djmp69

Gadgets and programming are always cool, just to take advantage of what technology has to offer, and proper care and maintenance of your craft and equipment can never be stressed enough, especially when dealing with our babies. HOWEVER, there are those times when freak things just happen. That's when technology CAN come in handy. But, what about the times when the margin is too small? Technology can, at times, more get you into trouble than help, and DOHthere goes your money and hard work, when stick time, reflexes, and experience are the difference between a little repair vs a rebuild or new bird.

For example, I recently erased the programming that coupled elevator and rudder for knife edges. Iwas using it so much it made me uncomfortable ANDmade certain maneuvers difficult to do with precision. I did the homework and found that with simple CG tweaking and practice I could get the same result. That result being my knifes are straighter, truer, and I am more in control of my plane than relying on a program to do it for me. True it helped when Iwas learning how to do the maneuver, but Irealized that if I wanted to perfect the move, I needed to know the how and why. Plus I didnt want to constantly be thinking about if the switch was in the right place during flight vs landing. And landing is never routine, thank mama nature for that! Think about itYou're crabbing or inverted 20ft up. A freak gust of wind hits your plane and your engine quits at the same time. Or worse, you're landing, some idiot runs across the field, and you have to abort. Trouble is, on your climbout, your engine quits for whatever reason. What's going to be easier? Remembering or figuring out the right switch for failsafe and having milliseconds to make sure you hit the right one OR, "instinct" kicking in and landing the plane because of your practice and experience?

I would say sure, if you paid for it, might as well utilise it. Get the most out of your gadgets. BUT MOSTIMPORTANTLY, take the time to learn and understand what the gadget/program is doing, and how you can get your mind and hands to do the same thing without the gadget/program. Doing so will only make you a better pilot.