Two speeds run this takeoff. Vx, the best angle of climb speed, gives the greatest gain in altitude over a given distance across the ground. Vy, the best rate of climb speed, gives the greatest gain in a given time. Over an obstacle you want angle. Once clear, you want rate.
Task IV-E runs like this. Line up on the centerline using the maximum takeoff area available, with the flaps the manufacturer recommends. Hold the brakes while you set power and confirm takeoff power before you release them. Lift off at the recommended speed and climb at the obstacle clearance speed, or Vx, within +10/-5 knots until the obstacle is behind you, or to 50 feet if it is imaginary. Then pitch for Vy and clean up once you have a positive rate of climb.
The Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C, chapter 6) adds two cautions. Some pilots hold the brakes until the engine reaches maximum rpm, but the handbook says it "has not been established" that this shortens the run in all light single-engine airplanes. And raise the flaps in increments, because a sudden loss of lift this close to the ground lets the airplane settle.
The Vx window is lopsided: 10 knots on the fast side, 5 on the slow side. The slow side is where the stall lives.
Wind matters as much as length. The Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (FAA-H-8083-25C, chapter 11) estimates that a headwind of 10 percent of takeoff airspeed cuts takeoff distance by about 19 percent, and a tailwind of the same size adds about 21 percent. The AFH also asks you to pick a point on the runway where you should be airborne, and to stop the takeoff if you are not.
Not training yet? A two-hour first lesson is $349, all-in, from the same ramp.
The Short-Field Approach And Landing
Task IV-F asks for a stabilized approach at the published approach speed or, if there is none, no more than 1.3 Vso, within +10/-5 knots with the gust factor applied. Touchdown must come within 200 feet beyond or on the specified point, with no side drift, minimum float, and the airplane aligned with and over the centerline. You are within 30 percent of the stall speed in landing configuration, so the feel you build in slow flight and stall practice carries straight over.
Step 1 of 4
Fly A Stabilized Final At The Book Speed
Configure early. The AFH calls for full flaps at an appropriate point on final and the POH procedures for the rest. In gusty air, add no more than one-half the gust factor. Extra knots show up later as float.
Step 2 of 4
Aim At The Point, Not Past It
Choose the touchdown point with the wind, the surface and any obstacle in mind. When an obstacle is present, a slightly steeper approach angle puts the touchdown closer to it.
Step 3 of 4
Touch Down With Little Or No Float
The handbook wants touchdown at minimum controllable airspeed. Little or no float in the flare tells you the approach speed was right, and a 200-foot box does not last long at landing speed.
Step 4 of 4
Brake Firmly And Hold The Back Pressure
Once the nosewheel is down, the AFH calls for maximum braking with back pressure held. The ACS defers to the manufacturer's recommended configuration and braking, so the POH has the final word.
The Soft-Field Takeoff
On grass, mud or snow the surface holds the airplane back. The PHAK says any surface that is not hard and smooth increases the ground roll. Task IV-C is built around getting weight off the wheels. Taxi onto the runway and line up without stopping, advancing the throttle smoothly to takeoff power, because stopping on mud or snow, the AFH warns, might bog the airplane down.
Hold back-elevator pressure to raise the nose. The ACS asks for a pitch attitude that "transfers the weight of the airplane from the wheels to the wings as rapidly as possible." Hold it, and in the handbook's words the airplane "virtually flies itself off the ground."
Then comes the part that feels wrong. Lower the nose gently, wheels just clear of the runway, and accelerate in ground effect. The AFH describes ground effect as improved performance close to the surface, normally up to a height of one wingspan, and warns that an airplane leaving it too slowly can settle back even with full power. Stay in it until at least Vx, then climb at Vx or Vy, within +10/-5 knots.
Expect to need right rudder. Nose high at full power, the airplane wants to swing left, which is why the ACS lists left-turning tendencies as knowledge for this task.
Planning a grass strip, a mountain airport or an island? Book a free consultation at Van Nuys. It takes about half an hour, costs nothing, and you leave with a plan and real numbers. Bring your logbook if you have one.
The Soft-Field Approach And Landing
Task IV-D uses the same approach speed rule as the short-field landing. The difference is at the bottom: touch down at the lowest possible airspeed in a nose-high attitude, with minimum sink rate and no side drift.
Power is the tool. The AFH has you carry some power through the level-off and touchdown, and a slight addition of power helps ease the nosewheel down. It recommends flaps whenever practical, because they let you touch down slower.
After touchdown, hold the nosewheel off until the elevator runs out of authority; the ACS wording is "until loss of elevator effectiveness." Leave the brakes alone. The handbook says brakes on a soft field should be avoided, since they can cause the nosewheel to dig in, and on very soft ground you may need more power just to keep moving.
The standard describes what the airplane does rather than what the runway is made of, so the technique can be flown on a paved runway as well as a soft one.
The Airplanes You Practice Them In
Every speed and flap setting in these tasks comes from the POH of the airplane you fly, which is why none are printed here. Our private pilot students split about evenly across three trainers, according to our 2023–2026 student cost study.
The Cessna 162 Skycatcher
Six of them, N60225, N7030B, N6039M, N179LC, N5208V and N52049. Two seats, a high wing, a 100 hp Continental and a Garmin G300 glass panel; $179 an hour in a package, $269 retail. Specs are on our Cessna 162 guide.
The Diamond DA20-C1
N306EF and N308EF: two seats, a low wing, a control stick and a bubble canopy. It is utility category and our spin-training airplane; $229 in a package, $329 retail, or a two-hour lesson for $549. More on our DA20-C1 guide.
