How bad did I screw up?

[Bill Watson]

I’ve been to strips that only had one way in and out. Doesn’t matter what the wind is there. Have also flown into towered field with active runway having pretty stiff tailwind. Have even questioned tower and they still have had me land with tailwind. Not really big deal with a mile to get er stopped.

I live on a strip that heavily favors one way in and out due to the slope. We also have a solid line of trees on 3 sides. Eight knots is about where I switch over to operations into the wind.

The interesting part involves the trees. In most conditions, the wind gradient is pretty severe, that is, your headwind or tailwind tends to disappear as you drop below the trees. That was a great tool to have when tailwheeling. But on a normal into the wind landing, your headwind tends to suddenly fall off 2 wing spans up which can make for some surprising descent rates close to the ground.

On the other hand, a brisk tailwind will also tend to fall off making an uphill downwind landing a piece of cake even with a stiff 10 knot tailwind component.




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