Landing BLIND at 100 MPH! - zero forward vis - Pitts S2B - Flight Training VLOG

Learning a whole new Flying skill set on this one!
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FLIGHT CHOPS DISCLAIMER:
I am a "weekend warrior" private pilot, I fly for fun with no intentions of going commercial. I have had my PPL for over 15 years, but still consider each flight a learning experience - I generally take detailed notes after each flight to remind myself what went well or what I could do to improve.... Having the GoPro cameras to record flights like this is invaluable. I find these self analysis videos very helpful in my constant quest to improve, and am happy to share. Feedback is invited; however, please keep it positive.

[@simplegreen4929]

I can’t believe this video. Your first landing in the Pitts was unbelievable. I can’t believe you can fly the airplane like that so well with very little time. It shows you are very good at getting the feel for new airplanes since you transition from airplane to airplane all the time. Keep it up!

[@FlightChops]

I appreciate the feedback here - I don't have a ton of total time, but I have been very lucky to get a lot of great training in many different types - Luke instilled total confidence and allowed me to relax (relatively :) and really figure this thing out safely.

[@rv-ation9603]

Fun to watch and brought back memories. I owned and flew an S1-S for several years and a few hundred hours. I do hate to be a spoilsport for egos, but the Pitts has an undeserved reputation for being hard to handle. They are honest airplanes and easy to fly (yes, even the landing). Of course, all this assumes you have solid basic tailwheel skills! I used to get tired of people talking about how "hard" it is to fly, then you find out most people have never flown one! 100mph approach is fast for a Pitts, they don't have a high stall speed (60'ish MPH). Most people tend to fly them fast to give better forward visibility. I always like 80-85 over the fence, but to each his own. The faster you touch down, the more energy you have to burn during the rollout. Your "hop" on touchdown is because the stick wasn't in your gut (you can see in the video that when the elevator finally comes up it stops the hop). Pitts love to oscillate like that if you don't get the stick in your gut once the tailwheel is down (most taildraggers will do that for that matter). Love your vids!

[@steveo1kinevo]

I blame all my bumpy landings on the runway. lol Enjoyed the Vid! 👍🏼

[@justinsmith833]

steveo1kinevo me too lol

[@bartgoins1782]

That's always been my excuse.

[@markelliott585]

Steveo...The plane was just angry he didn't drag his butt first! I mean why else is his Johnson so long?

[@GaryMCurran]

You really need to start flying more taildragger and taking videos of that. That mini airliner you fly helps to make you look really good, but a taildragger will bring out the real pilot in all of us! :) :p

[@bryanbarnett9688]

I'm stealing that excuse!

[@samuel-jq9wl]

Damn chops, you got me at 2:40. Good one

[@theofficialcraigsmith23]

Lucas Rumpus he gets to punch us all

[@johnbolin7098]

The camera angles were perfect. The editing perfect. Chops, you really know how to put together an awesome show. Oh, and by the way, your piloting skills are amazing. Humble, safe and always learning. You truly get it.

[@FlightChops]

Thanks John! It is rewarding to receive this feedback as I do try really hard to make the films as tight and engaging as I can. I am lucky to have access to a wide variety of great instructors and diverse aircraft to sharpen my fundamentals; It is my pleasure to share the process.

[@aoifemariamolloyagainstisl399]

John Bolin chops humility is incredible and for a man it's endearing i would feel safe with him quicker than a guy who has ego issues and thinks he is an alpha guy and the big "i am"

[@aoifemariamolloyagainstisl399]

FlightChops your humility is endearing and deeply touching to me THANK you so much for NOT acting all macho and egotistical and for NOT acting all alpha hard guy Watching you transition from aircraft to aircraft in the endeavour of learning and bettering yourself and your piloting skills is inspiring me as a survivor of abuse and at 40 and only four ft 11 inches in height i long to learn to ferry fly i know i need a ppl/atpl but you and matt guthmiller are two incredibly inspirational young men who are feeding my longing and desire to become a female pilot who could ferry fly planes

[@ashsmitty2244]

I love coming back and rewatching these episodes.

[@TheFinerPoints]

Great video! I love that hold the triangle/pie concept -- that is amazing training for your skills in any airplane -- you nailed it at 7:36! :)

[@JasonM74]

“You’re a natural tail wheel pilot”, what a great compliment! Keep it up Chops.

[@darksidefloyd1]

Great episode. Appreciate your editing. Love watching and feel so excited for you and how great it must feel to do so well with the Pitts and having that tail wheel experience carry over and give you a leg up.

[@PutterersFolly]

Via email you convinced me to do my primary training in a J3 Cub. Many times I thought I'd never land that plane smoothly, until I accepted the fact that flying backseat in a tailwheel is challenging for even the seasoned pilots. Fun to watch, and actually builds my confidence that it's not me, it truly is that challenging!!!

