Unusual Attitude

[memooch]

Does anyone know if/where the FAA has -- on paper -- the definition of "unusual attitude"?

 

[mcjohn]

What is the reason behind such a strange question? It's unsual to accidently fly into a cloud or fog or something and that's why we train for unusual attitudes. To prevent the good ol' GRAVEYARD SPIRAL. Gotta level those wings before you pull back!

 

[FN FAL]

Does anyone know if/where the FAA has -- on paper -- the definition of "unusual attitude"?

Hmmmmm? I had a rough time with an unusual attitude problem I got in the sim a few weeks ago, mis-read the airspeed indicator and wound up pulling the wings off the plane. That's the first time ever, that I have crashed a sim in flight. He really had me flaked into a cocked hat on that one.

Fortunately, I was able to perform the procedure correctly the next day on the check ride in the sim. In fact, the ride was a pleasure...a lot less stressful than the two days of beating about in the recurrency sessions.

But to answer your question, I don't have an answer on that one.

 

[leardawg]

"Hi! I know you're from the FAA, and are really here to help!"

Definitely an unusual attitude, as far as they're concerned!

 

[indianboy7]

I don't think the FAA has defined unusual attitudes, but I've always treated unusal attitudes as any attitude that you didn't expect while flying the plane. Seems to work....

 

[kevdog]

In Transport Cat Aircraft, I believe anything more than 20 degrees up, 10 degrees down, or more than 45 degrees of bank, or any combination of. I'm pulling this out of my ass but this is what I was told once upon a time.

 

[MauleSkinner]

The only definition I could find comes from the Instrument Flying Handbook...

unusual attitude. An unintentional, unanticipated, or extreme aircraft attitude.

That's a pretty broad definition, obviously. Nose high, nose low, and banked attitudes have been the staple of unusual attitude recovery training, but I have had occasions where I have been able to put the airplane in a level pitch/bank attitude in such a fashion that the trainee got a pretty good case of vertigo when they looked at the instruments, so that would probably count as well

Fly safe!

David