I chatted with my senior on Weibo about low-altitude passes; here are my notes.

Overview: An instructor pilots a light aircraft for a pass at 1 meter. (A low-altitude pass refers to an aircraft flying over the airport Runway or over the front of the viewing stand during flight, Source: Baidu Baike)

Objective: To help the student establish the concept and sensation of low-altitude flight, essentially cultivating the flight feel for landing.

Difficulty: Maintaining altitude relies on observing external visual references, requiring the instructor’s superb piloting technique while simultaneously explaining to the student. Speed and throttle rely purely on feel (senses and limbs). Too much speed, and the lesson loses its value; too little speed, and you risk dropping out of the sky, becoming a laughingstock for the student.

More Difficult Flying: When training night flight for instructors in small aircraft: Visual Flight Rules (VFR) with all lights extinguished. Altitude is estimated, speed is felt, throttle is set by ear, and landing occurs without lights. Regarding judging speed: The relationship between throttle setting and speed varies with different aircraft configurations. Therefore, rely on the throttle position first, and then rely on experience.

Fin