Proper Rudder Use

In his seminal book Stick and Rudder, Wolfgang Langewiesche states the rudder “...causes the greatest difficulty for beginners,” and “....even the more experienced pilot often has trouble using it correctly.” Commenting on improper rudder use as a contributing factor in accidents, he states, “In the typical fatal accident, which involves a stall and a spin, misuse of the rudder is almost always partly to blame....”

Michael J. Banner

Tuesday, September 16, 2014 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Improper rudder use is a significant factor in fatal stall-spin accidents, often due to pilots incorrectly using ailerons instead of opposite rudder to level wings in high-angle-of-attack conditions, which can induce a stall.
In situations with a high angle of attack (e.g., climb-out, slow flight, stall recovery), the correct procedure to raise a lowered wing is to apply opposite rudder, not ailerons, to prevent an inadvertent stall and spin.
Many pilots exhibit poor rudder skills, necessitating dedicated training through specific exercises, expert instruction, and practice in aircraft like taildraggers or gliders that demand precise rudder input for coordinated flight and to counteract adverse yaw.

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In his seminal book Stick and Rudder, Wolfgang Langewiesche states the rudder “…causes the greatest difficulty for beginners,” and “….even the more experienced pilot often has trouble using it correctly.” Commenting on improper rudder use as a contributing factor in accidents, he states, “In the typical fatal accident, which involves a stall and a spin, misuse of the rudder is almost always partly to blame….”

After a short-field takeoff, the Cessna 172 was pitched to a high angle of attack (AoA) to maintain best-angle-of-climb speed (VX). At 100 feet agl, the left wing dropped slightly, then the airplane rolled left, eventually rolling inverted. It crashed in a nose-down attitude, killing the pilot.