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FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR'S MANUAL 173

maneuver could be made to require half rolls for its execution at the extreme, although there would be no reason for carrying it to this point.

Select a point directly in front of the airplane on the horizon as the axis point, and points 60° on each side of it. These outside points will be the outer limits of the loops of the eight, and the center point the axis. Head the airplane toward one of the outer points, assume a straight dive to gain considerable excess speed, and start pulling the nose up at a gradually increasing rate. As the nose comes up and bears on the point, start a gentle, climbing turn so that the nose appears to pass through the point as it continues upward. The rate of climb and the steepness of the turn are then increased at the proper rate to make the maximum climb and maximum degree of bank occur at a point midway between the outer point and the axis point. Recovery is then started and the rate of recovery controlled so that the nose appears to pass through the axis on its downward path and so that when the airplane is headed toward the point on the opposite side of the axis, it will again be in a dive with wings level. The climb is again started and a turn in the opposite direction is executed similar to the original until the eight is completed when the airplane has reached its dive toward the point from which the start was made. The whole maneuver is then repeated and continued for as long as desired. Practice should not be continued too long, however, or nausea may result.

The following factors of lazy eights should be noted since they point out many of the advantages to be gained by the inclusion of this maneuver in the curriculum.

Since the attitude and speed of the airplane is constantly changing, proper execution of any type of lazy eight requires and developes a high degree of coordination, planning, and orientation.  All movements must be blended, and the changes in the attitude and performance of the airplane must be constantly anticipated if a smooth maneuver is to result.

The fixed points through which the maneuver is done require that constant attention be given to them. The airplane must be flown by feel and subconscious reactions. The airplane is maneuvered through an oblique plane which is a new factor for the student to learn.

The variation of speed throughout the range of the maneuver further develops the senses by which loss or gain of speed is detected, while vision and attention are directed elsewhere.

The requirements of the maneuver should be increased as rapidly as the student's progress will permit to prevent any tendency toward mechanical execution. If only one type is given, much of the value is lost to the student. He must be advanced at a rate that constantly taxes, but does not overtax, his ability to plan and anticipate and to execute both his planning and his anticipation. This not only continuously improves his judgment, but insures that his flying technique will become more and more automatic and reflex. Therefore, it is important that slipping, skidding, roughness on the controls, and approaches to stalls be constantly checked and finally eliminated.

The more common errors are: