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Taildragger Reflexes
Conscious decisions take too long
The Art of Avoiding Ground Loops identifies fourteen essential taildragger reflexes every pilot needs in order to avoid accidents like this one. And it provides a safe and logical way to develop these reflexes prior to testing them in a landing.
Reflexes used on the ground—
1. Keep the stick back when the tail is down reflex.
2. Brake moderating reflex.
3. Turn terminating rudder reflex.
4. Turn terminating brake reflex.
5. Rudder assisting throttle reflex.
6. Elevator and aileron wind defense reflex.
Reflex used on the ground while tail-up and used in the air just before touchdown—
7. Nose homing rudder reflex.
Reflexes used in the air just before touchdown—
8. Altitude holding elevator reflex.
9. Speed controlling power reflex.
10. Drift arresting aileron reflex.
Used during takeoff, approach, and go-around—
11. Get the nose down on takeoff reflex.
12. Get the nose down on loss of power reflex.
13. Wing unloading stall prevention reflex.
14. Wing leveling spin prevention reflex.
A reflex is defined as any automatic, unthinking, often habitual behavior or response (Dictionary.com). By repeating many times a desired response immediately after a given stimulus, we can associate that response to that stimulus so strongly that it becomes habitual and automatic. At that point, it becomes a reflex.
The stimulus/response pair that comprises each reflex can be practiced individually, away from the usual complexity and distractions, until it becomes a reflex. Once the reflexes are individually acquired, they can be combined and utilized in one or more phases of the landing.
Reflexes are essential because conscious decisions take too long. When the nose starts to veer off course while the plane is decelerating on the ground, a quick response is critical because the farther off course it gets, the faster it accelerates toward a ground loop. Corrections made just slightly late have to be much larger because the plane has gotten a lot farther out of alignment during the delay. Large, late corrections can easily be overdone, creating a diverging oscillation leading surprisingly quickly to a ground loop. To prevent this, the necessary corrections must be early and small, which requires quick reflexes.
Each of the fourteen essential taildragger reflexes is a pairing of a desirable response to a particular stimulus, made automatic through repetition. Think about what our feet do when our car is stopped at a traffic light and we see the light turn green. When learning to drive we stepped on the accelerator so many times immediately after seeing the light turn green that the response became automatic. These days, we make that response instantly, without thinking about it, sometimes even when the green light is meant for drivers in another lane.
An even more powerful example is what we do when the traffic light turns yellow as we approach the intersection. Sometimes we hit the brakes and sometimes we hit the accelerator, and although it is nearly impossible to consciously predict which we will do, some part of our brain has learned by trial and error to instantly make the correct speed and distance calculation to accurately determine whether to accelerate or to brake—and takes the correct action, with no apparent conscious direction, sometimes even overriding our prior conscious decision.
Some of the taildragger stimulus/response pairings that we practice until they become reflexes are more like the green light situation. For instance, when the tail comes down, we automatically pull the stick all the way back.
And some of the pairings are more like the yellow light. For example, when the tail starts to rise higher than we want it while we are braking, the part of our brain that has quietly learned by trial and error how to control tail height by moderating pressure on the brakes does the required calculation to determine just how much brake pedal pressure to release without lowering the tail too far, and does it automatically, without relying on our conscious thought process.
