Standardizing Roll Recovery in General Aviation

Presenter: Mark King

Host: Robert Meder

Description

In-flight loss of control (LOC-I) is the leading cause of fatal accidents in general aviation. Most end in a stall, spin, or spiral dive and are linked to deficiencies in manual flying skills. Known standards exist for stall and spin recovery, but no comparable standard exists for recovery from spiral dives and other roll upsets.

Analysis of decades of guidance from aviation authorities, airplane manufacturers, and training providers reveals the extent of incomplete, conflicting, and inconsistent procedures. Further, the line between preventive and recovery actions is often blurred. These issues create confusion and unnecessary complexity for pilots, undermining safety.

Join master aerobatic instructor Mark King as he traces the evolution of roll upset guidance and highlights key human factors, clarifies the line separating developing upsets from developed upsets, and demonstrates how startle, the instinct to pull, and weak mental models can delay or distort the pilot’s response to a roll upset. You’ll come away with a proposed solution: the Power-Push-Roll strategy as a new standard of roll upset recovery for general aviation.

Presenter Bio

Mark King is a four-time Master Certified Flight Instructor with a Gold Seal-Aerobatic, CFI- Instrument, Advanced and Instrument ground instructor. He is a southern California native who was born into an aviation family and began flying in 1974. Mark has extensive experience flying in Alaska in a turboprop Quest Kodiak, has over 1000 hours flying the Beechcraft Bonanza, and is G1000 qualified. He teaches specialized UPRT Training, Tailwheel, Aerobatics and CFI Initial training. Mark was the 2023 Van Nuys FSDO CFI of the Year, and flies competition aerobatics in his Pitts S2B.

Host Bio

Robert “Bob” Meder earned his CFI in 2006 and has since added single-engine and multi-engine instrument certificates. Recently retired from a 40+ year railroad career, he worked with the FAA on drone regulations while continuing to instruct. With 6,000+ hours of dual instruction, Bob specializes in training new flight instructors, emphasizing risk management and critical thinking.

A FAASTeam Lead Rep, he was named District and Regional Flight Instructor of the Year in 2009 and 2010. After nearly a decade as NAFI Chair, Bob now serves as Chair Emeritus.

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