My brother Tom and I have this on-going dialogue concerning wheel landings vs 3 point, he likes to wheel land, I don't. We were bored yesterday at lunch time, so we drug out one of the T-6's and spent the better part of an hour doing touch and go's while he attempted to teach me the finer points of the wheel landing. When I got home last night I did a little reading: The flight manual for the T-6, P-51, P-47 and A-1E all specify a 3 point landing. The Mustang book does have a note about doing a wheel landing in "unusual" weather conditions: "Always make 3-point landings unless a wheel landing is justified by unusual weather conditions." I can see the need to carry extra speed and wheel land in gusty winds. I asked the old man if they ever wheel landed the Skyraider back in the day, and his response was "no, never". Yet it seems to me that most folks wheel land their warbirds these days.
So my question for discussion is this: What are the pluses and minuses of the wheel landing, and why are most folks deviating from flight manual guidance and historical operating practices? There must be a reason, but it's beyond me. Please help me understand what I'm missing.
So my question for discussion is this: What are the pluses and minuses of the wheel landing, and why are most folks deviating from flight manual guidance and historical operating practices? There must be a reason, but it's beyond me. Please help me understand what I'm missing.
Comment