Aircraft trim in a pattern and final approach....?

Question

Do commercial pilots take the time to trim the airplane when in the pattern to land, and on final approach, or do they simply fly by hand?

Answer 1

yep, trim to alleviate the load on the controls.

Answer 2

Whether flying by hand or by autopilot, the airplane has to be constantly trimmed. One cannot fly smoothly or precisely otherwise, and on large aircraft the control pressures become so great it physically becomes a challenge to control the aircraft without it being re-trimmed for any change in the flight configuration.

Answer 3

We trim CONSTANTLY.

Every time you make a control input, you learn to habitually trim the control pressures off the yoke.  We normally have a trim switch on the yoke rather than a trim wheel on the floor, which makes it a little easier, but we are always clicking on it.

We also have aileron trim and rudder trim we use to keep the aircraft coordinated and to help make our lives easier in the turns.

Answer 4

If you can keep the aircraft on 'autopilot' from start to finish you may not need to trim, but....Trimming makes flying so much easier, I do it whenever I can.

Answer 5

Large planes are IMPOSSIBLE to fly without using trim.  If you are talking about flight simulators vs. the real plane, the real thing is much easier.  We just use a thumb control on our flying hand to trim away any pressure.  It really becomes second nature.

Answer 6

I don't know much..or anything, about trim, but I do know that on final approach, the pilots center the trim. I think this is so that the plane doesn't accidentally turn off the runway.