[@310Pilot]

Nicely done! I had a couple acro lessons in a S2B several years ago but never attempted the landing. You made what I know is a hard plane to land look easy.

[@nathanchetram287]

That quotation about the pitts only caring about the next landing applies to any plane really, but with a plane as challenging as the pitts I guess it's good to remember it. Keep up the amazing content!

[@Didgeridoobidrewbi]

Are you serious! This is my home airport! Never thought i would see Chops flying here! So cool! Great flying by the way, always a pleasure watching.

[@smaze1782]

147k subs?? Outstanding. You have come a long way FC. Congrats on your continued success. Another great video here to add to the collection.

[@garydell2023]

Great job flying the Pitts. Your getting familiar with so many different types of planes. I never got to fly one of those but I did manage a right seat in a Beechcraft Stagerwing. Keep flying safely this year.

[@FlightChops]

Stagerwing would be amazing! I have yet to get into one of them

[@ThomasMarrow]

This channel is truly inspiring and has started so many in depth conversations with my instructor here in South Africa. Would love to build up the GA community here in South Africa and I believe awareness about your channel is the perfect place for people to start. Keep up all the good work man and will share your stuff as much as I possibly can.

[@FlyAV8R]

Can definitely relate to this! A great video sharing the experience. And you're right with the camera viewpoint being able to see a lot more.

[@ae3usedtobe]

Amazing Amazing Job! I am looking to start training in a Pitts this summer. This video has certainly helped me get stoked and a little mentally prepared. Great Job Again!

[@FlightChops]

Very cool! Happy to help. Please report back after your training to let us know how it went, and if you were able to apply what you learned here.

[@whymistamista5614]

I feel bad, I've been gone for to long. Glad to start watching again. It's been like 3 months.

[@FlightChops]

Welcome back - I think there were about 8 new episodes in the past 3 months :)

[@ruston1200]

You are making the best GA vids on KZbin Mr Flightchops! Top Notch!

[@mx1man]

Wow that looks super cool to fly. I have a friend that flys a Pitts he loves it. I have to get with him to experience it. Thanks for the ride. Love your stuff.

[@HIllCarver]

love the pitts footage steve! Looks like such a challenging airplane to fly!

[@Graemehatz]

Tremendous video. Absolutely my favorite.

[@KerboOnYT]

Great stuff and nice flying, thanks for taking us along

[@psyrixx]

Good job Chops! Crosswinds are hard and all of these landings looked really good (even the bumpy ones!)

[@FlightChops]

Thanks!

[@jenniferwhitewolf3784]

One of the most interesting airplanes ever. I like that glide ratio comment.. just throw out a brick and follow it. With a skilled pilot, they are a sight to behold.

[@jimarcher5255]

I liken my biplane as having the glide slope the same as a manhole cover.

[@blancolirio]

Git that stick back! No more bouncy bouncy…;-) Good Stuff Steve!

[@bazwabat1]

Your tail dragger training and experience is certainly showing in this video. No beads! Man 95 over the numbers? Waaaay out of my comfort zone! Well done. :-)

[@Nate_Higgins]

What a sweet instructor. That guy is excellent.

[@alianjohnson6035]

as always, love the video. always learn something. the Pitts is the first aircraft i fell in love with - a great little machine. keep 'em coming. cheers

[@robertszelestey4529]

Congrats, Steve. I gotta believe that if you can land a Pitts, you can land anything!

[@iflyc77]

Awesome video as always Steve!!! I think Luke is the best instructor I have seen here yet

[@KnowledgePerformance7]

Man the editing is incredible!

[@FlightChops]

Thanks! I spent a lot of time cutting this one - glad you appreciated the work.

[@SimonHollandfilms]

yes...looks good from a fellow Editor and Pilot.

[@SuperAero]

Dude! Great episode. Really appreciate the in depth approach you take on these. The Pitts definitely freaks me out after knowing how even a simple tailwheel aircraft like a J-3 can bite you sometimes. Still want to fly one though!

[@FlightChops]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@Tiwow]

Last one was stellar!

[@stevecastro22]

Great job Steve, looks like fun to me.....

[@bolivaralexgarcia1172]

Nicely done to both Aviators ! Keep it safe and Fly on 😁

[@joshualandry3160]

Awesome video! Really makes you wonder what a bush pilot short field would look like the Pitts!

[@reckemroysrc3764]

CHOPS. you are getting some skills. that was a great video

[@DoctorDARKSIDE]

This was sensational, loved every bit of it!

[@justinsmith833]

Dude you videos are just amazing

[@FlightChops]

Thanks!

[@j.vincenttaylor8916]

Thanks for the great content!

