Step up To Floats

Other Topics
Flying Skills-Sport

Step up to Floats
by John Rennie
158 pages $19.95

A no-nonsense training manual developed for the well known Jack Brown's Seaplane Base in Winter Haven, FL and now used in many seaplane schools throughout the US. It is based around the operation of a J-3 Cub on twin Edo floats. Rennie begins with a basic understanding of float systems, the water handling environment, float plane regulations, wind and weather concerns, and then practical handling techniques both on the water and when airborne.

This book is easy to understand, highly illustrated, and includes step by step performance goals with each chapter from which to build to the next level of proficiency. This book is for the land pilot who wants an introduction to water flying. It assumes basic flying skills and will take you from that point to where you need to be to earn your float rating and to safely and proficiently enjoy flying from the other 3/4ths of the Earth's surface.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
The Airplane
     Brief introduction to the J-3 Cub
     Specifications
     Cabin
     Seaplane kit
     Penalties
     Floats
Floats in General
     Introduction to Floats
     Internal Structures of floats
     Retractable water rudders
     Chine, Spray rail
     Step, Skeg, Keel
     Hull, Keelson, Lift Boosters
     Spreader bars
     Struts
     Bracing wires
Pre-Flight
     Struts and Rudders
     Mooring cleats, Floats
     Flotation required
Regulations
     FAR part 91.115
     Safety rules for seaplanes
     Bodies of water and jurisdiction
     Beacons, seaplane base symbols
Wind
     Weather vaning tendency
     Terminology of waves and the ocean
     Visual lake wind chart
     The effect of wind on a seaplane
Taxiing
     General movement of a floatplane
     Idle taxi
     Plow taxi and turn; crosswind taxi
     Step taxi and turn; porpoising
     Sailing, power off and power on
     Docking, beaching, and ramping
Water Flying
     Normal take-off
     Climbout and Traffic Pattern
     Normal water landing
     Rough water takeoff
     Rough water landing
     Glassy water takeoff
     Glassy water landing
Upper Airwork
     Steep turns
     Slow flight
     Departure stalls
     Landing stalls
    The Armchair Flight Test
Study Questions
Seaplane Directory