Stall Training? Seriously?

When I took my first flying lesson at age 18, I knew…nothing. I even thought a stall was killing the engine, like when I let the clutch out too fast in my car. But I learned, and after only a few hours I was performing aerodynamic stalls with aplomb, if not expertise. Years later, still a private pilot, a friend introduced me to a prolonged stall where you didnt recover and just keep the wings level with rudder. We called that the falling leaf after the swaying back and forth that occurred.

Editorial Staff

Wednesday, July 30, 2014 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Historically, FAA training for airline pilots focused on stall *avoidance* and recovery at the first indication, rather than practicing actual full stall recovery like private pilots.
This oversight in training led to incidents where airline pilots failed to recognize or recover from actual stalls, contributing to accidents.
The FAA has now revised training requirements to include actual stall recovery for airline pilots, a necessary change to address previous deficiencies.

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When I took my first flying lesson at age 18, I knew…nothing. I even thought a stall was killing the engine, like when I let the clutch out too fast in my car. But I learned, and after only a few hours I was performing aerodynamic stalls with aplomb, if not expertise. Years later, still a private pilot, a friend introduced me to a prolonged stall where you didn’t recover and just keep the wings level with rudder. We called that the “falling leaf” after the swaying back and forth that occurred.