Larry Flesner wrote: >>Mark's home airport runway is 2700 feet in length. On the one occasion I had to visit him I was at taxi speed approximately half way down the runway. I must confess that the direction I was landing, the runway has a slight upgrade. Never the less, at my home airport, I can be down and do a 180 in 1500 feet, no wind, with mild braking, doing a wheel landing.<<
OK, here's the rest of my logic. I started landing this way when I first started flying out of M38, and after a while, I too can pull off a landing with no braking at all, although that's rare...there's usually some braking required. The driving thing behind all my landings is that they are simulated emergency landings. I want every landing to be as slow as possible, with minimal energy left in the plane, as well as my body. Larry has an O-200 in his plane and hasn't had the pleasure of very many engine-out landings (none, I'm guessing), unlike me, and I hope he never does. When I put mine down in a small terraced hay field with a broken crank two years ago, I'm glad it was a no-brainer to put it on the ground "as usual" without even thinking (or experimenting) at a time when it really mattered. I don't think a wheel landing would have been very satisfying for me. My mileage has definitely varied, so apparently it's a matter of opinion. Do what makes you comfortable... Mark Langford, Harvest, AL ML at N56ML.com www.N56ML.com