[@anggatpm3183]

Amazing video as usual :-) btw hi from indonesia

[@Alex-us2vw]

There’s a Pitts at the airport I fly at and often on the weekends he runs a few circuits to keep fresh. It’s such a strange thing to watch land since without flaps it comes in low and fast. Where a 172 would still have a couple hundred feet of altitude on final the Pitts looks like it’s skimming the trees. Looks like a lot of fun to fly though so it’s worth the extra effort to land. Was just looking at a used one and wanted to see some videos on flying it. But it looks like a handful and probably best left for when I have more hours under my belt.

[@SmittySmithsonite]

What a challenging flight that must've been! I know I wouldn't be comfortable with the limited visibility. At 5'4", you can bet I would have my work cut out for me in that thing! :D Nice job!

[@Bentz5000]

Like button smashed.

[@texas-flygirl]

I fly a single place Pitts and all you see is what the front seat in that 2 place Pitts. So ya, not as easy as a cub, but it's worth learning how to since it is sooooooo fun in the air!.

[@slikrx]

Awesome vid.

[@RoadglideST117]

Very nice man! You made it look easy :)

[@menohaveaname]

HEY! I've ridden in that plane with an aero show pilot! That thing is amazing!

[@iesikhaty]

100MPH on short final!? Whoa! What's next? Flying CF-18's? Actually, that's not so far fetched is it? Great instructor. Dude, you're jumping into fairly complex environments for a PPL holder; great to see you're up to the challenge; keep it up!

[@schlehrbear]

Super awesome, Super hard, wow props to you.

[@SkylordNiko]

This really reminded me of horse riding and lining up into a jump, i wonder if some judgement or other abstract skills carry over from riding to flying and vica verca

[@chrismarkovic3211]

Just starting my multi ifr with Harvs. They seem like a standup outfit. Chops you should come do a seminar at one of our Rust Removers 😛

[@VilleMaunu]

Very good handling...

[@regressmenot]

I'm only at 7:34 and I'm already so stressed lol. Kudos to this instructor, his teaching style is very easy to understand immediately. I'm curious, do you find that flying in all these different aircraft make it easier or harder to get back into a Cessna and fly well?

[@FlightChops]

Agreed that Like is awesome! And honestly, there is some sort of abstract / intangible effect of flying so many types - the fundamentals are really solidified.

[@GaryMCurran]

Like anything you do, more experience leads to a better understanding. Since you are mostly flying GA aircraft the different types you fly gives you a lot of experience in different ways, and it all comes together to make you a better pilot. Whether it's a Pitts or a Seneca, they all add to you being a better pilot.

[@Veritas1992]

Gary C The other thing is it speaks to is the understanding & application of the basics. For example if you solidly understand aerodynamics & apply that do different airfoils will make you a more rounded pilot.

[@jasoncascone5369]

Keep up the good videos

[@markthibault8579]

Awesome job. The Pitts has a reputation for being tricky to land.

[@anandeeppannu]

Nice training video - will show it to my students. I think I have the answer for all your bumps - I noticed you didn't have the stick all the way back hard to the stop after landing, if you leave the stick even slightly forward, you are experiencing a small PIO below stall speed. Try holding it all the way back once you have landed and are sure you are not going to fly again, and bumpy runways or not you will not be bouncing around like that.

[@saravanan.m488]

great job man!

[@gvrose1]

Scarry stuff! Great video..

[@Mrcaffinebean]

Wow I have to think this airplane is difficult you’ve flown yet! Great video!

[@markelliott585]

High Rocky Mountains greetings and huge kudos and thanks for sharing a ballsy stretch forward and major outreach with what seemed to be your heart up in your throat a couple of times. Your Pitts experience here definitely fulfills part of my Walter Mitty persona. As such I've dived into the Patreon Land Of A Lotta Dollar Bills! Anyone who loves what he does will never work a day in a life. Supercalifragilisticexpealidocious...

[@kilfoylea]

Welcome back to CYAV!

[@jackmurphy9610]

Awesome FlightChops

[@airbusisawesome]

Definitely not going to be the first person to comment because I got too excited and got distracted watching the video but it was pretty exciting to click on a FlightChops video with 3 views, no comments, and no ratings! I'm only halfway through but I'm really enjoying it so far :) Edit: have now finished the video. Loved it! I'm really hoping to get my PPL someday and your vids let me live vicariously :) Keep up the great work!

[@siglavikingbeach6680]

I drive by St Andrews quite frequently and I have never seen this airplane. (I'm not a flyer but have been watching these vids out of curiosity)

[@VenturiLife]

Hard aircraft to learn... Instructor is excellent.

[@moosegaming7654]

This was a cool video I love all your vids

[@FlightChops]

Appreciated!

[@moosegaming7654]

Your welcome

[@GregsZenithSTOLCH750]

Well done, Steve! I can't imagine landing with no forward visibility.

[@shortribslongbow5312]

Very interesting video, thanks for sharing.

