High Key, Low Key, pilot skills

[Farmboy]

As I found it interesting to read and as I enjoy attempting to enhance my stick holding sub-conscious by actually doing something, I am sharing multiple posts from a Vans Forum thread.

The thread was about a low power issue in a Rocket, but a tangent broke out about dead stick landings, practice, and methods.

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Question was posed “what’s a high key”

The High Key is a target. As Paul suggested the Key, or Low key is the desired altitude abeam the touchdown point. On a Simulated Flameout Approach, SFO, or Deadstick Overhead it is the desired Altitude over the point of intended landing. In the Rocket I like 1800 AGL. 1500 will work but it is a pretty tight pattern.

So when the engine quits at 16,000 feet you spiral down to hit that point at that altitude and all your worries are gone. Now you are doing a known maneuver with a known outcome. That lowers stress and that improves pilot performance.

Everyone should know these numbers for your airplane, because if you think engines don't quit, you're not thinking....

Attached is the diagram out of a T-28 Manual.....

Tailwinds,
Doug Rozendaal



Transmitted from my FlightPhone on fingers… [emoji849]

 

[Farmboy]

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Pierre, the analogy of the overhead with no power is a good one. Navy calls this a Precautionary Emergency Landing, or PEL (at least in my day ). When we did them in training, we called it a PPEL (Practice PEL). Could be done power off or with power set at a specific value (as we did with low/no oil pressure in an A-4). Each airplane had its own profile, but the high key, low key concept was common. The profile could also be "unwound", if you will, to make a straight in profile (not quite a space shuttle approach, but steep).

This is a good nudge to go out and explore where high and low key is in the Super Six, as it has the same wing as the Rockets, and comes down like a fridge with wings, power off (sort of, not that bad, but something to plan around). 1800' sounds like a good starting point Doug. Pierre, it may not be a bad starting place for a 10 either, and you can work it down as you play with the glide, and with the angle of bank that works to keep it comfortable, yet close to the field. Might be a slightly different altitude between you solo and with 3 pax, and if there is a lot of wind, add some spare altitude, or keep it closer in. In the end its a matter of making the field without having to wrap it up too radically in the turn.

Will be a good exercise. Doug, glad the Rocket is flying well now, and still hoping to see you nail the culprit!

Cheers,
Bob
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[Farmboy]

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To be clear, I did not invent any of this stuff, I have just hung around some really sharp pilots. Being not so smart, I have to steal good ideas where ever I can....

Pierre, Here is how to find the High Key. Go up to about 5000 AGL over your airport slow to Best Glide speed. Fly up the centerline of the runway and at midfield pull the mixture or turn off the mags. Then do a 360 40-45 degree bank turn. Note your altitude at the 180 point (the low key) loss and then add about 300 feet to both numbers for a short final and suboptimal pilot skill. Do this with the prop forward, because you high key needs to be worst case scenario and if oil pressure is not available you wont be able to "feather" the prop.

Then go back up to that altitude and do the same thing with the power at idle and one notch of flaps. The altitude loss will be similar. If not find a flap setting that simulates a dead engine. Then using that configuration go down to the high key and practice over the runway to a landing. I use the fixed distance marks as the fence and the objective is to touch down on them without going short. Slow but not 3pt. The objective is to spot land without going short, and get on the binders. Going short and hitting the ditch is 100% fatal. Being a touch fast and hitting the fence at 20 mph is 100% survivable.

Learn to regulate the radius of turn, the addition of flaps and the speed to consistently hit the spot. This is not difficult at all, but it requires practice. I practice this all the time. Idle landings to the fixed distance markers from abeam the touchdown point (the low key). Find out what happens when you get a little wide or a little slow. The whole thing falls apart so fast it is a real eye-opener. Done correctly it is easy. But once you lose it, your only choice is to pick a closer landing spot, because if you get below the profile you have very little time to correct it.

The real objective is two fold. One is to learn the ability to sense the energy state of the airplane relative to a spot on the ground. The other is the ability to see a line in space that takes you from where you are to where you want to be and then be able to fly that line.

These are not textbook skills. These are the finer points, or the art of flying. For those who are challenged like me it is not an easy skill to learn. I've been at it for 33 years and it Pi$$es me off when I fly with some low time kid who has the touch and can do effortlessly..... I am not that person, it was years of beating my head against the concrete to gain the few skills that I have.

Tailwinds,
Doug
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[Farmboy]

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The other beauty to the Hi Key / Lo Key engine out pattern (or the PEL as taught in the Navy) is that it establishes a known set of check points that, if you can intercept them at any point, it assures that you can make your field. In other words, if you do not have enough altitude to glide to hi key, you can set up to intercept the pattern at some point below hi key - like maybe a glide into lo key abeam the intended point of landing. At that point, you now know you can make the field by flying through the remainder of the checkpoints.

