| Flight control coordination is one of the most
important yet least understood areas of flight training. Almost every Flight Instructor
teaches students to change course by using the ailerons to bank the airplane and then
using the rudder to coordinate the turn by "stepping on the ball". And this works, MOST of the time. Problem is, most students develop the habit of NOT using the rudder at all, due to the fact that most modern airplanes require so little rudder input to coordinate the turn that it does not seem necessary except maybe on the check ride. Now this may seem like the last word, but alas, introduce an old concept, the stall.We all know what that is, it is when one or both wings have insufficient airflow to sustain the necessary lift. What happens then? Typically one wing loses more lift than the other and it immediately sends the plane into a bank to that side. If left uncorrected it will develop into a SPIN. Now imagine the left wing dipping into a stall on final approach turning from base leg to final approach. Initially the pilot may not realize he is in a stall so the pilot instinctively tries to correct this using the ailerons. Now let's analyze this very carefully. To correct the deep left bank the left aileron must deflect downward to "lift" the wing back up, right?.... Wrong, the left wing has not the ability to develop such "lift" because it is stalled. At least not until the airspeed is increased by briskly pushing the yoke forward to break the stall, that could take a second or two at best. So initially the left aileron is creating extra drag which slows it down even further deepening the stall/spin situation and losing more precious altitude. This is one of the most common mistakes made by pilots that results in serious injury and/or death for all aboard the aircraft. How do you teach the typical pilot to unlearn the bad habit of using the ailerons alone to turn the airplane? This is very difficult because old habits are the hardest to break. It is the topic that this page is about, COORDINATION. Let's go back to the beginning, when the first airplanes were being developed. A man decided one day to design an airplane with aileron controls on the yoke or stick, and rudder controls on the floor pedals. Why, I don't know, maybe because it seemed right or maybe because it was the easiest way to configure it. In any case it took hold and everyone adopted it. Why did airplane evolution keep using this configuration? Perhaps because the pilots thought it was the most logical because it felt similar to driving a car or horse, using hands to turn. Everyone knows the rudder turns the airplane but on the same hand many pilots still erroneously use the ailerons to turn the airplane. Why? Probably out of habit due to previous training. Since we cannot change the controls of all the airplanes so that the stick or yoke controls the rudder instead of the pedals we must relearn how to fly all over again from the beginning. One way to re-learn proper coordination is a simple technique. The rudder turns the airplane, right? Ok then use the rudder to turn the airplane. Now, and this is the clincher, use the ailerons to coordinate the turn. Sound simple? It is, but it may seem difficult at first. Learn it, you may become a safer pilot. Ok so you have re-learned and developed the habit of using the rudder effectively, what has it gained you? Well let's go through the stall scenarios again and analyze how this new technique will benefit us. First the left wing starts to dip in the stall that you don't know you are in yet. As you notice a slight course change. You instinctively depress the rudder to hold course, the airplane immediately yaws to the right and so increases the airspeed of the left wing. Perhaps enough to break the stall on that wing right then, instantly the left wing develops the lift again. You see where I am going with this? At the least, less altitude will be lost, at best, a dangerous situation will correct itself before the pilot even realizes it is happening.
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