[@josephliptak]

The Pitts sure is a sporty looking plane. It looks like it wants to be flown with authority even when parked and standing still.

[@MX304]

It looks like you were about to fall out of the parachute shoulder straps. Might want to look at that before you need it.

[@-_captain_lyle_-]

It seems like no aspect of aviation will evade you, Steve!

[@FlightChops]

I'm trying to find and face all aspects of flying :)

[@GaryMCurran]

Yeah, well, I'm still waiting for the video where you fly a water bomber! One of those Martin ones. :D

[@45631063]

Thank you very much video .

[@onthebeaches]

Nice job BRO! PEACE OUT!

[@quebeckilo7347]

Hey! I wanna be a natural tailwheel pilot too, lol! So Steve, watching all these videos, I can't help wonder if this is part of a master plan to get you into a Spitfire. You've said that's a goal - can you estimate where you are on that path at the moment? Thanks for another awesome video!

[@engiflight]

Hey I was curious about the comfort of the head mount. I am looking at using that for some of my flying (specifically aerobatics). Always enjoy your channel and have learned a lot watching many of your videos! It's amazing what you have done so far!

[@daugbret]

The "no smoking" sticker is by far the best part.

[@1bizjets]

It doesn't matter how many good Pitts landings you have....it will get you on the next one. LOL

[@279seb]

Wow what a cool headed instructor. Maybe its your skills, maybe its Maybelline.

[@ronmoore5827]

Awesome video Steve, that Pitts is a hand full I can tell from my chair! Was wondering if you ever read a book called No Parachute by a guy Named Arthur Gould Lee. He flew in the First World War and his descriptions of flying those airplanes are great. He talks about guys being sent up to the front line with like 20 hrs time total, only 7 or 8 solo. If you get a chance check it out I think you would enjoy it. keep those videos coming sir.

[@tom7601]

Cool! That's a twitchy little bugger, not unlike a thoroughbred race horse; always on the edge...

[@brianbarker4739]

Pitts is not made for takeoffs and landings although with out them you have no or short aerobatic career. It is really fun to make it do funny things in the air.

[@EngineeringVignettes]

Great job. - Eddy

[@djphilippa]

Hi Steve, was there any reason why on roll out you don’t nail the tail down by full back stick? That’s something I do in the Citabria which helps with stopping tail wheel shimmy. Nice work though mate. Cheers.

[@paradoxaviation]

Great video!!! Thanks for posting!!! We subscribed :) Paradox Aviation

[@clearofcloud2038]

+ 1 for the question about the stick on roll-out. Would it have helped a little with the runway undulation or does the Pitts not like the extra load of full stick back? Enjoyed this - the Pitts is another one on the list to get checked out on :-)

[@FlightChops]

Cool yeah. In this Case pulling back made the tail bounce more - the tail wheel is pretty springy - so once the bouncing starts, relaxing the stick seemed to be the only fix - Luke actually instructs me to do so during one of the roll outs and yo can see it fixes it.

[@clearofcloud2038]

Seems reasonable - add /remove as much as the conditions require !! Looks like the Pitts really makes you work for good landing. !

[@SomeGuyInSandy]

Wow, the visibility is horrible out of a Pitts! Great flying!

[@FlightChops]

Yerp :)

[@yru435]

Great job. Were the landing approaches you had to do similar to what the Corsair pilots learned to do when they were landing on carriers? Why does that plane not glide, it has so much wing??

[@Channelscruf]

I own a Pitts. As he mentioned , view and visibility is less than shown due to the camera being a few inches above his line of sight. It’s like driving a Buick on the freeway with the hood up.

[@cmscoby]

Looks like fun. Are there no acrobatic areas closer to home?

[@FlightChops]

No Luke closer to home :)

[@nikolaus2688]

Is there an aphoirism in aviation, that the right time for a go-around is the first time you think about going around, like there is in sailing for reefing?

[@Mike-01234]

Does landing the pitts ever become 2nd nature, or is it always stressful to land.

[@Mysemantics]

"Blind landing" indeed, but why not install a forward-looking video cam to stream the forward view the pilot is missing? Wouldn't that be helpful?

[@Mike-01234]

With the visual impairment of not being able to see over the nose I would imagine attempting to land at busy non towered airport might be stressful.

[@27th-Letter]

I was in a Pitts during an engine failure at about 2,000 ft. No they do not glide well, lol.

[@scottnathan2912]

I been flying aerobatics, with this Pitts plane in Microsoft Flight Simulator. What is the manifold pressure and prom RPMs usually set to?

[@od9898]

Awesome episode, how many hours of tailwheel have you got now?

[@Saltysteele]

With all the technology available today, why don't they have a visualization system (at the least, for safety when taxiing)? A small camera mounted on the front of the plane and a tablet or screen of some sort. Just curious :)