05 Slow Flight and Stalling
CASA Recreational Pilot License (Aeroplane) — CASA Sample Syllabus Lesson 5.
This set of briefings introduces the student to the aerodynamics of the stall, the symptoms of an imminent and a fully developed stall, and the correct recovery technique. Students will practise slow flight, stall recovery with and without power, a landing-configuration stall, and observe an instructor demonstration of wing-drop and spin avoidance. The HASELL check is introduced as the mandatory pre-exercise safety procedure for all stalling manoeuvres.
Theory Brief — Part 1: Understanding and Recognising Stalls
Section titled “Theory Brief — Part 1: Understanding and Recognising Stalls”Stall aerodynamics: what a stall is and why it happens, stall avoidance, how control effectiveness degrades at slow speed, and the symptoms of an imminent and fully developed stall. View the slides on this page below or open the slides directly.
Theory Brief — Part 2: Performance and Recovery of Stalls
Section titled “Theory Brief — Part 2: Performance and Recovery of Stalls”Stall recovery technique, the effect of power and flap on the stall, factors that change stall speed (weight, ‘g’, bank, ice), instrument indications during a stall, and the HASELL pre-exercise check. View the slides on this page below or open the slides directly.
Pre-flight briefing notes
Section titled “Pre-flight briefing notes”The pre-flight brief (~15–20 min, immediately before the flight) works best as an interactive whiteboard session, not slides — stepping through the flight plan, the HASELL check, the recovery sequence, and threats together with the student. These printable notes give you the briefing components (aim, flight walk-through, HASELL, recovery rehearsal, threats) with prompts and fill-in blanks, plus a front page to sketch your own whiteboard plan and running order. Plan and rehearse the whiteboard yourself before the lesson, but remember: modelling the process of the pre-flight brief — and the HASELL and recovery rehearsal especially — matters more than presenting a polished brief. This is why we do it interactively rather than as a presentation. Download the PDF of the briefing notes to print or use offline.
In-flight notes
Section titled “In-flight notes”Instructor kneeboard reference for the airborne sequence. These use a portrait layout for easier use on a kneeboard or device. View the slides on this page on the right or open the slides directly, or download the PDF of the in-flight notes to print or use on your device offline.
Post-flight debrief
Section titled “Post-flight debrief”I plan to add post-flight debriefs once I have more experience conducting them, but I’m assuming it’ll be more of a personal preference with assessment outcomes than a set of slides.
Useful resources for students
Section titled “Useful resources for students”- The NZ Civil Aviation Authority has a one-page basic stalling whiteboard that summarises the aerodynamics and recovery technique — suitable for the student if they want to download it for themselves.
- The NZ CAA also has a slow flight whiteboard which pairs well with the early part of the theory.
Example email to students before the lesson
Section titled “Example email to students before the lesson”If you are an instructor, feel free to modify this for your own use. Sending an email a few days before a lesson is a great way to engage people in the learning before they even arrive (if they have time and capacity).
Subject: Lesson 5 — Slow flight and stalling
Hi [name],
This next lesson probably sounds scary - who wants to stall a plane?! But rest assured, we’ll be learning how to intentionally stall the plane and recover from a stall, all from a safe altitude.
Don’t worry — this is completely safe when done correctly at altitude, and it is exactly how pilots are trained to handle the situation if it ever occurs accidentally. That’s why it’s such an important lesson that we need to work through before your first solo flight!
Before our flight we’ll do two short theory sessions (~0.8 hr total) covering what actually causes a stall (it’s not just flying too slowly - though that is the main cause), how to recognise one coming, and the correct recovery technique. We’ll also cover the HASELL check — the safety procedure we complete before every stalling exercise.
If you’d like to prepare, you could watch FlightClub’s What is a Stall video on YouTube [1]. Understanding the concept beforehand will help you get more out of the flight. We’ll be using the briefings form Open Aviation Solutions which you can work through beforehand if you’d like [2].
When: [day]
See you then! [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuGPcvC4vbw [2] https://open-aviation-solutions.github.io/open-aviation-briefings/recreational-pilot-license/05-stalling/