Thirsting for knowledge, I Googled why we drive on one side of the road rather than the other. I found a lot of obvious rubbish about quarrelsome knights and Roman charioteers. I suspect that what really happened was Henry Ford flipped a quarter and William Morris a shilling, and they came up different. Nevertheless, I propose to offer an explanation of why the pilot of an airplane sits in the left seat, and why we normally make left turns in the traffic pattern.
Technicalities: Why Left?
Key Takeaways:
- A plausible theory suggests that fundamental aviation practices, such as making left turns in the traffic pattern and pilots sitting in the left seat, stem from the unique characteristics of World War I rotary engines.
- These rotary engines, common in early fighter aircraft, produced significant gyroscopic forces due to their clockwise rotation. This caused aircraft noses to pitch up during left turns and dangerously drop during right turns, often leading to spins for inexperienced pilots.
- The inherent dangers of right turns encouraged a preference for making left turns when approaching landings, a practice that eventually established the norm for pilots to occupy the left seat in side-by-side cockpits.
Key takeaways sponsored by Aviator Pro | Start Your Training ->
See a mistake? Contact us.
