Mastering Crosswind Landings in a Cessna 172 - Part 2

This video is part two of a series on mastering crosswind landings. In part one we flew in some very heavy winds but here in part two, we cover a more common scenario: the light, steady crosswind. Let's face it the wind is very rarely right down the runway, so when you're learning to fly it's important to have precision lateral control and deal with the (often light) crosswinds that can cause bad alignment and drift. Bad alignment is usually what causes an uncomfortable touchdown and in this video, I will teach you how to deal with it. We also cover an exercise you can do with your instructor (or with your students) to help them get this concept even when there are no winds at all. Please enjoy and share!

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[drcode]

When I was a student on my solo cross country, I had a crosswind landing set up that I really thought was looking good....until I got low enough and the hangars blocked my crosswind. Suddenly, I had too much rudder and not enough talent. I landed sideways because I didn't correct the rudder input in time. Almost rolled the airplane and scared myself pretty good. That was the day I found out how important the rudder was. Great video. Thank you.

[Spray-N-Pray]

Jason, I wish all CFI's were as passionate about teaching as you are. There are so many time builders out there. We need more of your breed in the world.

[adamhammond]

I've struggled with centreline control and have NEVER had an instructor explain this concept. As Albert Einstein said: If you can't explain something in simple terms, you don't really know what you're talking about. Brilliant work!

[ParrtheCourse]

I agree the strong winds you’re super focused, its those that are “no big deal” cross-winds that come up and bite you, great job!!!

[oldglory]

Ailerons have 3 chores;
1) make the bank to TURN the plane (99% of our flying)
2) approaching the runway: makes the BANK that stops xwind drift.
3) ON the runway: provides the ADVERSE YAW that aids rudder in directional control to brake speed.

[michelgardes]

Hi Jason. I know the odds of you replying are low but I'll give it a try. I'm a private pilot, I've got a little less than 200 hours, and I like practicing traffic patterns when I return to my field after a short flight, especially when there is crosswind. I will never be able to go beyond PPL due to a moderate color blindness, but I do care about flying as professionally as possible. I've noticed that when I decrab during a crosswind landing, I apply aileron into the wind as expected, but instead of touching the upwind wheel first, I will very often touch both main gear wheels at the same time. Everything will then continue smoothly, I continue applying increasing aileron as speed decreases and I keep the centerline by adding rudder accordingly. I know I am not applying enough aileron, and I'm trying to improve on that. But, to be honest, given that I am able to maintain the centerline, the benefit of touching the upwind wheel first is not that clear to me. I do understand that you certainly do not want to touch the downwind wheel first, and that the best way to avoid that is to touch the upwind wheel first. But I don't quite understand what's wrong with landing on both wheels when decrabing if you manage to keep the centerline upon touchdown. I know I am probably missing something here. What's your take on that? Is it really bad to touch both main gear wheels at the same time after decrabing?

Thanks for your videos and the effort you put into them. Quality content like yours is what the web was made for.

[prestonmiller]

Excellent Jason! That is the best explanation I have ever seen on the differences between side slip and forward slip. Thanks for that.

[mgmm]

That explanation/demonstration at 6:10 is phenomenal.

[danmoriarty]

Jason, your videos are such a great help. Thank you. They’re instructional and fun and blessedly free of goofy click bait.
If there were some way to represent graphically the degree of rudder being used in these videos, it would be next level for those of us on the steep side of the learning curve. I see the result of the rudder input on the windscreen and I have just enough time to have a hunch about what is going on with the rudder pedals. If I could see, for instance, this is what a half inch of right rudder deflection accomplishes at this airspeed in these winds, etc. it would help take the mystery out of what’s going on down there in that dark area by my feet.

[dieselelectricdoctor]

Thank you for this video! I went out flying today with my instructor and struggled on crosswind landings. I had an issue understanding what the rudder does verses what the ailerons do during crosswind correction and this video blew my mind after realizing why I kept nosing to the right. Your very simple explanation of rudder controlling the nose and ailerons controlling the slip made complete sense. I find during flight as a novice pilot landings are never enough time to fully grasp personal error and how to correct, but de-briefing to videos like these really help someone like myself learn to fly proficient!

[shareef]

Wow!!! Awesome video!! 130 hours later I understand much better!!!

[ervincornavaca]

Jason, you’re the epitome of a CFI, you have the talent to teach
and the ability to connect with your students.
At the end of the day, its all about fundamentals and you’re able to project those fundamentals crystal clear.
Awesome job - I learn a lot from your videos.

[alfieboy]

This was extremely useful during my solo today. There was an 8 knot crosswind that was somewhat variable and using only the crab it was difficult to time when to remove the crab during the flare due to the variability in the wind. It’s much easier to stay crabbed into the wind on final (since it’s much more stable during gusts) and transition into the sideslip for precise lateral control right before crossing the threshold on short final. I guess one thing to call out is the need to add a bit of power before doing so due to the increased sink rate in the side slip.

[eknuds]

I'm a recently licensed helicopter pilot and I just began pursuing my airplane add on. Being able to read articles online and watch YouTube videos while experimenting with X-Plane with flight controls has really helped. I'm sure X-Plane has saved me a few hours of dual.

[kenrosen]

good job teaching the proper skills for crosswind Landings.. you are definitely saving lives for the future

[caiquesantana]

Man, this is a must-watch channel! I am on my CPL course right now and have been learning so much here as well, greetings from Brazil ! Thanks for the knowledge

[shaunkruger]

Your other video a on crosswind landings that you mention where you do the exercise of banking to move side to side was one of the things that helped me get better at crosswind landings. It helped me to think in terms of always pointing the nose straight down the runway with the rudder and using my alerons to make sure I'm on the center line.

[cq]

Forward slips vs side slips, good. Thanks for sharing.

[mannypuerta]

Good instruction.

Brought back some more memories for me. I soloed on 28L (when it was 27L), then eventually became a CFI at my alma mater, Sierra Academy of Aeronautics. Lot’s of crosswind practice at CCR.

[warriorboy]

I've been through a bunch of different instructors, and you seem like one of the best in the business out there. Thanks for the vids! I have a fair amount of time/ratings, and I find myself learning new techniques from you all the time