Aerobatics Training vs Upset Recovery Training

Ever since I started flying aerobatics in 1999 I heard complaints about the schools that promoted "upset recovery" courses vs. those that taught aerobatics for aerobatics' sake.  The "upset recovery" courses were considered a scam, because for far less money (and the same amount of training) the things taught in basic aerobatics were exactly what the "upset recovery" courses did.

Well, almost.  It is 80% marketing and 20% actual differences.  The schools doing aerobatics training just need to adopt the marketing lingo - and make a few minor adjustments to the syllabus - to pick up the "upset recovery" training market.

There are only three basic conditions in which one may arrive having departed controlled flight momentarily.  First, and most common, is nose-low high-speed, and that could be upright or inverted.  Wake turbulence encounters can put the aircraft upside down, nose-low very quickly.  Second, the aircraft could be nose-high, slow speed - but still flying.  Third, a stall situation (normal or accelerated) can quickly develop into a spin, and that spin could be upright or inverted depending on how the aircraft got there and use or abuse of controls along the way.

Basic aerobatics courses almost always include loops, rolls, hammerheads and spins (the four fundamental maneuvers from which most competition maneuvers are derived).  Once a person has looped and flown Cubans or Hammerheads the recovery from nose-low conditions, upright or inverted, has been taught, with appropriate power reductions if an over-speed situation is imminent. One learns that pulling the power, rolling upright, and lastly loading the airframe sufficiently during recovery (in other words, don't be a wimp about pulling the nose up, but don't pull the wings off either) will arrest a high-speed situation nicely.  The aerobatic maneuvers also put the aircraft at very low speed with the nose high on the tops of the loops and hammers and Cubans and such, and one is taught tricks like yawing out instead of pitching out (the hammerhead vs. the humpty).  Finally, we spin every which way and learn to recover, whether upright or inverted.  It's all right there in the basic aerobatic maneuvers, and paying extra for an "upset recovery" course is just a waste.  Remember that the hardest thing for most people is not the business of flying the aircraft but just the ability to keep up with its attitude and recognize the situation.  This can be physiologically taxing, and basic aerobatics gets a pilot though the learning and exposure curve.  Any upset recovery course has to do the same.

Well, mostly, but that isn't the whole story.  If a pilot isn't too concerned with flying aerobatics long-term then the emphasis can shift for a dedicated Upset Recovery Course.  First, a deemphasis on coordinated aerobatic maneuvers.  In other words, if you aren't going out to loop and roll other aircraft, then don't worry so much about making them pretty.  But you still will need to loop and roll and hammer and Cuban at least a little bit to get used to seeing the world in unusual attitudes.  You just don't have to be worried about doing it very smoothly.  The emphasis is on attitude recognition, not on smooth aerobatic flying skills. Secondly, recoveries can take on intentional uncoordinated aspects as the emphasis shifts to minimum altitude loss.  Yes, one still cuts the power, rolls blue-side up, then pulls to level while bringing power back in as necessary, whether in a simulated wake turbulence encounter or on the back side of a Cuban eight.  But in the upset recovery course stomping excessively on the top (blue side) rudder while rolling to get the nose up is an option, where in aerobatics it would be considered sloppy.  Finally, all aerobatic trainers used for upset recovery courses will roll faster than non-aerobatic aircraft, so simulated limitations to roll rate are appropriate for upset recovery courses.  So are simulated limitations on rudder effectiveness for spin recoveries.  We try to make the little aerobatic hotdog airplane respond as much like a non-aerobatic bird as possible.

So my local school (Berz) is planning to develop a webpage that describes aerobatic training programs that we already do, including upset recovery training, having recognized that those marketing these courses as something special are attracting locals half way across the US to get something they could get very well right at home with us for half the cost.  We just didn't explain it well, because we thought it would be evident that any school teaching competition aerobatics could do a darn good upset recovery course also.  To the general flying public that isn't necessarily obvious, and, in fact, it might sound a little scary - many who want some upset recovery training are forcing themselves to do it because it will be good for them, not because they want to fly aerobatics long term or enjoy being upside down.

1) Don't run out of airspeed, altitude and ideas simultaneously.  2) Subject to point 1, keep the brown side anywhere you want it to be.  If you like down, then we'll teach you to get it back there safely.  If you like anything but down, we'll have you flying competitions soon.