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Transition Training to a TD?

R

riobison

Well Known Member
Transition Training

I have pretty much bought my 1st RV and it?s a 4 so now I need to be checked out in this thing before I can fly it. There is not much up here in the great white north so I?m looking to come south to do this. Oh it does not have pedals nor throttle in the back seat so I can?t use it.

On Vans web site there are only a couple of guys listed for doing transition training to the Tail Draggers. Is there anyone else around that I can travel to and get checked out in their TD?

Thanks

Tim
Red Deer Alberta Canada
 
Jan Bussell does this training in Florida. I believe you have to have at least STARTED your tail wheel endorsement before he can help you. Google him, he has a web site. Very good instructor.
 
I highly encourage anyone transitioning into a tailwheel airplane to do it in an antique, Cub, Champ, etc... before doing it in an RV. Simply put, RV's are too easy, right up to the point they bite you. A local friend just returned from a trip back east to rebuild the tail section of a new 8 that "got away" from the pilot on landing, after two years of flying it. The 8 was his first tailwheel airplane and his report was a classic "lack of attention" on roll out and departure from the runway.

Antique aircraft will help you develop much better basic instincts in stick and rudder flying. They require much more attention on roll out especially in windy and cross wind conditions. Build your time there and get your TW endorsement. The RV transition will be a piece of cake after that and you wont be worrying about the tailwheel aspect of the training so much.

Its fun, relatively cheap, and many more avialable aircraft and CFI's to get you going.

My two cents.
 
JonJay said:
I highly encourage anyone transitioning into a tailwheel airplane to do it in an antique, Cub, Champ, etc... before doing it in an RV. Simply put, RV's are too easy, right up to the point they bite you. A local friend just returned from a trip back east to rebuild the tail section of a new 8 that "got away" from the pilot on landing, after two years of flying it. The 8 was his first tailwheel airplane and his report was a classic "lack of attention" on roll out and departure from the runway.

Antique aircraft will help you develop much better basic instincts in stick and rudder flying. They require much more attention on roll out especially in windy and cross wind conditions. Build your time there and get your TW endorsement. The RV transition will be a piece of cake after that and you wont be worrying about the tailwheel aspect of the training so much.

Its fun, relatively cheap, and many more avialable aircraft and CFI's to get you going.

My two cents.
Click to expand...

It ain't cheap around here! When I went through this last year I could only find one TD aircraft for rent anywhere near hear. A Citabria and very expensive. Further, even though I had my TW endorsement, I needed 25 hrs of dual from the school before I could take it solo. Oh did I say that the rental rate and instructor rate was way high?

Back in the day I got about an hour instruction in a Cub and then rented it for $25/hr wet. Those days are long gone :-(

I just found an instructor with a 6 nearby and did the transition in it.
 
$139 ? TRAINING AVAILABLE ? Tailwheel endorsement in an AERONCA CHAMP PROFESSIONAL INSTRUCTOR not time builder CFI ? ? Contact John Lumley located Delray Beach, FL USA ? Telephone: 561-271-7638 . 561-499-1115

If needed he has housing available at low cost too. I would highly recommend John. He operates out of a private grass 5100' strip. I would offer my services but I have no TW available to reach in.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me.
 
I'm in the same boat.....just got my PPL last month (yippee) in a C-172. Ready to get my TW endorsement, but can't find a taildragger to rent.

My RV-4 needs backseat controls and the lower weldments replaced before I can fly it, so that's not an option right now.

The local flight school has four Cubs, but they want $170 an hour dual and a minimum of 10 hours for a TW endorsement! They won't rent a Cub to an outside instructor, you have to use one of their instructors (I have my own CFII/MEI Tailwheel instructor).

I really want to fly to Oshkosh this year with my father, so I thought of buying an RV-6 for a year to get my TW endorsement and allow me to fly to Oshkosh while I work on my RV-4 this summer, but I've been told by several people that it's best to get a TW endorsement in something other than a RV (mimics what JonJay was saying above). Also thought of buying a C-140 or Champ to get my TW endorsement, but couldn't fly from AZ to Oshkosh in that.

