Flying The Ball

A close friend e-mailed recently to inquire about what happens to the turn coordinator/turn and bank instruments ball in certain flight attitudes. After giving him what I thought was the answer he needed, several more e-mails ensued, each one raising my frustration level-admittedly not a difficult thing to do. Finally, I picked up the phone and called, and Im glad I did, since his real question had very little to do with the ball. But his questions-and little bit of research I did to verify my understandings before responding-highlighted one thing: There probably are a large number of pilots out there who have forgotten exactly what the little ball does and how it does it. Theres also another number of pilots who never were taught these things correctly. Lets try to fix both problems. First, though, lets refresh our understanding of why and how an airplane turns.

Key Takeaways:

• The turn coordinator's "ball" (inclinometer) indicates the quality of a turn by showing the balance between gravity and centrifugal force, not the bank angle or turn rate.
• A centered ball signifies a coordinated turn, meaning the heading change rate is correct for the established bank angle.
• If the ball is displaced, it indicates either a slip (ball to the inside of the turn, insufficient yaw/too much bank) or a skid (ball to the outside of the turn, excessive yaw/too little bank).
• Pilots can center the ball to achieve coordinated flight by adjusting rudder pressure, changing the bank angle, or using a coordinated combination of both controls.

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