Eights on pylons
Pivotal altitude, the sighting reference line, and correcting with pitch alone, never rudder.
15 min read · The commercial maneuvers
After this lesson you can
- Compute pivotal altitude from groundspeed, in both knots and mph, and add field elevation to get a usable indicated altitude.
- Explain why pivotal altitude depends on groundspeed only, and why it therefore changes throughout each turn.
- Diagnose which way the pylon is drifting relative to the sighting line and apply the correct pitch correction.
- State why rudder is never used to hold the pylon, and what happens to the airplane if it is.
The Airplane Flying Handbook calls eights on pylons the most advanced and difficult of the ground reference maneuvers, and singles it out as unmatched for developing intuitive control of the airplane. Every other maneuver in this module asks the pilot to fly a target attitude, bank, or airspeed. This one asks the pilot to fly a target altitude that is never displayed anywhere in the cockpit, defined entirely by what the ground appears to be doing outside the window.
That altitude is called pivotal altitude, and it depends on exactly one thing: groundspeed. Everything else in the maneuver, the bank angle chosen, the distance flown from the pylon, how the wind is blowing, exists to help the pilot hold that one number without ever looking at the altimeter to check it.
The rest of this lesson
- 1.The sighting reference line
- 2.Pivotal altitude: the formula
- 3.Reading the pylon: which way, and what to do
- 4.Choosing pylons and entering the figure
- 5.ACS standards and common errors
- 6.Why the maneuver exists, and the risks of flying it low
These 6 sections, their figures, the checks along the way and the end-of-lesson quiz come with the CPL track. Paid once, yours for good.
Key terms
Try to recall each definition before turning the card.