It beats the **** out of trying to judge a glide into a field from straight in at three miles out. You don't really know if you'll make it until you do - or dont or overshoot.

Once you hit a know spot in the pattern, as Doug said, you are home free. The pressure is off. Fly the remainder of the pattern well (as you have practiced), and you will make the field.

For my constant speed -6, I use 1800 agl Hi key, 900 feet lo key, 25 degrees AOB. Flaps down when the field is made. I practice with throttle at idle and a notch of flaps that just matches the decent rate of a dead engine (again determined by practicing engine out glides.

The pattern can be tightened if a little low, extended if a little high, slipped or flaps held to make adjustments. You are making the adjustments intelligently in reference to known points - not guessing based on eyeball judgement.

This is a bit of thread drift but this is a very valuable technique that I am not sure is taught routinely in the GA world.

Maybe should be a new thread in the safety forum.

That was great seeing the old T-28 manual again!

Good luck with the trouble shooting Doug.
__________________
Gary Reed
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[behindpropellers]

Other than cub pilots...

How many actually go out and shoot 10 landings in a row?

 

[akavidflyer]

Other than cub pilots...

How many actually go out and shoot 10 landings in a row?

Most of the cessna drivers I see at the local airport. They can log 10 landings on pretty much every landing.

 

[bcone1381]

Power off Spot Landings are a good task to practice.

Once upon a time I used to compete in a college aviation contest that included them as one of several events. This information above expands on that event with more useful data by finding a real configuration that replicates real glide performance.

I never experimented with real life glide performance. However, I later expanded the power-off spot landing pattern to include what you are describing. I had no teaching nor nomenclature on the subject. It was creative in nature. I took the Power off over the field maybe 3000AGL and spiraled down with a goal of being at the same spot I always was for my Spot Landing practice. It was not hard at all.

Our Power Off Spot Landing technique was to fly a pattern that was standardized and highly precise. 1000' downwind with airpseed spot on, power to idle abeam the numbers . The runway centerline on downwind went through a mark on the strut to standardize that dimension. That started us all at the same energy state every time. Then the base turn altitude was a judgment call and wind was the prevailing variable. Ground reference is better than altitude, but does not work at a foreign field. 800' base turn was pretty normal. no wind base turn might be 700. 10 kt wind might be 900'. As we got closer to touchdown, airspeed and flaps was all that was left. If you add flaps, they could not be removed. No slipping. Crosswind correction could be used at any time. We knew the wind and energy state and knew how to adapt.

The "BOX was 300 feet long. It started 100' prior to the target line and ended 200 feet after it. A very good pilot could could land +/-50' of the line just about every landing. The first try was always practice, the next two were documented.

 

[frequent_flyer]

I participate in a club spot landing contest almost every year. I didn't like the fact that many pilots were using drag and drop approaches so, with the agreement of the leading lights in the club, I revised the rules to favor power off approaches.

In our contest minimum distance past the line wins. Landing short is disqualifying. If approach is made with idle power then distance is scored at half actual distance past the line. Power must be brought to idle before the base turn and no power must be used after that to qualify for the "power off " bonus. If power is added then the attempt is still valid but scores actual distance.

Several contestants try the power off approach each year and no one except me got past the line without adding power. Maybe it has something to do with having lots of glider time.

Edit to add - I have never found any use for the high key or low key planning points. Every approach I make after I get within gliding range of the landing area is based on a continuous assessment of my position and altitude relative to the intended touchdown point. The assessment includes a continuous evaluation of airmass horizontal and vertical movement which appears to be excluded from the high key entry method.

 

[bob turner]

I am not much for competitive stuff, but I practice power off approaches in everything but turbines. A billion years ago I lost a contest for spot landing to a “drag & drop” pilot. Had I known you could do that I would have easily won.

Make it two different competitions. Vastly different skill set.

My thing is losing an engine on takeoff, so I practice that every rainy day. And Super Bowl Sunday.

 

[Rob]

I have never found any use for the high key or low key planning points. Every approach I make after I get within gliding range of the landing area is based on a continuous assessment of my position and altitude relative to the intended touchdown point. The assessment includes a continuous evaluation of airmass horizontal and vertical movement which appears to be excluded from the high key entry method.

Same.. I've always believed the best ag candidate would be the one that started in gliders, did everything fixed wing in a taildragger, and then moved on to banner towing for time building.
After that if they could not do everything (including engine out spot landings) with only the information their eyes, ears, nose, and butt provided them, spraying was probably not for them. If they could, the energy management experience they gained would serve them well in ag. Agree with Bob as well...

Having said all that, I use at least a little power on every landing, every time, unless I am just reminding myself how it needs to feel without.... Why punish my engine and airframe in the name of engine out practice? energy management is energy management, no?

Take care, Rob