Chair flying / Turns Around a Point

Turns Around a Point

Fly two or more constant-radius circles around a ground reference, continuously varying bank to correct for wind drift — steepest downwind, shallowest upwind.

Chair fly it ACS V.B — Ground Reference Maneuvers

Pre-Maneuver Checklist (CRAAC)

Clearing turns — two 90° turns or one 180° turn; look for traffic
Reference point — select a visual reference and set the heading bug
Altitude — high enough to complete the maneuver at or above 1,500 ft AGL
ACS minimums: slow flight and stall recovery complete ≥1,500 ft AGL; ground reference maneuvers enter at 600–1,000 ft AGL.
Airspeed — at or below Va (105 @ 2,325 lb / 90 @ 1,900 lb kt)
Configuration — fuel pump ON, lights ON, mixture RICH, flaps as needed

Setup

Select a prominent point with a suitable emergency landing area nearby
Clean configuration, 2,100 RPM (80–85 kt)
Descend to 600–1,000 ft AGL; radius roughly ¼–½ mile

Execution

Enter downwind, abeam the point, rolling into the steepest bank (up to 45°)
Highest groundspeed is downwind — that is where bank is steepest. Shallowest bank is at the upwind point. Bank continuously varies with groundspeed around the circle.
Shallow the bank toward the upwind side, then steepen again toward downwind
Crab into and out of the wind on the crosswind portions to hold the radius

Recovery

Roll out on the entry heading; maintain altitude throughout

ACS tolerances

Altitude ±100 ft
Airspeed ±10 kt
Constant radius, bank not to exceed 45°

Common errors

Not steepening the bank enough at the downwind point
Egg-shaped track from poor drift correction on the crosswind sides
Fixating on the point and losing altitude