Ugh....what to do. Never figured living in Phoenix, one of the best flying weather states, would be so hard to get my TW endorsement without paying a fortune. :confused:
 
Well, sorry, it used to be cheap. Showing my age I guess.
One of the local fields rents a CC Sport Cub for $114 wet, total for 10 hour tailwheel $1550 with instructor.
Still cheap if it keeps you from running your RV into the weeds I guess. :)
 
Hey guys I have 200 hrs TD in a Citabria. The insurance company wants me to be checked out in type 3 hrs in a VAN?s TD.

My new to me RV 4 does not have rear controls so it is out of the question
There are only 2 or 3 people in all of NA that are approved or set up for doing this and they are booking a month in advance.

So, its hurry up and wait.

Tim
 
I purchased my RV-4 a year ago. I had 50 hours in a Champ from '68 - '70. Then I had ~200 hours in a Sonex TD I built and flew from 12/06 - 2/11.

When I went to get full insurance on the -4, the company I used said I needed an hour instruction in type. I explained to them that I couldn't get instruction in type because it was an experimental and I didn't know anyone with a LODA to give instruction in an RV-4.

They then came back and said that an hour "experience" in type was OK. I had a number of hours riding in RV-4's with rear sticks, and that was good enough for them. I got the insurance with no problem.

Obviously, YMMV, but that was my experience...
 
Transition training in British Columbia

Any recent developments on this front?

I'm in the final stages of assembly of an RV-8, insurance wants 5 hours in an RV taildragger... I want to do my own testing.

Anyone know of someone in BC that can do transition on their RV taildragger?
 
Ron RV8 said:
Any recent developments on this front?

I'm in the final stages of assembly of an RV-8, insurance wants 5 hours in an RV taildragger... I want to do my own testing.

Anyone know of someone in BC that can do transition on their RV taildragger?
Click to expand...

Here's the problem: In Canada, one can only charge for fuel and oil. This means that whatever instructor you find cannot be compensated. This limits the available pool of instructors to someone you know, who trusts you and an airframe that will withstand the abuse.

You are better off going to Oregon for Mike Seager's training, but I would also recommend a few hours in any taildragger before training in an RV so that Mike does not blow a gasket.

Being a hypocrite (and very lucky), There is a professional instructor in our formation group who trained me at cost in an RV-6 that <ahem> is cosmetically challenged. This is strictly a local phenomena/friends and family thing.

Just clear the plan with the insurance company first. They may accept another type, such as a Swift, for training.
 
I wish people would get this whole notion of getting dual in an RV-4 is a good thing out of their head. You load these up with 2 guys and it's a different airplane. It is not forgiving around the ground although once on the ground its great with weight in the back.

Go get some time in a -6 or -7 then fly your -4 solo. Get very comfortable with it solo before taking anyone with you.
 
I went to Mike Seager in Oregon. I had just added my ASEL the week prior, and Mike took care of the RV transition and TW endorsement. This is incoming experience based of course and we have no idea where you are. I came to Mike with about 8,000 hours, but zero tailwheel and a one week old single engine add on.

It worked out well for me, but the helicopter time in my background probably helps as far as having active feet... It all worked out well, and Mike obviously has his stuff together. I would recommend you send him an e-mail with your qualifications and what you want, he'll let you know if he can do it for you.

I'm sure my background helped, but with the ink wet on the ASEL, my insurance requirement was a sign-off by Mike, no time contraints. I ended up with about 9 hours total in the three days we had planned for.

Doug
 
What I did

As others have said, forget transition training in the -4. Get some dual TW in "something", then get a couple hrs. in a -6 or -7. I managed to buy a partnership in a Taylorcraft BC-12, and got my TW endorsment in it while I was building my -4, and logged quite a bit of time. I did the transition training with Mike Seager (highly recomended) while he was in the Carolinas enroute to Sun-n-fun. The week before I flew my newly minted -4, I took a couple rides around the pattern in a friends -6 to brush up on speeds. The rest is history, and iI now have 200 uneventful hrs. on the -4. If you have any kind of aircraft to fly now, I recomend practicing agressive dutch rolls...30L-30R degrees looking straight ahead...when you can keep the spinner dead center, your feet will be working the rudders much like what it will take to keep a TW straight.Best practice my TW instructor gave me.
 
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