Maintaining Aircraft Control: Upset Prevention and Recovery Training

Safe pilots take steps to prevent loss of control in flight (LOC-I), a leading cause of fatal general aviation accidents in the United States and commercial aviation accidents worldwide. LOC-I involves a significant deviation of an aircraft from its intended flightpath and often results from an airplane upset. Maneuvering is the most common phase of flight for general aviation LOC-I accidents; however, these accidents can occur during any phase of flight.

To prevent LOC-I accidents, pilots must recognize situations that increase the risk of losing control and maintain heightened awareness of these risks. Contributing factors include uncoordinated flight, equipment malfunctions, pilot complacency, distraction, turbulence, and poor risk management. Attempting to fly in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) without the necessary qualifications or proficiency is a common example of poor risk management. The Emergency Procedures section provides specific information about unintended flight into IMC. LOC-I accidents can also result from the intentional disregard of safety.

To maintain aircraft control when faced with these or other contributing factors, pilots need to recognize situations in which LOC-I can occur, identify when an airplane is approaching a stall or has stalled or entered an upset condition, and understand and execute the appropriate recovery procedures.

Defining an Airplane Upset

The term “upset” was formally introduced by an industry working group in 2004 in the Pilot Guide to Airplane Upset Recovery, which is part of the Airplane Upset Recovery Training Aid. The working group focused primarily on large transport airplanes and sought to establish a common term for conditions such as an “unusual attitude” or “loss of control,” using specific parameters to describe an airplane upset.

Consistent with this guide, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) considers an upset to be an event in which an airplane unintentionally exceeds the parameters normally experienced in flight or training. These parameters are:

1. Pitch attitude greater than 25° nose up.
2. Pitch attitude greater than 10° nose down.
3. Bank angle greater than 45°.
4. Airspeeds inappropriate for the conditions, even when the airplane remains within the attitude parameters listed above.

The reference to inappropriate airspeeds describes several undesirable aircraft states, including stalls. However, a stall is directly related to angle of attack (AOA), not airspeed.

Pilots can develop the skills needed to prevent LOC-I through academic or on-aircraft upset prevention and recovery training (UPRT). Such training should include slow flight, stalls, spins, and unusual attitudes.

UPRT places considerable emphasis on understanding and preventing upsets so that pilots can avoid entering these conditions. If an upset does occur, the training also reinforces appropriate recovery techniques. The following sections discuss UPRT in greater detail, including its core concepts, training requirements, and the airplanes or simulation devices that may be used.