Publication Aimed Specifically At Sport Pilots

By ANN Contributor Jon Thornburgh

A new trike handbook received wide acclaim at the April 2005 Sun 'n Fun Fly-In at Lakeland, Florida. The book was available at the Air Creation display in the ultralight area.

The Weight Shift Control Aviation Handbook is specifically designed to accommodate the new Sport Pilot initiative, although it's also instructive for ultralight pilots. It was written by Kemmeries Aviation instructor Eric Johnson, with "technical support" from John Kemmeries, maintenance expert Greg Silva, flight instructor Richard Michaels, and Editor Julie Potter.

The Handbook is printed on 8 1/2 by 11 inch paper, and bound by a spiral ring. The 160 page manual contains 11 chapters, entitled "Introduction to Weight Shift Control and Sport Pilot Certification," "Components and Systems," "Preflight Procedures," "Flight Controls and Maneuvers," "Emergency Procedures, "Airport Operations," "Aerodynamics," "Aircraft and Pilot Performance," "Weather," "Navigation," and "Aero-medical Factors.

The book has beautiful color illustrations, including drawings, schematics, and photographs. Even the vibrant cover page depicts a dramatic sunset and several trikes in flight.

Although the subjects discussed contain all the information required to pass the Sport Pilot knowledge test, much of the book presents the practical "real life" information a trike pilot needs to know about weight shift aircraft. There is an excellent discussion of the components of a trike wing, accompanied by photographs with the various parts of the wing pointed out by arrows and captions. Chapter 2 details airframe components, engines, fuel, electrical, and cooling systems, and items unique to trike wings such as "sprogs," "washout struts," and "billow."

The requirements and steps to become a weight shift Sport Pilot are in the first chapter, as well as the procedures for getting a weight shift Private Pilot certificate and Sport Pilot Instructor's license. Aircraft certification and information about experimental trikes are also discussed.

Chapter 3 presents the method of setting up and removing the trike wing, transporting a trike, and examining the aircraft before flight. The illustrations accompanying the article are excellent, and the captions detail the exact items to preflight. Especially helpful are the lists of "Common Errors" associated with wing assembly.

In addition to the subjects unique to weight shift trikes there are many items presented in the book, which are generic to flying all aircraft. Much of the generic material is almost copied verbatim from FAA publications, such as the FAA's Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge, which is public domain material, and not copyrighted.

The generic material includes the new FAA emphasis on "Aeronautical Decision Making" (ADM.) Thanks to improved maintenance, advanced weather forecasting, better navigation aids such as GPS, and wider use of transponders and radios, the general aviation accident rate has continued to decrease. But "pilot error" is still a significant factor in accidents, so there is a concerted effort to expose pilots to the tools for better evaluating certain risks, and making wiser decisions related to safety. The ADM presentation in Chapter 4 of the Weight Shift Control Aviation Handbook is very similar to the FAA's discussion of ADM in Chapter 16 of the Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge.

Similarly, the "Airport Markings and Signs" diagram on page 6-2 of the weight shift Handbook is the same as the diagram on page 12-4 of the FAA pilot Handbook. This is not to malign the weight shift handbook, but rather to note that it covers enough generic aviation material that the weight shift handbook can almost be a stand-alone study guide.

Other generic material includes weather, navigation and aeromedical issues. The aerodynamic discussion in Chapter 7, although partially generic, also contains information unique to trikes, such as the dynamics of a weight shift wing in a turn.

It's obvious that a lot of thought and effort went into drafting the Weight Shift Control Aviation Handbook, and it's certain to become the industry-leading book on the subject. The only change I would have made if I had written the book would have been to separate the "Introduction to Weight Shift Control" and "Sport Pilot Certification" subjects into two chapters, rather than combine them together in Chapter One. 

FMI: www.kemmeriesaviation.com