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BARREL ROLL

Entry Conditions: 400 KIAS / 95% RPM

Maneuver: Basically you know how to do this and you do it very well (better than I do). Keep practicing it with some regularity to maintain your proficiency. Do it both to the left and to the right.

Pick a point on the horizon about 30° from your heading. The point can be somewhat above the horizon (a climbing barrel roll) or below the horizon (a descending barrel roll), but for consistency choose it as near to your level-flight horizon as possible (note that the level-flight horizon will be above the land-sky interface).

Start the maneuver by smoothly increasing backpressure to start the nose coming up. As soon as the nose begins to come up start coordinating roll with the pitch to keep the reference point frozen on the canopy spot where it started. From [[strikethrough]] the [[/strikethrough]] 45° to 135° of roll you may want to use opposite rudder ("top rudder") to help keep the nose up passing through the 90° of roll point. Continue the coordinated pitch and roll through to the 180° of roll position. Try to arrive inverted while still a little above the horizon to aid in avoiding a "dish out". Backpressure should steadily decrease from 135° to 180° of roll as gravity aids in pulling the nose down to the horizon.

From the inverted position, level with your reference point, relax back pressure and start anticipating the need for roll. (Beginning the roll from inverted a little early is the secret that you discovered that makes your rolls better than mine.) As soon as the roll is reestablished begin to coordinate increasing backpressure with the roll to keep the nose moving around your point. From 225° to 315° of roll you may want to use coordinated rudder (still "top rudder" but opposite to earlier direction) to help keep the nose up passing through 270° of roll. You should arrive back wings-level, abeam your reference point at about the same airspeed and altitude as at entry; although the "looks" and "feel" of the maneuver are far more important than the "numbers" at the end.

The barrel roll is one, smooth maneuver. While you can think of it in phases (usually 90° roll phases), each phase leads smoothly and continuously into the next phase.

Gravity works against your pitch rate during the 1st & 4th quarters of the maneuver and with it during the 2nd and 3rd. The airplane is climbing