a Great Lakes Tailwheel
A long long time ago in an office far far away, aeronautical engineers decided that a nose gear would drastically reduce the numbers of ground accidents for aircraft. The forces that cause a tail dragger to swerve, nose over or ground loop would be quickly eliminated and airplanes would spend less time with costly repairs.
Flying a tail dragger, the classic design, is a major machismo in the pilot community. This pilot has mastered the basics of flying, but also the classic arts of aviation. YES, it is an art in every sense of the word. Click here for more of this art info.
A Tail Dragger should not be frightening, but respected. With the Tail Dragger endorsements comes an inherent confidence that you are an above average pilot. Today, the average pilot doesn’t have their tail wheel endorsement, roughly only 5% of the new pilots get this training at all. Some many never get more than the initial training and never become competent.
What are these frightening forces at work? Simply put, the plane is slightly unstable and wants to swivel around tail forward upon landing. Just like that grocery cart you push around that doesn’t like to be pushed backwards. For an airplane this action is described as a nose over or a ground loop. Same concept, yet different causes.
The Ground Loop is easily managed by keeping the longitudinal axis straight down the runway throughout the landing evolution. If the airplane lands with a side load or in a crab, it will start a oscillating swerve going down the runway that may be difficult to control. A gust may also cause this swerving tendency. Swerving moments are natural in the tail wheel aircraft. P- Factor, Slipstream Effects, Gyroscopic effects and crosswinds are powerful forces you need to manage successfully for Tailwheel operation. Find out more about these forces here: P-Factor, Slipstream , Gyroscopic effects. Learning to use those rudders to keep the plane straight down the runway, in all conditions is vital.
The Noseover is a sneaky scenario that happens with these forward CG aircraft. With the CG of the aircraft farther forward, a sudden stop from brake application, stuck brakes or a pot hole can cause the tail to come up and the nose or prop blade to hit the dirt. When this happens, the aircraft may require a new propellor, engine inspection and aircraft inspection. I have seen this happen when a pilot hit the brakes hard in a panic when thinking someone has stopped ahead of him, during a ground loop where the brakes were applied, or in the case of a locked brake on landing. Be careful with every brake application you make, keep them serviced, be controlled with their use and try not to use the sparingly. For some videos of nose overs click here.