The general consensus is that in a crosswind or gusty conditions, it is best to wheel land a taildragger as opposed to doing a three point landing.
I have never really been able to see a logical reason for this:
At some point in a wheel landing the tail will come down, usually at a speed not much lower than the touchdown speed in a full stall landing. So at that point you are in exactly the same situation as if you had touched down in a three point attitude.
To my mind, touching down at the lowest possible speed, in a three point attitude minimizes the time spent rolling and therefore minimizes the chances of losing control in the roll out.
In a wheel landing on the other hand you have to by definition fly it onto the runway while you are still above stall speed; you will be rolling for far longer with the wheels in contact with the ground. A groundloop can only happen while your wheels are on the ground, so does it not make sense to minimize this by landing with in a full stall attitude everytime?
Any opinions?
I have never really been able to see a logical reason for this:
At some point in a wheel landing the tail will come down, usually at a speed not much lower than the touchdown speed in a full stall landing. So at that point you are in exactly the same situation as if you had touched down in a three point attitude.
To my mind, touching down at the lowest possible speed, in a three point attitude minimizes the time spent rolling and therefore minimizes the chances of losing control in the roll out.
In a wheel landing on the other hand you have to by definition fly it onto the runway while you are still above stall speed; you will be rolling for far longer with the wheels in contact with the ground. A groundloop can only happen while your wheels are on the ground, so does it not make sense to minimize this by landing with in a full stall attitude everytime?
Any opinions?
