect you'll be able to do it..but not with the nose pointed straight.

So who's right?

FlyerJosh

Crosswind or not, you don't want to be touching down with a side load... If you want to demonstrate slips, I'd do so a few feet off the ground...

wickedsprint

I agree 100 percent, you never want to intentionally abuse someone elses property.

... but can you do one main wheel landings..with no crosswind..without sideloading the gear...or skidding the tire due to airplane not aligned with centerline?

I think the answer is no, due to a banked airplane having a horizontal component of lift, the same force that otherwise cancels the drift when a crosswind is present, so if no crosswind is present, you have to be sideloading the gear, or skidding the main tire at an angle...

rickair7777

You could flare in a wings-level attitude and then lower one wheel to the runway without incurring too much sideload. If you do it quickly the airplane won't have time to build up lateral velocity. Not exactly sure why you would want to do this.

Ewfflyer

How about just going to find a x-wind and do it the right way?

wickedsprint

You're misunderstanding the point. The discussion is whether or not a fellow pilot is misunderstanding aerodynamics during a slip, and whether or not you can have a one wheel landing and rollout..with no wind..and not sideload the gear or skid the tire. Again I maintain you cannot for the reasons previously stated. The right way to teach the subject of crosswinds is an obvious answer, go out and find them, but really has no bearing on the answer to the aerodynamic question/discussion at hand.

t-cart

Maybe i"m not reading this right, but are you saying you cannot land in a calm wind situation with the airplane in a slip, without putting a side load on the gear? Maybe i"m not understanding the statement. FLY SAFE T.C.

wickedsprint

Maybe you are or I am, that's what i am trying to figure out.

This all stems from a flight about a year ago with CFI who showed me a rollout on one wheel after the landing, never set the other main down. I asked him if that was bad for the gear/tire since we had no wind that day. He replied with "no..you don't need a crosswind to demo slip landings and rollouts."

I think that it might have been putting some serious wear and tear on that one tire and gear leg since the nose was aligned with the centerline. If there is no wind, and you're doing a slip, you usually need to put the nose past centerline alignment to keep the airplane tracking straight (not drifting) to compensate for the lack of a crosswind. If you go out on a calm day and feed in bank..and just enough rudder to keep the nose centered on the runway centerline..I think you'll be drifting...and hence a sideload.

t-cart

If this slip landing demo is done properly, there will be a little extra wear to the sidewall of the tire. If there is "side loading" of the airplane, it isnt being done properly. One of the best ways to learn about this is to get a TW endorsement. It will teach a lot about rudder control. I think your CFI did it correctly if there was no side loading to the a/c. Hope this helps a little. FLY SAFE T.C.

3664shaken

Excellent Answer, having given over 100 TW endorsements, this is a mandatory maneuver for each applicant to demonstrate to me.

IF YOU SIDELOAD THE GEAR you are not doing it correctly.

I also will use the technique when teaching PPL's who are nervous about maneuvering the plane in the flare. We will drag the runway and move back and forth and then I purposefully have them touch the left wheel then pull it off and the touch the right wheel and pull it off.

All of this can be easily accomplished with no side-loading if you are controlling the airplane correctly.