Loss of Control - inadvertant spins

[jedi]

I just read another article about loss of control due to an inadvertant spin. It was like many other good articles that I have read about spins - they are good/accurate as far as they go. One thing I believe could be made clearer: a spin will only occur when: 1) wing stalls and 2) the airplane is skidding. No skid no spin. Everyone gets the first point right and kind of obfuscates the second. Most articles correctly state that an airplane can be stalled at any airspeed or attitude. I would like to see a similar type statement about a skid - e.g. the airplane can be made to skid while coordinated or slipping by improper use of the controls. The airplane has to be skidding to spin. The FAA Airplane Flying Handbook hints at this, but does not state it clearly or explicitly. In fact, it misleadingly states that a slipping or yawed airplane can enter a spin. It is true that while the airplane is slipping or is yawed, the pilot can misapply the controls and enter a skid/stall/spin. The same can said about straight and level flight. An airplane only spins from a skid.

I started flying in WV during the Nixon administration. I learned several valid reasons to slip an airplane. I have never learned a valid reason to skid an airplane.

"An airplane only spins from a skid." Not true!

A spin will result from a slip or a skid, in other words any yawed flight.

I believe the current common explanation of the skidded turn to final is not the common cause of loss of control accidents. I also do not believe the "bad piloting" excuse. Too many experienced pilots have bought the farm to have that hold up in the court of common sense. I can name many examples.

I would gladly give more details but I have a plane to catch. I have tried to get the word out on this but there is limited interest as "all airplanes perform well at low speeds" and all "pilots are trained to the FAA standard and know about stall spin issues".

Name one production airplane or popular kit that has poor stall spin characteristics or ask one pilot to come forward that has inadequate stall spin training. I would like to have a discussion about that. Furthermore, stall spin is not the only loss of control associated with the "turn to final" crash. What about "loss of aileron effectiveness". Have you been trained in that scenario? Is that a "hot topic". Should be, IMHO.

Buy the way do you know that an aircraft in a spin may have the ball either left or right or centered. It is the turn needle that shows the direction of the spin. Can you tell me where the turn needle is in a glass cockpit. Not easy to find in many cases.