F3A Happy Landings, was Earl's excellent observations.

[Rcmaster199 at aol.com]

Jimmy, box entry/exit calls are true enough in AMA flying but not required in 
F3A. In fact the way the present Landing description is written, the pilot 
should not exit the aerobatic zone for any maneuver including the "180 degree 
turn" to downwind leg. If he does, a downgrade is assessed commensurate to the 
degree of the infraction. But for Landing, any downgrade is automatically 10 
points.

The only time exiting the box is implied is when the turn to final approach 
is made: "when approximately over the downwind marker, the turn to final is 
commenced......". It doesn't actually state that box exit is allowed. It is a 
very poorly written description of a relatively simple maneuver, and that is my 
point essentially. Needs a re-write and approval. BTW, there was one pilot who 
actually made the turn to Final approach inside the box and stradled the box's 
right edge until touchdown. So that's possible also.

Honestly, I feel we have probably spent too much time talking a KF 1 
maneuver. 
Matt
I am confused. When you finish the sequences you call out of box, which to me 
means you go out of the aerobatic zone  being 60-60 either side. Now explain 
how I stay in the box to make this landing turn without going out of the 
aerobatic zone.If you turn away from the zone edge then you have to re-enter the 
box because you were out of box.I understand the turn should be away(out) from 
the box edge. All this is confusion to me..DUH.

Jim Ivey
> 
> From: Rcmaster199 at aol.com
> Date: 2004/07/31 Sat AM 01:29:13 EDT
> To: discussion at nsrca.org
> Subject: Re: Earl's excellent observations
> 
> I saw three such landing examples at the F3A Finals, when the pilots turned 
> into the runway (rather than away from it) to go downwind. Two exited the 
> aerobatic zone to enter the downwind leg, which BTW required re-entry into 
the 
> zone. I assumed that the term "Aerobatic Zone" was defined as the show 
stage 
> between the +/- 60 degree lines. I tend to look at the rule this way: once 
the F3A 
> pilot committed to enter the box, he should not exit it until his turn to 
> final. 
> 
> Interestingly, the third pilot who made a turn toward the runway to enter 
his 
> downwind leg,  did not exit the zone. The turn direction is at pilot's 
> discretion. Pilot is allowed to make the turn to downwind leg in either 
direction; 
> it's just easier to do it away. BUT, turning away he should not make it so 
wide 
> that he violates the distance out rule. 
> 
> These two landing sequences also had the issue of the downwind turn being 
> greater than 180 degrees. The verbiage of the rule is somewhat unfortunate 
> because 180 degrees is a specified value. I believe the writer of the rule 
intended 
> for the turn to be a simple directional reversal in the horizontal plane, 
but 
> it isn't up to me to make that intrepretation. However, as a judgement 
call, I 
> allowed it
> 
> Note that the verbiage in regard to the upwind turn to go to final 
approach, 
> is less clear and I allowed the guys to exit the box to turn to final 
without 
> assessing a downgrade. Also note that any downgrade observed in the landing 
> sequence must be a 10 point downgrade (Don uses that terminology and I like 
it). 
> 
> I was told that I may have nitpicked a bit here, but, in my opinion, there 
is 
> no room for "grey" in the landing (and take-off) sequence. It's either 
black 
> or white and not both
> 
> Matt K
> Zero
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