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Open Aviation Briefings

18 Steep Turns

CASA Recreational Pilot License (Aeroplane) — CASA Sample Syllabus Lesson 18.

This lesson takes the student's basic turning skills up to the steep turn — 45° and 60° of bank — and the performance manoeuvres built on it: maximum-rate and minimum-radius turns, the steep descending turn, recognising and recovering from a spiral dive, and sideslipping. It builds the underpinning knowledge of load factor and how bank angle raises both the 'g' the airframe carries and the speed at which the wing stalls, then revises the climb, descent, forced landing, radio-failure and flapless-landing skills the student already holds — all flown at a safe height in the training area.

Pre-lesson workbook

Section titled “Pre-lesson workbook”
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This lesson has more "why" than most, so it pairs its theory brief with a self-paced pre-lesson workbook — complete it in your own time before the lesson. It curates a short video and article for each of two reference topics (load factor and the higher stall speed; knowing your aircraft's 'g' and system limits from the POH), then previews flying a steep turn, and asks a few questions for you to answer in the space provided. Working through it beforehand means the live theory can focus on flying the manoeuvres rather than crunching numbers. It takes about 30–45 minutes, and we'll check through your answers together at the start of the pre-flight brief. Download the PDF of the workbook to print or fill in on your device.

Theory Brief

Section titled “Theory Brief”

The live session builds on the workbook: it revises the medium turn and applies the load-factor idea to a steep turn, then works through the manoeuvres — the steep level and descending turns, the maximum-rate and minimum-radius turns flown at the buffet, the spiral dive (how it develops, how it differs from a spin, and the power–wings-level–ease-out recovery), and the sideslip with its uses and limitations. View the slides on this page below or open the slides directly.

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Pre-flight briefing notes

Section titled “Pre-flight briefing notes”
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The pre-flight brief (~15 min, immediately before the flight) works best as an interactive whiteboard session, not slides — stepping through the manoeuvre sequence, the threats, and the recovery drills together with the student. These printable notes give you the briefing components (aim, today's flight walk-through, threats, and a lookout-and-recovery-rehearsal airmanship emphasis) with prompts and fill-in blanks, plus a front page to sketch your own whiteboard plan and running order. Although it will be helpful to plan and step through it yourself before the lesson, remember: modelling the process of the pre-flight brief — especially the spiral-dive recovery rehearsal — matters more than presenting a polished brief. This is why we do it interactively rather than as a presentation. Download the PDF of the briefing notes to print or use offline.

In-flight notes

Section titled “In-flight notes”
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Instructor kneeboard reference for the airborne sequence — the steep level turn, the maximum-rate and minimum-radius turns, the steep descending turn, spiral-dive recovery, the straight sideslip and slipping turn, the revised emergencies, and the flapless return. These use a portrait layout for easier use on a kneeboard or device. View the slides on this page on the right or open the slides directly, or download the PDF of the in-flight notes to print or use on your device offline.

Post-flight debrief

Section titled “Post-flight debrief”

I plan to add post-flight debriefs once I have more experience conducting them, but I'm assuming it'll be more of a personal preference with assessment outcomes than a set of slides.

Useful resources for students

Section titled “Useful resources for students”

Example email to students before the lesson

Section titled “Example email to students before the lesson”

If you are an instructor, feel free to modify this for your own use. Sending an email a few days before a lesson is a great way to engage people in the learning before they even arrive (if they have time and capacity).

Subject: Lesson 18 — Steep turns

Hi [name],

This lesson is a fun, hands-on one: we'll fly steep turns — up to 60° of bank — and feel the extra "g" that comes with them, then look at how a steep turn can go wrong (a spiral dive) and exactly how to recover, all from a safe height. We'll also try sideslipping, a handy way to lose height on an approach. The sensations are more dramatic than anything so far, and that's completely normal — we do it high and deliberately so nothing surprises you later.

There's more "why" behind this lesson than most, so before the flight there's a short pre-lesson workbook [1] to work through in your own time (about 30–45 minutes) — a couple of short videos and articles with some questions to answer, covering load factor and why the wing stalls faster in a steep turn, plus your aircraft's 'g' and flap limits from its handbook. Bring your answers to the lesson. The live theory brief (about 40 minutes) then builds on that — we'll apply the load-factor idea to flying the turn, then work through each manoeuvre — and we'll fly for about an hour afterwards. One tip: eat something light beforehand, as the turns can be a bit much on an empty (or very full) stomach.

If you'd like to go further, the NZ CAA steep turns whiteboard [2] is a good summary.

When: [day]

See you then! [1] https://open-aviation-solutions.github.io/open-aviation-briefings/recreational-pilot-license/18-steep-turns/ [2] https://www.aviation.govt.nz/assets/licensing-and-certification/flight-instructor-guide/whiteboards/fig-whiteboard-am-st.pdf